A WORKING MAN : Tuesday 1st April 2025

I saw the MA15+ Rated 'A WORKING MAN' this week, and this American action thriller is Co-Written for the screen and Co-Produced by Sylvester Stallone and David Ayer and Directed by David Ayer, whose prior film making credits take in his Directorial debut in 2005 with 'Harsh Times', and which he would follow up with other titles including 'Street Kings' in 2008, 'End of Watch' in 2012, 'Fury' in 2014, 'Suicide Squad' in 2016, 'Bright' in 2017 and 'The Beekeeper' in 2024. This film is based on Chuck Dixon's 2014 novel 'Levon's Trade'. The film was released in the US last week too, has so far grossed US$36M from a production budget of US$40M and has garnered mixed or average reviews. 

Here, we are introduced to Levon Cade (Jason Statham, who also Co-Produces here), an ex-Royal Marines Commando who leads a peaceful life as a leader of a construction company in Chicago. 

He is close to the owners of the company - the Garcia family run by husband and wife team Joe (Michael Pena) and Carla (Noemi Gonzalez) respectively, together with their nineteen year old daughter Jenny (Arianna Rivas) who works in an unofficial capacity completing lesser tasks while still studying. On the day of her nineteenth birthday Jenny is kidnapped from a club she was attending that night with three other girlfriends, by Russian traffickers, bundled into the back of a van and whisked away. 

The next day Levon comes into work as normal only to be greeted by a distraught Joe and Carla saying that their daughter is missing, and pleading for Levon to find her and bring her back to them. Levon declines saying that he is no longer that man, and cannot help them. 

Later, Levon visits a former colleague whom he served with and whose life he saved although he couldn't save his eyes which now leaves Gunny Lefferty (David Harbour) blind. Gunny lives in a remote cabin in the woods, and Levon tells him the story of how Jenny is missing. Gunny tells Levon what he already knew - that he would go after those who abducted Jenny and bring her back home - he just wanted to hear it from someone else. Levon later goes to the Garcia household and tells Joe that he'll bring Jenny back to them. 

Levon learns early on that the organisation who has taken Jenny is run by the Bratva (Russian mafia), led by Symon Kharchenko (Andrej Kaminsky). After Levon interrogates and kills high-ranking captain Wolo Kolisnyk (Jason Flemyng) by drowning him whilst tied to a chair in his own pool. Symon sends his sons Danya (Greg Kolpakchi) and Vanko (Piotr Witkowski) after Levon. Levon infiltrates the organisation by pretending to be a dealer to get close to Wolo's estranged son Dimi (Maximilian Osinski), who runs the trafficking side of the business. Jenny's captors, Viper (Emmett J. Scanlan) and Artemis (Eve Mauro), try to sell her to a client, but Jenny bites the man's cheek so badly he needs thirty-six stitches and is ordered to be killed, until the client changes his mind and wants to try again with her. Meanwhile, Levon is caught by Danya and Vanko, but he kills them in close quarter combat in the back of a van, eventually dumping them and the van in a river where it quickly submerges. Later as Symon is mourning the loss of his two sons laid out in a mortuary, this signals that things have got very personal between Levon and him.

Levon takes his young daughter Merry (Isla Gie) out of school for a few days to stay with Gunny and his wife after the thugs find out who he is and threaten him, having already burned down the house where Merry lives with her grandfather after Levon's wife died two years previously. Levon rescues his father-in-law, with whom he has a very rocky relationship, who at least is grateful for saving his life. Having armed up with Gunny's secret stash of weaponry, Levon later tracks down Dimi and gets him to lead him to the compound where Jenny is being held. 

Levon kills Dimi and proceeds to gun down, knife or grenade every last Russian goon in his path, including a biker gang and their leader who arrive on the scene after the initial bloodbath. Levon finds Jenny, kills the client, then kills Viper while Jenny kills Artemis. Following this second round two more of Symon's heavies arrive on the scene - Nestor (Ricky Champ) and Karp (Max Croes), with the latter machine gunning down a police squad car that arrives who are also in on the trafficking scheme. Levon then dispenses with these two before escaping with Jenny on a motorbike, while Symon looks on from outside and out of view. Symon calls his brother to tell him of this latest development but is told to leave Levon alone and that nobody in the organisation is going to help him in his crusade for revenge, and if he persists then he will be killed. Do you understand his brother asks, to which Symon responds with a yes. He hangs up and screams into the night. 

Levon returns Jenny home to her family who all embrace and rejoice her safe arrival, before he goes off to reunite with Merry and Gunny.

Penned by Stallone and Ayer and Directed by the latter, 'A Working Man' offers nothing we haven't already seen countless times before courtesy of films from the likes of Stallone, Neeson and Butler. Here, once again Statham does what he does best as the everyman trying to put his past to rest but is called upon to unleash his very particular set of skills to reign down all hell on earth on, in this case, the Russian mob through the inventive use of guns, blades, grenades, pick axes, sledge hammers, a bucket of screws and a sack of cement. And in this respect this action flick works and delivers Statham's signature brand of ass kicking, but the storyline and the dialogue is thin on the ground, and any hints at humour fall flat. This film is not up there with last years Statham and Ayer actioner 'The Beekeeper', and it delivers nothing new to an already overcrowded genre, but what you get is exactly what it says on the box. 

'A Working Man' warrants three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 27th March 2025

The 23rd Garden State Film Festival (GSFF) kicks off on Thursday 27th March and runs through until Sunday 30th March, and is New Jersey’s Premier Independent Film Festival that enriches the State with robust year-round programming. Founded in 2002, the artistic philosophy of the Garden State Film Festival is rooted in the celebration of the independent film genre and the creation of a forum where local and other independent filmmakers can exhibit their work. It was also created to pay tribute to New Jersey’s legacy as the birthplace of the American filmmaking industry in Thomas Edison’s Menlo Park laboratories where he invented the first film cameras and projectors, to Fort Lee, where the original studios were founded. The event provides novice and aspiring filmmakers, actors, and others interested in careers in the film business, the opportunity to meet and network with industry professionals in an atmosphere conducive to learning and mentoring - so reads the official website.

The feature films being showcased at this years festival are as follows :-

* 'The Ballad of a Hustler' - is a Latino human rights drama Directed by Heitor Dhalia. From the USA.

* 'Bardejov' - this drama based on a true story is Directed by Danny A. Abeckaser. From the USA.

* 'Beggarman' - this drama film is Directed by Danny Montero . From the USA.

* 'The Compatriots' - is a comedy drama film Directed by Spencer Cohen. From the USA.

* 'Counting In' - is a mockumentary comedy Film Directed by Griffin M. Davis. From the USA.

* 'First Rites' - this action drama film is Directed by Michael Fredianelli. From the USA.

* 'Here's Yianni!' - is a drama film Directed by Christina Eliopoulos and stars Eric Roberts, Rosanna Arquette, Julia Ormand and Kevin Pollack. From the USA.

* 'If That Mockingbird Don't Sing' - this comedy drama film is Directed by Sadie Bones. From the USA.

* 'Lady Parts' - is a comedy drama film Directed by Nancy Boyd. From the USA.

* 'Love, Danielle' - this comedy drama film is Directed by Marianna Palka and stars Lesley Ann Warren. From the USA.

* 'Scarlet Winter' - is an action drama film Directed by Munjal Yagnik. From the USA.

* 'The Short Game' - is a family sports drama film Directed by Frank Sanza. From the USA.

* 'The Creep From the Bar Last Night' - this drama film is Directed by Michael Coppola. From the USA.

For the full synopsis of the above named films, plus all the details of the documentary features, the short films and a whole bunch of other good stuff, you can go to the official website at : https://www.gsff.org/

This week we have six new movie release offerings to tease you out to your local Odeon, kicking off with an action thriller that sees a man who left his profession behind to work construction and be a good dad to his daughter, but when a local girl vanishes, he's asked to return to the skills that made him a mythic figure in the shadowy world of counter-terrorism. This is followed up by a psychological horror film about a mysterious woman who repeatedly appears in a family's front yard, often delivering chilling warnings and unsettling messages, leaving them to question her identity, motives and the potential danger she might pose. Next up is a Sci-Fi set on a struggling cattle farm some years in the future, where a woman discovers the unsettling consequences of her husband's animal breeding technology. Then we turn to a drama film about a man, one of sixty thousand draft evaders and deserters who fled to Canada to avoid serving in Vietnam, who shares all his secrets to de-mythologise his mythologised life. Following on is a Japanese documentary about an ample cat colony that inhabits a Shinto shrine - residents care for them and others are disturbed by the mess - here the filmmaker observes their coexistence. And closing out the week we have an Aussie doco about the legend, the mateship, the magic—made against all odds, this film unveils the untold story behind Australia’s most successful film. 

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the six latest release new films as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release or as Reviewed and Previewed in previous Blog Posts here at Odeon Online, you are most welcome to share your movie going thoughts, opinions and observations by leaving your relevant, succinct and appropriate views in the Comments section below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and in the meantime, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the week ahead.

'A WORKING MAN' (Rated MA15+) - is an American action thriller that is Co-Written for the screen and Co-Produced by Sylvester Stallone and David Ayer and Directed by David Ayer, whose prior film making credits take in his Directorial debut in 2005 with 'Harsh Times', and which he would follow up with other titles including 'Street Kings' in 2008, 'End of Watch' in 2012, 'Fury' in 2014, 'Suicide Squad' in 2016, 'Bright' in 2017 and 'The Beekeeper' in 2024. This film is based on Chuck Dixon's 2014 novel 'Levon's Trade'. The film is released in the US this week too.

Here, Levon Cade (Jason Statham, who also Co-Produces here), an ex-Royal Marines Commando, leads a peaceful life as a construction worker in Chicago. However, Levon is forced to use his old set of skills to find the teenaged daughter Jenny Garcia (Arianna Rivas) of his boss Joe Garcia (Michael Pena), who has been kidnapped by human traffickers, and soon uncovers a conspiracy of corruption and government agents' involvement in human trafficking. Also starring David Harbour and Jason Flemyng.

'THE WOMAN IN THE YARD' (Rated CTC) - this American psychological horror film is Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, whose prior feature film credits take in his debut with 'House of Wax' in 2005, followed by others including 'Orphan' in 2009, 'Unknown' in 2011, 'Non-Stop' in 2014, 'Run All Night' in 2015, 'The Commuter' in 2018 (these last four films all starred Liam Neeson), 'Jungle Cruise' in 2021, 'Black Adam' in 2022 and 'Carry On' most recently in 2024. Here then, Ramona (Danielle Deadwyler) is a woman crippled by grief after she survives a car accident that takes her husband (Russell Hornsby). Seriously injured, Ramona now must care for their 14-year-old son (Peyton Jackson) and 6-year-old-daughter (Estella Kahiha), alone in her rural farmhouse. A lone, spectral woman (Okwui Okpokwasili) shrouded entirely in black appears on their front lawn without explanation and warns them 'today's the day'. The film is released Stateside this week too.

'IN VITRO' (Rated M) - is an Australian Sci-Fi film Co-Written for the screen and Directed by Will Howarth (who also Co-Produces and Co-stars here) and Tom Mckeith. Set in the near future, Layla (Talia Zucker) and her husband Jack (Ashley Zukerman) live on an remote cattle property hundreds of miles from the nearest neighbour. With their son away at boarding school, Jack spends his days tending to the livestock and experimenting with new biotechnology, Layla pines for her son and the life she once had. One night, everything changes when a storm knocks out power to the property and they soon discover that something unknown has been released onto the farm. But as Layla discovers more about the mysterious presence and Jack’s behaviour becomes increasingly controlling, Layla finally uncovers a secret that brings her face to face with the reality of her relationship with Jack and their life on the farm. The film premiered at last years Sydney Film Festival in June, and only now is it released here in Australia. 

'OH, CANADA' (Rated M) - this American drama film is Written and Directed by Paul Schrader, and is based on the 2021 novel 'Foregone' by Russell Banks. Schrader made his Directorial debut with 'Blue Collar' in 1978 and over the years he would follow this up with the likes of 'American Gigolo' in 1980, 'Cat People' in 1982, 'Affliction' in 1997, 'Dying of the Light' in 2014, 'Dog Eat Dog' in 2016, 'First Reformed' in 2017, 'The Card Counter' in 2021, and 'Master Gardener' in 2022. Here, filmmaker Leonard 'Leo' Fife (played by Richard Gere in the present and Jacob Elordi in flashbacks) is dying of cancer. He is a hero to Canadian progressives, who revere his award-winning muckraking documentaries and are fascinated by his life story. According to legend, Leo fled America for Montreal to dodge the Vietnam War draft, and went on a Kerouac-style road trip to Castro's communist Cuba. In his last days, he agrees to sit for a CBC documentary filmed by his former students Malcolm (Michael Imperioli) and Diana (Victoria Hill). Malcolm promises that he is making an admiring retrospective of Leo’s career. Also starring Uma Thurman. The film saw its World Premiere at last years Cannes Film Festival in mid-May, was released in the US in early December, has so far grossed US$1.2M and has garnered generally favourable critical reviews.

'THE CATS OF GOKOGU SHRINE' (Rated G) - is a Japanese documentary film Co-Produced, Directed, photographed, and Edited by Kazuhiro Soda. Gokogu is a small, ancient Shinto shrine in Ushimado, Japan. Home to dozens of street cats, it is also known as Cat Shrine. Many people visit the shrine for various reasons - some to worship gods, others to enjoy gardening. Some people come to clean the shrine as volunteers while others just stop by on their way to fish Japanese sardinella, and, it is the perfect place for kids to play after school. It is a heaven for cat-loving residents and visitors too. Some people visit Gokogu to feed the freely roaming stray cats. Others just come to see these cats or to take pictures of them. But some residents complain about the waste the cats leave around the neighbourhood. Gokogu looks peaceful on the surface, but it is also the epicentre of a sensitive issue that divides the local community. 

'LOVE OF AN ICON : THE LEGEND OF CROCODILE DUNDEE' (Rated PG) - this Australian documentary film is Co-Written, Co-Produced and Co-Directed by Victoria Baldock and Delvene Delaney. Crocodile Dundee burst onto global cinema screens, and into the hearts of millions, nearly forty years ago in 1986, and remains Australia’s most successful film ever. What were the magic ingredients that contributed to this cultural icon? And why does it still mean so much to so many? This origin story behind the box office record breaking classic, features Paul Hogan (who starred as Michael J. 'Crocodile' Dundee in all three films in the franchise), Delvene Delaney, the late John Cornell (Co-Creator), Linda Kozlowski, Peter Fairman (Director), Russell Boyd (Cinematographer), David Gulpilil and the late John Meillon among many others.

With six new release movie offerings this week to tempt you out to your local Odeon, remember to share your movie going thoughts with your other like minded cinephile friends afterwards here at Odeon Online. In the meantime, I'll see you sometime somewhere at your local Odeon in the coming week.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

THE BEEKEEPER : Tuesday 23rd January 2024.

I saw the MA15+ Rated 'THE BEEKEEPER' at my local multiplex earlier this week, and this American action thriller film is Co-Produced and Directed by David Ayer, whose prior feature film making credits take in the likes of his Directing debut in 2005 with 'Harsh Times' then 'Street Kings' in 2008, 'End of Watch' in 2012, 'Fury' in 2014, 'Suicide Squad' in 2016 and 'Bright' in 2017. This film was released in the US and here in Australia from the 11th January, has garnered generally positive critical reviews, and has so far grossed US$79M. 

The film opens up in rural Massachusetts and the rather grand looking country home of Eloise Parker (Phylicia Rashad), a retired schoolteacher who lives by herself, but she has a tenant in her barn, a man named Adam Clay (Jason Statham, who also Co-Produces here) who leads a quiet life as a beekeeper and who harvests the honey religiously. On this particular day, Clay is returning from another barn with a rogue hive he has bagged, and stops for a brief conversation with Eloise - thanking her for looking after him. 

She invites him in for dinner that evening. Later that same day, Eloise falls victim to a phishing scam and is robbed of over US$2M which belongs to a children's charity organisation she manages, and all of her life savings from several bank accounts. Devastated, she takes her own life with a pistol.

After Clay finds her body, he is immediately arrested by FBI agent Verona Parker (Emmy Raver-Lampman), Eloise’s daughter. After Eloise's death is ruled a suicide, Clay is released. Verona later tells Clay that the group that robbed Eloise has been on the FBI's radar for a while, but is almost impossible to track down, and even harder to get an indictment. She is pessimistic that they will ever be brought to justice even if they are found. Wanting justice for Eloise, Clay re-establishes contact with the Beekeepers, a mystery organisation, to find the scammers responsible.

Clay is later provided with an address for the scammers: a call centre known as UDG, run by Mickey Garnett (David Witts). Clay goes into UDG's building armed with two jerry cans of petrol, and after easily fending off the employees and taking down a handful of Garnett's men, blows up the building. Garnett informs his boss, technology executive Derek Danforth (Josh Hutcherson). Danforth orders Garnett to track down and kill Clay. 

Garnett and his thugs by chance locate Clay at Eloise's place and follow him to his barn, but not before shooting up his six beehives. There, Clay quickly kills them all except for Garnett, whose four fingers of his right hand he cuts off with a band saw before releasing him. Garnett in a panic and nursing his injured hand, calls Danforth while stopped at a bridge, informing him that Clay is just a beekeeper. Clay, having followed Garnett, kills him while Danforth listens over the phone, and then warns Danforth that he is coming after him.

Danforth talks with Wallace Westwyld (Jeremy Irons) about Clay. Wallace, the former head of the CIA, is currently running security for Danforth Enterprises at the request of Derek's mother, Jessica (Jemma Redgrave), and does everything in his power to keep Danforth out of trouble, out of prison and out of the spotlight. Concerned, Wallace contacts the Director Howard of the CIA (Minnie Driver) in the hope of stopping Clay. The Director contacts the Beekeepers, and learns that Clay has since retired from the organisation. However, a Beekeeper is sent to kill Clay, who catches up with him while he is refuelling his car at a petrol station. Following a vicious fight, Clay burns the agent to death, causing the petrol station to explode in the process. In the aftermath, the Beekeepers inform Director Howard who in turn informs Westwyld that they will remain neutral and not pursue Clay.

In the meantime, Verona and her partner, Matt Wiley (Bobby Naderi), have been closely following the trail of destruction left behind at the crime scenes. They determine that Clay’s next target must be the Nine Points Center in Boston, which is the central hub for all of Danforth's call centres around the world, including UDG. After informing FBI Deputy Director Prigg (Don Gilet) that Clay is a Beekeeper, they receive full funding without hesitation.

Wallace meanwhile coordinates a group of ex-special forces personnel, telling them that the Beekeepers are a clandestine organisation tasked with keeping the USA safe and that they operate above and beyond governmental jurisdiction. To have any chance at stopping Clay, he orders the group to secure the inside of the Nine Points Building, while the FBI places their own SWAT team around the perimeter. Despite the special forces’ leader's insistence that the employees should be removed from the building first, Danforth tells them to keep working. This allows Clay to quickly defeat the FBI SWAT team in close quarter hand to hand combat, and infiltrate the building, taking down the manager, who reveals to Clay and the FBI, after having multiple staples plugged into his hands and forehead, that Derek Danforth is his boss.

Verona advises FBI Deputy Director Prigg that Derek Danforth actually runs both companies and that both are owned by Danforth Enterprises, which is used by several US government agencies, including their own. Verona also brings up the point that not only will Clay attempt to kill Derek, but he may also kill Jessica, who just so happens to be the President of the USA, using the Queenslayer analogy from the science of beekeeping. Prigg gives them a blank cheque to take whatever steps and use all necessary resources to prevent Clay from finalising his mission, and then signs off to inform the President. 

Wallace, upset that Clay has again evaded being taken out, suggests that Danforth stay with his mother for the time being for his own protection and taking advantage of the Secret Service presence at her beachside residence over the coming weekend. Wallace hires a group of mercenaries, who with Danforth, all congregate at the President's beachside retreat for the weekend where she is hosting a lavish party. Close by to the entrance to the President’s residence, Clay climbs aboard the underside of a truck, switching places with a Secret Service agent in order to blend in at the party. Once inside the house, Verona notices Clay, who by this time has dispensed with his Secret Service gear and is more appropriately dressed, but as he is about to be shot at close range by one of Wallace's hired mercenaries, he activates several bombs he planted on Secret Service trucks as a distraction in order to track down Danforth in hiding in the house.

Inside the house, Prigg tells Jessica about her son's multi-billion dollar scam operations. Danforth reminds his mother that during her Presidential campaign, that she lagged behind in the polls in fifteen out of twenty key counties and needed funding to keep her campaign afloat. He used a CIA programme to locate wealthy financial targets and scam them out of their money. Jessica decides that if and when Clay approaches, she will tell him and the world the truth about her sons use of the programme. Enraged, Danforth kills Prigg and takes his mother hostage. Clay in the meantime fights his way to the President's office taking out anyone who stands in his way. He eventually reaches her office by blowing the door open, and is quickly followed by Verona and the rest of the FBI agents. Verona tries to discourage Clay from killing Jessica and Danforth, who attempts to kill his mother, but Clay shoots his in the head first killing him outright. Clay then jumps out of a nearby window. Verona having a clear shot of Clay as he heads across the garden, but she decides not to shoot him. They give a parting nod to each other and he flees the scene and swims away into the ocean with the aid of the scuba gear he had buried in the sand on the beach close by. 

With 'The Beekeeper' Jason Statham's Adam Clay does what he absolutely does best and that is wipe out the bad guys in all manner of inventive and creative ways, and ratcheting the body count up to the nth degree. David Ayer knows how to lay on the action spectacle, and does so with aplomb, but in the end the script is hardly going to win any literary awards, and the plot in run-o-the-mill and leave your brain at the door type stuff. That said, if you get past all the bee puns, including several references to 'protecting the hive', seeing Statham kick butt relentlessly and violently backed up by a strong supporting cast, and liked the premise of 'John Wick', 'Taken' and 'The Kingsmen' franchises, then this movie is for you, and you won't be disappointed. 

'The Beekeeper' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 11th January 2024.

The 81st Golden Globe Awards were held on Sunday 7th January at The Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, California, USA and was hosted by Jo Koy, the American stand-up comedian and Actor.  The Golden Globes are presented for film and American television productions of 2023. 

Today, the Golden Globes recognise achievements in twenty-seven categories - fifteen in motion pictures and twelve in television. Those winners, grinners and also-rans in the feature film categories are as given below :-

* Best Motion Picture : Drama - awarded to 'Oppenheimer', beating out 'Anatomy of a Fall', 'Killers of the Flower Moon', 'Maestro', 'Past Lives' and 'The Zone of Interest'. 

* Best Motion Picture : Musical or Comedy - presented to 'Poor Things', beating out 'Air', 'American Fiction', 'Barbie', 'The Holdovers' and 'May December'.

* Best Motion Picture : Animated - awarded to 'The Boy and the Heron', beating out 'Elemental', 'Spider-Man : Across the Spider-Verse', 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie', 'Suzume' and 'Wish'.

* Best Motion Picture : Non-English Language - awarded to 'Anatomy os a Fall', beating out 'Fallen Leaves, 'Io capitano', 'Past Lives', 'Society of the Snow' and 'The Zone of Interest'.

* Cinematic and Box Office Achievement - presented to 'Barbie', beating out 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3', 'John Wick: Chapter 4', 'Mission : Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One', 'Oppenheimer', 'Spider-Man : Across the Spider-Verse', 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie' and 'Taylor Swift : The Eras Tour'.

* Best Performance in a Motion Picture - Drama : Actor - presented to Cillian Murphy for 'Oppenheimer', beating out Bradley Cooper for 'Maestro', Leonardo DiCaprio for 'Killers of the Flower Moon', Colman Domingo for 'Rustin', Barry Keoghan for 'Saltburn' and Andrew Scott for 'All of Us Strangers'.

* Best Performance in a Motion Picture - Drama : Actress - awarded to Lily Gladstone for 'Killers of the Flower Moon', beating out Annette Bening for 'Nyad', Sandra Huller for 'Anatomy of a Fall', Greta Lee for 'Past Lives', Carey Mulligan for 'Maestro' and Cailee Spaeny for 'Priscilla'. 

* Best Performance in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy : Actor - awarded to Paul Giamatti for 'The Holdovers', beating out Nicolas Cage for 'Dream Scenario', Timothee Chalamet for 'Wonka', Matt Damon for 'Air', Joaquin Phoenix for 'Beau Is Afraid' and Jeffrey Wright for 'American Fiction'.

* Best Performance in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy : Actress - presented to Emma Stone for 'Poor Things', beating out Fantasia Barrino for 'The Color Purple', Jennifer Lawrence for 'No Hard Feelings', Natalie Portman for 'May December', Alma Poysti for 'Fallen Leaves' and Margot Robbie for 'Barbie'. 

* Best Supporting Performance in a Motion Picture : Actor - presented to Robert Downey Jnr. for 'Oppenheimer', beating out Willem Dafoe for 'Poor Things', Robert De Niro for 'Killers of the Flower Moon', Ryan Gosling for 'Barbie', Charles Melton for 'May December' and Mark Ruffalo for 'Poor Things'.

* Best Supporting Performance in a Motion Picture : Actress - awarded to Da'Vine Joy Randolph for 'The Holdovers', beating out Emily Blunt for 'Oppenheimer', Danielle Brooks for 'The Color Purple', Jodie Foster for 'Nyad', Julianne Moore for 'May December' and Rosamund Pike for 'Saltburn'. 

* Best Director - presented to Christopher Nolan for 'Oppenheimer', beating out Bradley Cooper for 'Maestro', Greta Gerwig for 'Barbie', Yorgos Lanthimos for 'Poor Things', Martin Scorsese for 'Killers of the Flower Moon' and Celine Song for 'Past Lives'. 

* Best Screenplay - presented to Justine Triet and Arthur Harari for 'Anatomy of a Fall', beating out 'Barbie', 'Poor Things', 'Oppenheimer', 'Killers of the Flower Moon' and 'Past Lives'. 

* Best Original Score - awarded to Ludwig Goransson for 'Oppenheimer', beating out 'Poor Things', 'The Boy and the Heron', 'The Zone of Interest', 'Spider-Man : Across the Spider-Verse' and 'Killers of the Flower Moon'. 

* Best Original Song - presented to  'What Was I Made For?' from 'Barbie' by Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell.

For all the details of this years Golden Globe's ceremony including the TV awards, you can go to the official website at : https://goldenglobes.com/

Turning the attention then back to this weeks four new movies coming to a big screen Odeon near you, we kick off with an American comedy drama film that sees a a cranky history teacher at a remote prep school who is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a troubled student who has no place to go. This is followed by a man’s personal journey of vengeance which takes on national stakes after he is revealed to be a former operative of a powerful and clandestine organisation. Next up we turn to an American musical comedy offering that sees a high school newcomer who becomes a hit with the Plastics, an A-list girl clique at her new school when she makes the mistake of falling for the ex-boyfriend of the alpha Plastic. And closing out the week we have an animated comedy film about an American family who moves into Canterville Chase, a stately countryside mansion that has been haunted by the ghost of Sir Simon De Canterville for 300 years.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the four latest release new films as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release or as Reviewed and Previewed in previous Blog Posts here at Odeon Online, you are most welcome to share your movie going thoughts, opinions and observations by leaving your relevant, succinct and appropriate views in the Comments section below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and in the meantime, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the week ahead.

'THE HOLDOVERS' (Rated M) - is an American Christmas comedy-drama film Directed by Alexander Payne, whose previous feature film making credits take in the likes of ‘Election’ in 1999, ‘About Schmidt’ in 2002, ‘Sideways’ in 2004, ‘The Descendants’ in 2011 and ‘Downsizing’ in 2017. This film saw its World Premiere screening at the Telluride Film Festival at the end of August last year and was released in the US on 27th October. It received positive reviews and has grossed US$21M. It was named one of the top ten films of 2023 by the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute, and has received so far 53 award wins and another 130 nominations including three nominations at this years Golden Globe Awards.

Set in 1970, the film follows a bad-tempered history teacher Paul Dunham (Paul Giamatti) at a remote New England boarding school who is forced to chaperone a handful of students with nowhere to go during the Christmas break. He soon forms an unlikely bond with a brainy but damaged troublemaker, Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa) and with the school's head cook Mary Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), a woman who just lost a son in the Vietnam War. 

'THE BEEKEEPER' (Rated MA15+) - this American action thriller film is Co-Produced and Directed by David Ayer, whose prior feature film making credits take in the likes of his Directing debut in 2005 with 'Harsh Times' then 'Street Kings' in 2008, 'End of Watch' in 2012, 'Fury' in 2014, 'Suicide Squad' in 2016 and 'Bright' in 2017. Here, Mr. Clay (Jason Statham, who also Co-Produces here) is a former operative of a clandestine organisation called 'Beekeepers'. After his friend and neighbour dies by suicide after falling for a phishing scam, Mr. Clay sets out to exact revenge against the company responsible. Also starring Minnie Driver, Jeremy Irons and Josh Hutcherson. The film is released Stateside this week too. 

'MEAN GIRLS' (Rated PG) - is a musical comedy film Directed by Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. in their feature film Directorial debut, from a Screenplay written by Tina Fey, and based on the Broadway musical of the same name, which in turn was based on Mark Waters's 2004 comedy film, both written by Tina Fey. Here new student Cady Heron (Angourie Rice) is welcomed into the top of the social food chain by the elite group of popular girls called 'The Plastics', ruled by the conniving queen bee Regina George (Renee Rapp) and her minions Gretchen Wieners (Bebe Wood) and Karen Shetty (Avantika Vandanapu). However, when Cady makes the major misstep of falling for Regina's ex-boyfriend Aaron Samuels (Christopher Briney), she finds herself then prey and in Regina's crosshairs. As Cady sets to take down the group's apex predator with the help of her outcast friends Janis 'Imi'ike (Auli'i Cravalho) and Damian Hubbard (Jaquel Spivey), she must learn how to stay true to herself while navigating the most cutthroat jungle of all - high school. Also starring Tina Fey (who also Co-Produces) and Tim Meadows who reprise their roles from the original film, and Jon Hamm. This film is released in the US this week too. 

'THE CANTERVILLE GHOST' (Rated PG) - this animated comedy film is Directed by Kim Burdon and Robert Chandler in their feature film Directorial debuts. The film tells the story of a modern American family that moves to their recently purchased country home, Canterville Chase in England, only to find it is haunted by a ghost. Effectively, Sir Simon de Canterville (Stephen Fry) has been haunting the grounds of Canterville Chase successfully for over 300 years, but he meets his match when he tries to scare out the new arrivals. Also starring the voice talents of Hugh Laurie, Imelda Staunton, Freddie Highmore and Toby Jones. 

With four new release movie offerings this week to tempt you out to your local Odeon, remember to share your movie going thoughts with your other like minded cinephile friends afterwards here at Odeon Online. In the meantime, I'll see you sometime somewhere at your local Odeon in the coming week.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

BRIGHT : Wednesday 27th December 2017.

'BRIGHT', released worldwide by Netflix on 22nd December, is available to subscribers of this service, and was Produced by the company as an original film at a cost of US$90M, and represents the most expensive movie undertaking ever put out by the company. So I sat and watched 'Bright' from the comfort of my own sofa at home. Described as a fantasy action crime film it is Directed by David Ayer (whose previous credits include 'Street Kings', 'End of Watch', 'Fury' and 'Suicide Squad' amongst others) and Written by Max Landis, this film mashes up several genres in an alternate modern day world where Orcs, Elves, Fairies and various other worldly mythical creatures co-exist with humans in what is best described as an uneasy love/hate alliance.

Thousands of years ago Humans, Orcs and Elves all fought to rule over each other, and in the present day there is peace between them - but only just. In Los Angeles, a veteran Police Officer Daryl Ward (Will Smith) has five years to go before retirement and is trying to maintain his clean slate so that he can retire on a much needed Police pension. He is partnered up, much against his will and to the disdain of his fellow Officers and fellow Orcs, with the city's first Orc Police Officer Nick Jakoby (an unrecognisable Joel Edgerton). On a routine trip out in their patrol car, Ward forces Jakoby to watch another Orc being beaten to the ground by fellow Police Officers, in an attempt to ascertain and reinforce exactly where Jakoby's loyalties need to lie. They are then called to a public disturbance in the street with a sword wielding man, who they are able to disarm easily enough and place him under arrest in the back of the patrol car. The man starts talking Orcish which Ward cannot understand, but Jakoby does. He tells them of a prophecy they will both become involved in and how Ward is blessed, but when pressed by his partner about what he said, Jakoby just replies that the man was talking nonsense.

Later the man arrested by Ward and Jakoby is interrogated by a senior Elf working for the FBI's Magic Division - Kandomere (Edgar Ramirez) who learns that he is part of a fringe militant group known as The Shield of Light that is preparing for the return of The Dark Lord, that will see billions wiped off the face of the Earth, and the survivors thrown into slavery.

That night, Ward and Jakoby respond to a call about a disturbance in what turns out to be a Shield safe house. Investigating they come across a number of freshly incinerated corpses, enough guns, bombs and ammunition to arm a small army, and the body of an Elf woman half embedded in a wall and bleeding badly.

The pair apprehend a young Elf named Tikka (Lucy Fry) who possesses a wand with fantastical magical powers. When back-up arrives in the form of four other Police Officers they take it upon themselves to steal the wand for their own gain, but to cover their tracks they need to kill either Jakoby or them both and make it look as though one or both died heroically in the line of duty - it is up to Ward to decide the outcome! Ward ventures outside to where Jakoby is waiting having agreed under extreme duress to murder his Orc partner, but then in a moment of clarity turns his gun on the four Officers who have now assembled in the doorway and are looking on. He kills three of them outright and badly injures the fourth. Jakoby is outraged by what he has seen not knowing of the conversation that had previously taken place, but Ward is able to convince him that his intentions were genuine.

All this commotion attracts the attention of a local gang who come out in force demanding the wand be handed over to them, as it was found in their neighbourhood and they control the hood. Ward, Jakoby, Tikka with the wand flee the scene in their patrol car and are given chase by gun totting hoodlums armed to the hilt intent of getting hold of said magical wand. Meanwhile, back at the Shield safe house, the owner of the wand and Dark Elf Leilah (Noomi Rapace) has arrived back to discover that the wand and Tikka are both missing. Leilah slits the throat of the Elf embedded in the wall who was tasked with killing Tikka with the wand - failed on both counts!

The trio flee on foot after their car is crushed by an invisible force that prevents the wand from travelling a certain distance from its owner. They exchange their Police uniforms for plain clothes and enter a strip joint, but are still pursued by the same hoodlums they tried to shake off earlier. Seriously out numbered and outgunned Ward and Jakoby decide to go out all guns blazing, but before doing so Leilah arrives with her two henchelves and slaughter everyone in the place, allowing the three to escape again on foot.

This time the three take refuge in a petrol station to clean up their wounds and take stock of their unfolding situation. Ward establishes contact with a friend from the Sheriffs Office - Sheriff Rodriguez (Jay Hernandez) believing that he can be trusted. The Sheriff contacts Kandomere, and Ward speaks with him asking for him and Jakoby to be free from prosecution if they can keep the wand out of the wrong hands. Little to do they know that their phone conversation is being monitored by Leilah, who is tracking their whereabouts, and within a few short minutes arrives at the petrol station to cause carnage in their attempt to kill Tikka and retrieve the wand. The petrol station explodes in a ball of flame causing enough of a distraction for the three to escape again on foot.

The three are in turn captured by an Orc Clan, beaten to within an inch of their lives and dragged in front of their leader, demanding the whereabouts of the wand. When no satisfactory answer is forthcoming, the leader shoots Jakoby, killing him and sending his falling into a deep pit. Following a further struggle, Tikka shows that she is a 'Bright' (the name given to a special individual able to wield a magical wand safely) and removes the wand from inside her sleeve and uses its magical powers to resurrect Jakoby. Witnessing this great revelation the Orc Clan let the three go free, but Tikka is badly injured from her ordeal and is rapidly loosing strength and the will to live.

They only way to save Tikka is to venture back to the safe house and place her in a magic pool of water. Leilah has however, anticipated this and is waiting for them there with her two henchelves. There are sufficient small arms, large calibre rifles and artillery to dispense with the bad guys despite their strength, agility and fortitude. Ward and Jakoby are able to overpower the three and kill them, but not realising that Leilah has the power to self heal, she quickly counterattacks the two Officers and incapacitates them. Struggling to stand up, Ward grips the wand which he believes will disintegrate them all if handled with his bare hands, but he is prepared to sacrifice them all if it means an end to Leilah and the pending arrival of The Dark Lord. Just as it is revealed that Leilah is Tikka's sister whom she now wants dead for her treachery, Ward holds up the wand safely revealing that he too is a 'Bright'. In doing so he points the wand at Leilah who disintegrates, and Tikka disappears as the building catches fire and is quickly engulfed in flame. Jakoby makes it out safely, but then ventures back into the burning building to retrieve his partner.

The next day, the pair come round in an isolated medical ward. Kandomere arrives and Jakoby immediately blurts out the circumstances that brought them to this point much to Ward's chagrin. Ward eventually gets a word in edgeways stating that there was no magical involvement or Police corruption at play, as Kandomere is keen to keep a lid on the whole incident. The pair are then awarded a commendation for their bravery and action by the city, and as Ward looks up, he sees Tikka in the crowd of onlookers passing by.

I have to say all credit goes to Max Landis for coming up with an original storyline that melds the buddy cop crime drama with the worlds of Tolkien and dumps them into an alternate modern day world where crime, discrimination, intolerance and prejudice are rife. And credit goes also to Joel Edgerton for his unrecognisable prosthetic performance as rogue Orc turned good with a conscience to uphold the law no matter what - he is the cornerstone of this film. As for the rest of it, that's where the credit dries up! Rarely are Ward and Jakoby seen without their arms raised, weapons pointed and their pistols cocked, or one effing and blinding at the other or some perpetrator, or involved in another foot chase across LA culminating in a bullet ballet, close quarter kicking and punching acrobatics or shit getting blown up. The pace is often frenetic, the storyline at times incoherent and despite its impressive line up of four A-Listers - Smith, Edgerton, Rapace and Ramirez, this is just a jumbled up mess that struggles to make sense and is all substance over style. Watch this on the small screen from the comfort of your armchair at home and save yourself the price of ticket, assuming you can find an Odeon screening it.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-