What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 30th November 2023.

The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) returns for its 34th edition this year running from Thursday 30th November until Sunday 10th December, and promising an unparalleled cinematic experience filled with record-breaking firsts. This year, the festival proudly presents a diverse selection of 101 films from fifty countries, SGIFF is set to showcase the rich tapestry of international cinema, continuing its tradition of celebrating the art of storytelling through films, bringing together filmmakers, cinephiles, and audiences alike for an enriching and unforgettable cinematic journey. 

The festival opens with 'Tiger Stripes' from Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Qatar and is Directed by Amanda Nell Eu and tells the story of twelve year old girl Zaffan who is carefree until she starts to experience horrifying physical changes to her body.

A highlight of the Festival each year, the Asian Feature Film Competition is dedicated to uncovering exhilarating new cinematic visions by Asian Directors making their first to third feature films. This section takes in the following titles :-

* 'A Journey in Spring' - from Taiwan and Directed by Tzu-Hui Peng and Ping-Wen Wang.

* 'Critical Zone' - from Iran and Germany and Directed by Ali Ahmadzadeh.

* 'Dreaming & Dying' - from Singapore and Indonesia and Directed by Nelson Yeo.

* 'Hesitation Wound' - from Turkey, France, Romania and Spain and Directed by Selman Nacar.

* 'Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell' - from Vietnam, Singapore, France and Spain and Directed by Thien An Pham.

* 'Last Shadow at First Light' - from Singapore, Japan, Philippines, Slovenia and Indonesia and Directed by Nicole Midori Woodford.

* 'Monisme' - from Indonesia and Qatar and Directed by Riar Rizaldi.

* 'Morrison' - from Thailand and France and Directed by Phuttiphong Aroonpheng. 

* 'Snow in Midsummer' - from Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan and Directed by Keat Aun Chong.

* 'The Tenants' - from South Korea and Directed by Eun-Kyung Yoon. World Premiere screening.

* 'Tomorrow Is A Long Time' - from Singapore, Taiwan, France and Portugal and Directed by Zhi Wei Jow.

* 'Vali' - from India and Directed by Manoj Shinde. World Premiere screening.

What are the latest cinematic marvels that have resonated with festival audiences? Foreground presents six genre-driven works that have captivated the film festival circuit. This section highlights the following feature films :-

* '24 Hours with Gaspar' - from Indonesia and Directed by Yosep Anggi Noen.

* 'A Normal Family' - from South Korea and Directed by Jin-ho Hur.

* 'All of Us Strangers' - from the UK and Directed by Andrew Haigh.

* 'Art College 1994' - from China and Directed by Jian Liu.

* 'La Chimera' - from Italy, France and Switzerland and Directed by Alice Rohrwacher.

* 'Poor Things' - from the USA, UK and Ireland and Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos.

For the other film strands being presented, and a whole bunch of other good stuff, you can head to the official website at : https://sgiff.com/

With seven new movie offerings hailing from all corners of the globe this week, there is sure to be something for everyone. Kicking off with a British drama that tells the story of the future for the last remaining pub in a village of Northeast England, where people are leaving the land as the mines are closed, where houses are cheap and available, thus making it an ideal location for Syrian refugees as the pub landlord befriends one of those refugees. Then we turn to a New Zealand comedy drama about a 17 year-old student who is forced to get off the fence he has actively sat on all his life to stand up for himself, his family and his future in this heartwarming story of identity. Next up is an Italian drama concerning two young boys who spend their childhoods together in a secluded alpine village roaming the surrounding peaks and valleys before their paths diverge. This is followed by an American comedy about two unpopular queer high school students who start a fight club to have sex before graduation. Up next is a Japanese creature feature set in Japan in the immediate aftermath of WWII when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster. Following on from this we have an American Christmas offering about the greatest story ever told - that of the birth of JC; before closing out the week with an American animated musical comedy that is the third instalment in the franchise that has Poppy learning that Branch was once part of the boy band 'BroZone', but when one of the brothers is kidnapped, Branch and Poppy embark on a journey to reunite his two other brothers and rescue the one kidnapped.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the seven 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 coming week.

'THE OLD OAK' (Rated MA15+) - is a UK, French and Belgian Co-Produced drama film Directed by Ken Loach whose previous feature film credits take in his debut in 1967 with 'Poor Cow' and which he would follow up with the likes of 'Kes' in 1969, 'Riff-Raff' in 1991, 'Carla's Song' in 1996, 'My Name Is Joe' in 1998, 'The Wind That Shakes the Barley' in 2006, 'Looking for Eric' in 2009, 'I, Daniel Blake' in 2016 and 'Sorry We Missed You' in 2019. 'The Old Oak' is Ken Loach's last film having announced his retirement at the age of 87. This film Premiered in main competition at this years Cannes Film Festival in late May, was released in the UK at the end of September, has so far grossed US$1.2M off the back of a US$3.8M production budget and has generated largely positive reviews.

Pub landlord TJ Ballantyne (Dave Turner), living in a previously thriving mining community in County Durham in North East England, struggles to hold onto his pub and keep it as the one remaining public space where people can meet in the town. Much of the younger population have since left and what was once a thriving, proud community struggles to keep old values alive. But there is growing anger, resentment, and a lack of hope. Houses are cheap and available. This makes it an ideal location for the Syrian refugees that have been accepted by Britain in recent years. Meanwhile, tensions rise when Syrian refugees are placed there, but Ballantyne strikes up a friendship with one of the refugees, Yara (Ebla Mari). 

'UPROAR' (Rated M) - this New Zealand comedy drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Paul Middleditch and Hamish Bennet. Set in New Zealand in 1981, when the arrival of the South African rugby team sets off nationwide protests against apartheid and racism. Josh Waaka (Julian Dennison), a quick witted 17-year-old of mixed race who has been a passive bystander all his life and who has struggled to to fit in to his all-boys private school, is inspired by the protests in his home town of Dunedin. Josh however, discovers a newfound passion for performing to find his own voice, and so with the aid of a kindly teacher Madigan (Rhys Darby), a close friend and his loving family (Minnie Driver and James Rolleston), a more confident Josh embraces his Maori heritage before taking a stand for himself, his family, and his future. 

'THE EIGHT MOUNTAINS' (Rated M) - is an Italian drama film Written for the screen and Directed by Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch and is based on the 2016 novel of the same name by Paolo Cognetti. The film charts the friendship between two men, Pietro (played by Luca Marinelli as an adult) and Bruno (by Alessandro Borghi as an adult) who spend their childhood together in a remote Italian Alpine village and reconnect later as adults. The films title is a reference to the concept in Buddhism and ancient Indian cosmology that the world is composed of nine mountains and eight seas, specifically eight concentric circular mountain ranges separated from one another by eight seas, with the ninth and tallest mountain, Mount Meru, at the centre. The film saw its World Premier screening at at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2022 where it won the Jury Prize, was released in its native Italy last December and only now does it get a release in Australia having so far grossed US$11M at the Box Office and generated positive reviews.

'BOTTOMS' (Rated MA15+) - this American satirical teen sex comedy film is Directed by Emma Seligman, from a screenplay she co-wrote with Rachel Sennott. Emma Seligman's made her feature film making debut with 'Shiva Baby' in 2020, and here she focuses on two girls, PJ (Rachel Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edbiri), who start a fight club as a way to lose their virginities to cheerleaders. Their bizarre plan works. The fight club gains traction and soon the most popular girls in school are beating each other up in the name of self-defence. But PJ and Josie find themselves in over their heads and in need of a way out before their plan is exposed. It Premiered at South by Southwest in mid-March this year and was released Stateside in late August, has so far grossed US$12.3M off the back of a production budget of US$11.3M and has garnered generally favourable critical reviews. 

'GODZILLA MINUS ONE' (Rated M) - is a Japanese kaiju film Written, Directed, and with visual effects by Takashi Yamazaki. It is the 37th film in the Godzilla franchise and the 33rd film produced by Japan's Toho Studios. Here, in post war 1946 Japan and the country is at its lowest point when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster, mutated by the horrific power of the Bikini Atoll nuclear tests. Starring Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Sakura Ando, and Kuranosuke Sasaki, the film was produced for US$15M, was the closing night film at this years Tokyo International Film Festival on 1st November, was released in Japan on the 3rd of this month, is released in the US and Canada this week too, and in the UK and Ireland from mid-December. The film has been critically acclaimed in its home country of Japan.

'JOURNEY TO BETHLEHEM' (Rated PG) - is an American Christmas family musical adventure film Co-Written for the screen and Directed by Adam Anders in his feature film making debut. You know the story here - a young woman carrying an unimaginable responsibility; a young man torn between love and honour; and a jealous king Herod (Antonio Banderas) who will stop at nothing to keep his crown. This live-action Christmas classic weaves melodies into new pop songs in a music-infused retelling of the timeless story of Mary (Fiona Palomo) and Joseph (Milo Manheim) and the birth of Jesus. 

'TROLLS BAND TOGETHER' (Rated G) - this American animated musical comedy film is Directed by Walt Dohrn who Co-Directed 'Trolls' in 2016 and Directed 'Trolls World Tour' in 2020. The first two films in the franchise cost a combined US$250M to produce and grossed worldwide a total US$396M and are based on the Good Luck Trolls created by the Danish woodworker Thomas Dam. A month after the events of the second film, Poppy (voiced by Anna Kendrick) and Branch (voiced by Justin Timberlake) have officially started a relationship. As the two grow closer, Poppy discovers that Branch was once a part of the boyband phenomenon, BroZone, with his four older brothers. When one of his brothers, Floyd (Troye Sivan), is kidnapped by wannabe pop-star siblings, Velvet (voiced by Amy Schumer) and Veneer (Andrew Rannells), Branch and the rest of the siblings must reunite to rescue him. Also starring the voice talents of Camila Cabello, Eric Andre, Kid Cudi, Daveed Diggs, RuPaul, Zooey Deschanel, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Anderson Paak. The film has so far grossed US$146M from a production budget of US$95M since its release in the US earlier this month. 

With seven 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-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 22nd July 2021.

And so for another year the Cannes Film Festival, this year marking its 74th annual edition, drew to a close on Saturday 17th July. At the closing awards ceremony, the Jury President for the feature films in Official Competition, Spike Lee was joined by his other jurors Mati Diop, Mylene Farmer, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jessica Hausner, Melanie Laurent, Kleber Mendonca Filho, Tahar Rahim and Song Kang-ho for the announcement of this years awards. These are as given below :-

In Competition

* Palme d'Or Award was presented by Spike Lee and Sharon Stone and awarded to 'TITANE' from Belgium and France and Written and Directed by Julia Ducournau. This drama triller stars Vincent Lindon and Agathe Rousselle and following a series of unexplained crimes, a father is reunited with the son who has been missing for ten years. Ducournau became only the second female Director to win the award and the first to win not jointly with another Director (in 1993 Jane Campion had won jointly with Chen Kaige for 'The Piano' and 'Farewell My Concubine' respectively).

* Grand Prix Award was presented by Oliver Stone and jointly awarded to 'A HERO' from Iran and Written and Directed by Asghar Farhadi, about Rahim who is in prison for defaulting on a debt he was unable to repay. During two-days of prison leave, he tries to convince his creditor to withdraw his complaint against the payment of part of the sum, but things don't go as planned; and 'COMPARTMENT NO. 6' from Germany, Finland, Estonia and Russia and is Co-Written and Directed by Juho Kuosmanen about two strangers sharing a train journey up to the Arctic Circle that will change their perspective on life.

* Best Director Award was presented by Valeria Golino and awarded to Director and Co-Writer Leos Carax for 'ANNETTE' about a provocative stand-up comedian and his wife, a world-famous soprano, with their glamorous life taking an unexpected turn when their daughter Annette is born, a girl with a unique gift.

* Best Screenplay Award was presented by Andrea Arnold and awarded to  Directors and Co-Writers Ryusuke Hamaguchi and Takamasa Oe for the Japanese drama film 'DRIVE MY CAR'. Yusuke Kafuku is a stage Actor and Director happily married to his playwright wife. Then one day the wife disappears.

* Best Performance by an Actress Award was presented by Lee Byung-hun and awarded to Renate Reinsve for her performance in the Norwegian film 'THE WORST PERSON INTHE WORLD' Directed and Co-Written by Joachim Trier, and centres around four years in the life of Julie, a young woman who navigates the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path, leading her to take a realistic look at who she really is.

* Best Performance by an Actor Award was presented by Adele Exarchopoulos and awarded to Caleb Landry Jones for his performance in 'NITRAM' Directed by Justin Kurzel and is based on the Tasmanian Port Arthur massacre in 1996. 

* Jury Prize was presented by Rosamund Pike and jointly awarded to 'AHED'S KNEE' from Israel, France and Germany and Directed and Written by Nadav Lapid about an an Israeli filmmaker who throws himself into two battles doomed to fail, the first against the death of freedom, and the other against the death of a mother. And the internationally co-produced 'MEMORIA' Directed, Written and Co-Produced by Apichatpong Weerasethakul centres around a woman from Scotland, who while traveling in Colombia, begins to hear strange sounds. Soon she begins to think about their appearance.

Un Certain Regard

* Un Certain Regard Award presented to 'UNCLENCHING THE FISTS' is a Russian drama film Written and Directed by Kira Kovalenko about a young woman living in a former mining town in North Ossetia, who struggles to escape the stifling hold of the family she loves as much as she rejects.

* Un Certain Regard Jury Prize awarded to 'GREAT FREEDOM' is an Austrian drama offering Directed by Sebastian Meise and centres on a man in post-WWII Germany who is imprisoned for being gay, and develops a relationship with his cellmate.

Camera d'Or

* The Camera d'Or Award for best first feature film presented to 'MURINA' a co-production between the US, Brazil, Croatia and Slovenia and is Directed and Co-Written by Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic and Executive Produced by Martin Scorsese. This film concerns a teenage girl who takes it upon herself to replace her commanding  father with his wealthy foreign friend during a weekend trip to the Adriatic Sea. 

Trophee Chopard

* The Chopard Trophy Award presented to two young Actors in order to recognise and encourage their careers were presented to Jessie Buckley and Kingsley Ben-Adir by Jessica Chastain.

For the other awards and all the latest news and views, including the the FIPRESCI Prizes, the Ecumenical Prize, the International Critics Week Awards, the Directors Fortnights Awards, the Queer Palm and a bunch of others, you can visit the official website of the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival at : https://www.festival-cannes.com

As I write this Greater Sydney, where I live, remains in COVID lockdown for four weeks now ending (at this stage) on Friday 30th July, which means all of our cinema's are closed until this date, which further means that the release of the movies as given below, slated for release this week, will be delayed somewhat across certain parts of Australia at least. That said, these movies will either have been released or are set for an imminent release somewhere in the world, and as Odeon Online has an international audience, I thought it best to carry on regardless. As such, we launch the week with supernatural thriller about a holidaying family relaxing on an idyllic secluded beach somewhere in the tropics that is causing them to age rapidly. This is followed up by the third instalment in a franchise that takes us back to the origin of the ninja warrior who will become G.I. Joe. Next up is a comedy offering about a college student, who while attending a Jewish funeral service with her parents, runs into her sugar daddy. And we close out the week with a Spanish film about a woman caught up in the drama of her family and work decides to take charge of her life by getting married to herself.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the four latest release new movies 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.

'OLD' (Rated M) - is an American supernatural mystery thriller Directed and Written for the screen by M. Night Shyamalan and based on the 2010 graphic novel 'Sandcastle' by Pierre Oscar Levy and Frederik Peeters. Shyamalan of course has Directed numerous feature films since his breakout film 'The Sixth Sense' in 1999, followed by his more notable offerings 'Unbreakable' in 2000, 'Signs' in 2002, 'The Village' in 2004, 'The Visit' in 2015, 'Split' in 2016 and 'Glass' in 2019. Principal photography officially began in late September 2020, in the Dominican Republic marking the first time Shyamalan has filmed entirely outside Greater Philadelphia, presumably because the US was in the grips of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Dominican Republic was relatively safe. Production wrapped in mid-November. The film is released Stateside this week too. 

And so here, a young family on a tropical holiday discover to their horror that the secluded beach they are relaxing on for a few hours is somehow causing them to age rapidly, reducing their entire lives into a single day. Starring Gael Garcia Bernal, Vicky Krieps, Rufus Sewell, Ken Leung, Eliza Scanlen, and Thomasin McKenzie.

'SNAKE EYES : G.I. JOE ORIGINS' (Rated M) - this American Superhero film is Directed by Robert Schwentke, is based on Hasbro's G.I. Joe toy, comic, and media franchise, and is a reboot, and the third instalment in the 'G.I. Joe' film series following 'G.I. Joe : The Rise of Cobra' in 2009 and 'G.I. Joe : Retaliation' in 2013 with both of those films raking in a combined US$678M worldwide gross off the back of US$305M total production budgets. This third offering in the series serves as an origin story for the title character Snake Eyes. Robert Schwentke is a German film Director and Writer whose previous big screen credits include 'Flightplan' in 2005, 'The Time Travellers Wife' in 2009, 'Red' in 2011, and 'Divergent : Insurgent' in 2015 and 'Divergent : Allegiant' in 2016. A mysterious lone fighter, known only as 'Snake Eyes' (Henry Golding), is welcomed into and trained by a secretive ancient Japanese ninja clan called the Arashikage, but finds his loyalties are tested when secrets from his past are revealed, as he eventually goes on the path to become the famous G.I. Joe hero. Originally slated for release at the end of March 2020, it was pulled from the schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic after several delays, and rescheduled eventually for the end of October this year before being moved up to this week in the US and Australia. Also starring Samara Weaving, Andrew Koji, Peter Mensah and Iko Uwais. A follow on film is in development apparently.

'SHIVA BABY' (Rated M) - is a US and Canadian Co-Produced comedy film Written and Directed by Emma Seligman in her feature film debut and is adapted from her own 2018 short film of the same name. The film saw its World Premier screening at the South by South West Film Festival in March 2020, went on general release in Canada at the end of March this year and in the US in early April, has so far grossed US$150K off the back of a US$200K production budget, has garnered generally favourable Reviews and has collected five wins and sixteen nominations from around the awards and festivals circuit. Here, Rachel Sennott stars as Danielle, a directionless young bisexual Jewish woman who attends a shiva with her family. Other attendees include her successful ex-girlfriend Maya (Molly Gordon), and her sugar daddy Max (Danny Deferrari) with his wife Kim (Dianna Agron) and their screaming baby. It also features Fred Melamed and Polly Draper as Danielle's parents Joel and Debbie, as the events of the film take place almost entirely in real time and at one location as Danielle explores her romantic and career prospects under the intense watch of her family, friends, and judgmental neighbours.

'ROSA'S WEDDING' (Rated M) - here we have a Spanish comedy film Directed and Co-Written by Iciar Bollain who has eighteen Directing credits to her name, thirteen as Writer, three as Producer and thirty-two as an Actress who has also collected fifty-seven wins and another forty-seven nominations from around the awards and festivals circuit over the years. Rosa (Candela Pena), is on the cusp of turning forty-five as she combines her job as a seamstress in the movie business with the pressures of helping her demanding family. She comes to the conclusion that she has always lived her life to serve everyone else. Desperate, and near breaking point she plans to symbolically marry herself, and pursue her dream of starting her own business by leaving everything behind and focusing on herself. However, many obstacles, including her father, siblings and daughter, stand in the way of her joining herself in holy matrimony and beginning to live her life. The film has won eighteen awards and been nominated a further forty-three times. Also starring Sergi Lopez, Nathalie Poza, Ramon Barea and Paula Usero. 

With four new release films 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 in the coming week, at your local Odeon.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-