ROGUE ONE : A STAR WARS STORY - Thursday 15th December 2016.

I saw 'ROGUE ONE : A STAR WARS STORY' on its opening night in Australia, and sat in a near packed theatre, which burst into applause when the end credits rolled - a sure sign of a film's approval and pending success. And so from a galaxy far far away comes the first Star Wars spin off in this highly anticipated, eagerly awaited, much hyped 'Rogue One' offering. Produced by LucasFilm, Distributed by Disney, Directed by Gareth Edwards and costing US$200M, this film stands alone in the Star Wars universe set just before the events that unfolded in the first film in this hugely successful and popular franchise 'A New Hope'. That initial film released in 1977 set in motion a behemoth that would become part of our popular culture, spawning so far seven feature films, this spin-off, numerous animated television series, books, toys and merchandise. The value of the franchise is estimated at somewhere north of US$31B, the films to date have garnered 27 Academy Award nominations and last years 'The Force Awakens' is the third highest grossing film of all time raking in US$2.1B at the global Box Office. Production of 'Star Wars : Episode VIII' is ongoing with Writer/Director Rian Johnson at the helm and due in cinemas in December 2017. It has been reported, but remains unconfirmed, that the title of the next instalment will be 'Star Wars : Forces of Destiny'.

The premise for the 'Rogue One' set up comes from the opening crawl of 'A New Hope' which states amongst other things that ' . . . Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire’s ultimate weapon, the Death Star . . . ' From these brief introductory words, Screenwriters Tony Gilroy and Chris Weitz have moulded this story of the Rebel Alliance against the Empire. As the film opens we see a young Jyn Erso being hurriedly bundled up and packed off by her father Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen) to escape from the arriving Imperial Director Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn) and his black armour clad Deathtrooper henchmen. Krennic is demanding that Galen returns to finish the work he started on the Death Star - the Galactic Empire's new super weapon of destruction capable of destroying entire planets. But Galen is reluctant, and in a standoff his wife is killed. Meanwhile young Jyn has fled to the mountains to safety - it is the last time she will see her father for many years. Sometime later, an underground bunker in which Jyn is stowed away is opened by Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker) and the young girl is taken away to safety.

We then fast forward fifteen years or so and Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed) an Imperial fighter pilot defects across to the Rebel Alliance and is in possession of a holographic message from Galen Erso which he is to deliver only to Saw Gerrera who resides on the planet Jedha. In the meantime a now adult Jyn (Felicity Jones) is freed from captivity by the Rebellion who have an agenda to use her to track down her father, and then kill him to prevent the Death Star from being completed. Jyn teams up with Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) an Intelligence Officer with the Rebel Alliance and his reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2S0 (Alan Tudyk) and the three travel to Jedha where there is an uprising against Empire forces on the ground there.

Once on Jedha, Jyn and Andor meet up with blind warrior Chirrut Imre (Donnie Yen) who believes in the power of The Force, and his sidekick Baze Malbus (Jiang Wen) a Rebel warrior and mercenary. They in turn lead Jyn to Gerrera who are reunited for the first time in years, and Gerrera is by now holding Rook captive. Rook has handed over the hologram message to Gerrera who in turns shows the message to Jyn. In it Galen expresses his love for his daughter and explains that he was forced against his will to finish his work on the Death Star project. He goes on to explain that he has secretly embedded a vulnerability deep within the reactor programme which is almost undetectable, and which can be used to ultimately destroy the Death Star. The plans are held at a high security data bank deep within an Imperial stronghold on the planet Scarif.

In the meantime, back on the Death Star Krennic is held to task over the completion and readiness of the weapon by Imperial Governor Grand Moff Tarkin (Guy Henry made to look like Peter Cushing). With complete confidence Krennic orders a demonstration of the weapons might and power by targeting the capital city of Jedha, and reducing it and its surrounds to rubble and dust. In the attack the population is wiped out and with it Gerrera too who elects to stay behind. Jyn, Andor, K-2S0, Imre, Malbus and Rook manage to narrowly escape the conflagration. Tarkin congratulations Krennic on his achievements but has his own agenda to take the credit for the weapon and have Krennic discredited for various security breaches that have occurred while under his command.

Jyn, Andor and their newly formed crew track Galen to a research facility, and they head there with the intention that Jyn will rescue her father, whilst Andor has designs on killing him as per the wishes of the Rebellion. When it comes to it however, Andor cannot pull the trigger. At the same time Krennic arrives having learned that someone has leaked intelligence to the Rebels, and he intends to see to it that justice be served. He lines up Galen and his team of engineers and scientists and threatens to kill them all, if the perpetrator does not fess up, at which point Galen steps forward. Krennic orders the shooting of all the engineers and scientists anyway at which point a Rebel airstrike occurs on the facility ultimately resulting in the demise of Galen, and he dies in Jyn's arms. With the research facility destroyed, Jyn, Andor and the crew make a speedy getaway as does Krennic. Jyn now tries to persuade the Rebellion to converge on Scarif to steal the plans for the Death Star, but with no evidence to confirm her fathers story as per the now destroyed hologram message, the leadership of the Rebellion do not agree to her scheme, which they believe is too dangerous.

Frustrated by this inactivity, Andor agrees to accompany Jyn on her mission to Scarif and with her crew and various other Rebel volunteers, they set off. Using Rook as the former Imperial fighter pilot whose security clearances are still intact, their ship passes through the only portal in Scarif's defence system, and come to land in the proximity of the data bank tower. Jyn, Andor and K-2S0 make off to the tower to retrieve the plan schematics, while the others create a diversion to draw attention away from the three.

Meanwhile the non-agreeable leadership of the Rebellion have caught wind that Jyn and Andor have taken a team to Scarif and are proceeding with their plan anyway. Subsequently they agree to join the fight and mount a fleet to go to their aid. Krennic has also arrived on Scarif and orders the retrieval of every last piece of communication ever sent, written or recorded by Galen in an attempt to clear his name and reinstate his reputation with Darth Vader (voiced by James Earl Jones). As a number of Rebel forces breach the access portal to Scarif, so a ground and air attack ensues leaving Jyn and Andor to access the data bank high up within the fortified and heavily secured tower.

Ultimately Jyn secures the necessary schematics but K-2SO is killed by Stormtroopers and Andor is shot and injured by Krennic. She needs to access the communication tower at the highest point to be able to send the schematics to the waiting Rebel Command Ship, but the access portal needs to be open for the signal to transmit the plans successfully. With an air battle raging all around the tower, Krennic appears before Jyn can transmit the plans. Krennic declares her mission a failure and the Empire victorious and as he motions to shoot her, he is in fact shot and disabled by Andor who re-emerges just in time for the plans to be transmitted as the Rebel forces destroy the planetary shield allowing access through the portal.

On the Death Star Tarkin orders the destruction of Scarif now that its defences have been breached and the base compromised. With it Krennic is killed as are all of those left remaining. An Imperial Force led by Darth Vader gain access to the Rebel Command Ship to retrieve the stolen plans. As Darth Vader wipes out everything in his path using his trusty light sabre and the powers of his mind, a Rebel foot soldier makes a quick getaway with the plans saved to a memory card and thrusts them into the hands of Princess Leia (Ingvild Deila made to look like Carrie Fisher) who states that these plans will give the Rebellion much needed hope for the future.

I was very pleasantly surprised by 'Rogue One'. The film has all the touchstones of the 'Star Wars' mythology that we have come to know and love. Director Gareth Edwards has remained true to the basic premise of the films that have been its forebearers by retaining the look and feel of a Star Wars film but it also has the strength in the story, the performances, the VFX and the continuity to stand proudly on its own two feet. Felicity Jones is particularly good in her role as Jyn Erso and gives a convincing performance that is as good as any you'll likely to see this year in a film of this kind, and the support cast are strong too and believable. Since the film Premiered in Hollywood on 10th December, there has been overwhelming support for the film and audiences have responded very positively, setting high expectations for a very strong Box Office return. So far it has returned US$291M during its opening weekend globally, with the film yet to open in China in South Korea. A second spin off film charting the early life of Hans Solo is slated for a mid-2018 release, with a third understood to surround Boba Fett scheduled for sometime in 2020. See it on the big screen while you can - you won't be disappointed.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 15th December 2016.

Awards Season is upon us, and with it the AACTA (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts) Awards were held at Sydney's Star Casino on Wednesday 7th December. Attended by a who's who of Australian and overseas film and television talent including Mel Gibson, George Miller, Geoffrey Rush, Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen it is fair to say that the glitterati, the glamourati, and the paparazzi were out in force.

'Hacksaw Ridge' swept the board picking up nine award wins in the following categories : Best Film, Best Direction (Mel Gibson), Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography (Simon Duggan), Best Editing (John Gilbert), Best Sound, Best Production Design (Barry Robison), Best Lead Actor (Andrew Garfield) and Best Supporting Actor (Hugo Weaving). 'The Daughter' fared well too, picking up three award wins for Best Lead Actress (Odessa Young), Best Supporting Actress (Miranda Otto) and Best Adapted Screenplay. 'Tanna' picked up the award for Best Original Music Score, and 'Girl Asleep' for Best Costume Design. Best Feature Length Documentary went to 'Chasing Asylum' (Eva Orner).

This week then there is just one new release coming to a cinema near you, and it's expected to be BIG! Which would explain why no other movies wanted to go up against it in the week ahead. This is the first of three spin-off stand-alone films from a place far far away whose journey first began almost forty years ago and has grown into a worldwide phenomenon that sees no signs of letting up. From early reaction to this films Premier release last week, it seems that the force is strong with this one!

When you have sat through this weeks latest release film as Previewed below, or any others out on general release and as Reviewed and Previewed between these Blog Post pages, remember that we invite your own feedback, review, critique and observations of your moving going experience by leaving a Comment below this, or any other Post. As always, we'd love to receive your valid, wholesome, relevant thoughts. Meanwhile, enjoy your next cinema visit.

'ROGUE ONE : A STAR WARS STORY' (Rated M) - and so from a galaxy far far away comes the first Star Wars spin off in this highly anticipated, eagerly awaited, much hyped 'Rogue One' offering. Produced by LucasFilm, Distributed by Disney, Directed by Gareth Edwards and costing US$200M, this film stands alone in the Star Wars universe set just before the events that unfolded in the first film in this hugely successful and popular franchise 'A New Hope'. That initial film released in 1977 set in motion a behemoth that would become part of our popular culture, spawning so far seven feature films, this spin-off, numerous animated television series, books, toys and merchandise. The value of the franchise is estimated at somewhere north of US$31B, the films to date have garnered 27 Academy Award nominations and last years 'The Force Awakens' is the third highest grossing film of all time raking in US$2.1B at the global Box Office. Production of 'Star Wars : Episode VIII' is ongoing with Writer/Director Rian Johnson at the helm and due in cinemas in December 2017. It has been reported, but remains unconfirmed, that the title of the next instalment will be 'Star Wars : Forces of Destiny'.

The premise for the 'Rogue One' set up comes from the opening crawl of 'A New Hope' which states amongst other things that ' . . . Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to the Empire’s ultimate weapon, the Death Star . . . ' From these brief introductory words, Screenwriters Tony Gilroy and Chris Weitz have moulded this story of the Rebel Alliance who recruit Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) to join a mission to steal the design schemes for the Galactic Empire's new superweapon, 'The Death Star' - the Empire's ultimate weapon of destruction. The band of unlikely heroes thrown together for this include Forest Whittaker as Saw Gerrera, a veteran of The Clone Wars; Diego Luna as Cassian Andor; Mads Mikkelsen as Galen Erso, father to Jyn; Riz Ahmed as Bodhi Rook; Donnie Yen as warrior Chirrut Imre; Alan Tudyk as droid K-2SO; Jiang Wen as freelance assassin Baze Malbus; and Ben Mendelsohn as Orson Krennic the Director of Advanced Weapons Research for the Imperial Military; with James Earl Jones reprising his voice work for Darth Vader. Since the film Premiered in Hollywood on 10th December, there has been overwhelming support for the film and audiences have responded very positively, setting high expectations for a very strong Box Office return. A second spin off film charting the early life of Hans Solo is slated for a mid-2018 release, with a third understood to surround Boba Fett scheduled for sometime in 2020.

That's it for this week, pending a mega-haul of new movies being released in time to capitalise upon the Christmas and New Year holiday film going season. If you catch 'Rogue One : A Star Wars Story' remember to share your thoughts with us here afterwards. In the meantime, I'll see you in the week ahead, at the Odeon.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

ARRIVAL : Tuesday 15th November 2016

And so the aliens have landed, in the form of first contact offering 'ARRIVAL' which I saw earlier this week based on the 1998 short Sci-Fi story 'Story of Your Life' by Ted Chiang. But make no mistake - this is no 'Independence Day', no 'War of the Worlds', no 'District 9' or 'The Thing' but more akin to the thinking mans 'Contact', 'Interstellar', 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind', and 'The Day the Earth Stood Still'. The films already highly rated adaptation is Directed by Denis Villeneuve, was made for US$47M, has taken US$39M at the global Box Office so far, and Premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in early September where it won the Future Film Festival Digital Award, and was nominated for a Golden Lion.

Here, twelve vast and mysterious alien spaceships touch down in various seemingly random locations around the world. Termed 'Shells' by the Americans because of their elliptical shape they measure about 1500 meters tall and hover motionless about ten meters off the ground, not emitting any sound, any gas, any radiation and constructed of a solid black stone like material the like of which is unknown to us. One such Shell has touched down in Montana, and this is where the action plays out in a hastily set up Army camp close by to the alien craft.

Every eighteen hours a hatch opens at the base allowing a small delegation of humans in to explore the anti-gravity interior where they emerge in a chamber with a huge rectangular window - the other side of which in a swirling white mist appear two 'heptapods' - seven legged beings towering over the humans, that bear no resemblance to anything we have seen before. Their 'finger tips' at the end of each limb opens up like a starfish from which they are able to emit an ink like substance thats swirls around and clings to the window like a coffee mug stain on a table. It then fades away and disappears once the humans have been able to capture it on film before another circular symbol is formed. This is the language of the aliens, and it is this language that renowned linguist professor Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) has been brought in to rather hurriedly decipher.

Joining Banks is theoretical physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) who now head up a team of other so called 'experts' endeavouring to communicate with the aliens and learn of their intentions. They report through to US Army Colonel Weber (Forest Whittaker). Weber is under pressure from Agent Halpern (Michael Stuhlbarg) who is more than gung-ho to let loose on the aliens with a can of Uncle Sam's whoop-ass, particularly when progress with communicating is painstakingly slow, and tensions are mounting at the other eleven locations around the world. Communicating with each nations leaders via a bank of live feed monitors, it soon becomes clear that each has a different agenda on what action to take, and all are learning different things about their respective Shells as time progresses, but are not prepared to share their discoveries.

Around the world there is rioting and looting in the streets and the social fabric of our planet is quickly falling into decay as it is realised that we are not alone in the universe, and according to the media and the doomsayers the end is nigh, and the aliens have come to attack and wipe out all known civilisation. In the meantime, the Chinese  and the Russians join forces and are quickly preparing to mount a full scale attack on the Shells located in their parts of the world if they don't haul ass soon and get the hell outta Dodge!

Meanwhile Banks and Donnelly are inside the shell every eighteen hours as the days, weeks and months pass by, with little progress being made. The alien language is very complicated, but through perseverance and applying what they both know, some progress is made. The aliens scroll a message that translates to 'offer weapon', and this is also seen in the other eleven Shells around the world. The world leaders are fearful upon seeing 'weapon' that they are under likely attack and begin mounting an offensive campaign. Banks however, interprets 'weapon' as 'tool' - a device to aid and assist, and perhaps the aliens are attempting to trade something of value, and important.

Throughout all of this Banks is having flash-backs about her daughter growing up and passing away from a rare disease while in her late teens - images we saw at the beginning of the film. She is haunted by these memories and bringing up her child alone, without the father who left for reasons that are unknown. However, as she comes closer to the aliens and begins to understand their language, she realises that in their time, time is non-linear and she too is now experiencing this through them. In communicating with one of the aliens up close and personal as best she can, she learns that the flash-backs she has been having are in fact flash-forwards and that her future daughters father will leave her after the child is born because he made 'the wrong choice'. The alien reveals that they are here to help mankind by sharing their language, and therefore their perception of time also, so that humanity can in turn help them 3,000 years from now. This is the 'offer weapon/tool' that the aliens were referring to in their scroll. The alien visitors mean no harm at all.

Returning to the base camp which is now being evacuated for fear of alien attack, Banks has another vision of eighteen months hence, when all is good in the world, the aliens have departed and the global leaders are united in celebration marking a new era of sharing, caring and togetherness. Banks siddles up to General Shang (Tzi Ma) of China who originally wanted to nuke 'em out of existence, but he thanks her for changing his mind. When Banks asks him how, he says she called him on his private number, which he then proceeds to give her for the first time. Coming round from her vision, she steals a satellite phone and calls Shang on his private number, and relates to him in fluent Mandarin the very same words that his wife said to him on her death bed - he told her these words in the future and she repeated them to him in the present. At this Shang orders his military might to stand down, prompting all other nations to do likewise, and together all nations share in their learnings gleaned from their respective Shells. At this, all Shells dematerialise and vanish into thin air.

Following this course of events, Donnelly declares his love for Banks, and in a flash-forward vision we learn that he will be father of Banks' daughter, and that he will leave her over 'the choice' she made to have a child even though she knew beforehand that the childs life would be cut short by a rare disease. Banks' motives are that now knowing that time is not linear, that it is better to have a child even for a short time, than never have that child come into existence.

This is a clever, thought provoking film that shares an underlying message of the importance of communication, unity and acceptance. Highly praised also for its stunning visuals, gripping story and great performances, especially from Amy Adams who carries this film, 'Arrival' is the thinking mans Sci-Fil movie that has something to say in todays world and turns the tables on the generally hostile alien contact genre with emotion, passion and a grounded realism that does not rely on heavy CGI, big guns, explosions and rousing end of the world speeches. Well worth the price of your ticket, and you'll need to concentrate on the storyline every step of the way.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 10th November 2016.

A few weeks ago an article in the tabloid press over here caught my eye, about a subject I hold close to my heart. Written by James Wigney the article was titled 'Games up for online pirates : Movie boss' warning to downloaders' and surrounds the illegal downloading of movies and television content with Australia being 'one of the worst offending countries for online piracy, with 1.24 billion visits to illegal pirate sites last year'. With a population of approaching just twenty-five million, that's a statistic not to be taken lightly methinks! The boss in question here, Graham Burke, heads up Village Roadshow and he was addressing the Australian International Movie Convention on the Gold Coast earlier in October. The plan is to shut down with immediate effect up to one hundred illegal download sites the moment the courts hand down the decision on the movie industry's war on piracy, which will see an immediate and dramatic drop in piracy as a result. He went on to say that 'many people think this is a victimless crime' 'It's not, and if this were to continue, there will be no 'Red Dog', there will be no 'Mad Max', there will be no 'Star Wars', there will be no creativity'. The worrying trend seems to have emerged among younger people, with 31% of 12-17 year olds pirating movies . . . and thinking it is OK to do so. Well said on all of the above! I am a firm advocate of paying your $20 and seeing a film at the full retail price on the big screen as the Producers, Directors, Actors, Screenwriters, and film crew intended, and all who have to be paid out of the proceeds from that small investment in two hours of entertainment. Do the right think Australian and movie lovers of the world, and pay the price of a ticket and go see a movie at the Odeon instead of illegally downloading a film from a pirate site and committing a crime! You know it makes sense!

And so to this week where we have just two new release movies coming to your local picture house and both are very different and both have already been highly acclaimed widely by critics and movie goers. First up is a second Directorial outing for this fashion guru turned movie maker featuring an all star cast in this psychological romance and revenge story within a story thriller; and this is followed up by a Sci-Fi drama from a Director of repute of first contact and learning to communicate with otherworldly visitors whilst our world leaders squabble amongst themselves and take us to the brink of war. Both films feature the highly acclaimed and awarded Actress Amy Adams in the lead roles.

Remember, that when you have sat through your film or films of choice in the week ahead as either Previewed below, or as Reviewed and Previewed previously amidst these humble Blog pages, feel free to share your thoughts and opinions of your movie going experience with our other readers by leaving a Comment below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and enjoy your movie in the meantime.

'NOCTURNAL ANIMALS' (Rated MA15+) - written for the Screen, Co-Produced and Directed by fashion designer Tom Ford whose previous fashion credits include time as the creative brains behind Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and then his own label Tom Ford, this is only the second Directorial outing for the man who is already making a name for himself in the world of cinema. Ford set up his own Production Company, Fade to Black, in 2005 and his debut as Director came in 2009 with 'A Single Man' with Colin Firth in the lead role. That film picked up 34 award wins and another 52 nominations including an Oscar nod for Firth in the Best Lead Actor category and it made US$25M from its US$7M budget outlay. Now Ford is back with his second film that has already been widely acclaimed having won the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice International Film Festival in early September this year. The film opened in the UK last week, in Australia this week and in the US next week, and was made for US$22M.

Based on the 1993 novel 'Tony and Susan' by Austin Wright, 'Nocturnal Animals' tells the story of successful Los Angeles art gallery owner Susan Morrow (Amy Adams) who is now married to Hutton Morrow (Armie Hammer) but all is not well in that camp. One day unexpectedly Susan receives a manuscript from her long estranged ex-husband Edward Sheffield (Jake Gyllenhaal) - a man whom she left twenty or so years earlier. Edward asks Susan for her opinion of his story. Reading through the manuscript there are elements that resonate with her past life and that of her present too, as memories and emotions of her first marriage coming flooding back. The as yet unpublished novel is called 'Nocturnal Animals' and is based on a story of a family holiday that turns violent and deadly. With the line between fact and fiction, reality and make believe becoming more obscured Susan must face her past life, some hidden truths and the meaning behind her ex-husbands novel in which she imagines the lead character Tony Hastings (Jake Gyllenhaal) playing out the husband and father figure on that ill fated family holiday. Also starring Michael Shannon, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Michael Sheen, Laura Linney, Isla Fisher and Andrea Riseborough, this psychological romantic revenge thriller story within a story is a must see.

'ARRIVAL' (Rated M) - based on the 1998 short Sci-Fi story 'Story of Your Life' by Ted Chiang, this already highly rated adaptation is Directed by Denis Villeneuve, was made for US$50M and Premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in early September where it won the Future Film Festival Digital Award and was nominated for a Golden Lion. The film is released Stateside also this week. When twelve vast and mysterious alien spaceships touch down in various strategically placed locations around the world, an elite team of experts is mobilised to establish contact and determine what the extra terrestrial visitors want from our little blue planet. Linguist Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams), mathematician Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) and US Army Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker) join forces to find the answers and communicate with the alien beings while the rest of the world and its quarrelling leaders reside on the brink of war. But, amidst this will Banks be prepared to risk her own life and that of humanity to uncover the answers sought? Highly praised also for its stunning visuals, gripping story and great performances, especially from Amy Adams.

With two highly acclaimed films newly released this week, and both starring Amy Adams in very different roles and genres, my recommendation is to catch them both! I don't think you'll be disappointed by either outing, and when you have sat through these two films you can share your views with your like minded cinephiles here at this Blog. In the meantime, I'll see you at the Odeon, in the coming week.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

SOUTHPAW - Saturday 22nd August 2015.

'SOUTHPAW' which I saw last night, is a film that owes a lot to Sylvester Stallone - the Writer and Star of the 1976 classic boxing film 'Rocky' that won three Academy Awards, was made for just US1.1M and grossed over US$225M and spawned five sequels with another indirect instalment due in November this year - 'Creed'. All of that said there are many similarities between these two films that makes it hard not to draw comparisons, but, this is a respectable film with a solid enough story and its pugilistic star Jake Gyllenhaal as World Light Heavyweight Champion Billy Hope is a standout for a number of reasons.

In case you didn't know BTW, a 'Southpaw' is a left handed Boxer, and in this case we refer to here one very talented, beefed up, toned up, muscled up, six pack brandishing Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role who lost 10kgs of weight for his last offering (the excellent 'Nightcrawler') to packing on 16kgs of muscle for this film, and it shows! Directed by Antoine Fuqua this film was made for US$25M and has already raked in over US$65M since its 24th July release Stateside.

Unlike Rocky Balboa's story of a down at heel boxing bum whose grit & determination see him rise up in a rags to riches tale, this is a riches to rags telling of a no hope boxing bum kid who has already risen up and is now at the top of his game and enjoys all the trappings of success. He has a huge house in New York, a fleet of cars at his disposal, his child Leila (Oona Laurence) is at private school and his pretty wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) organises his life in almost every respect. Plus, he has an entourage of trainers, assistants, a manager Jordan Mains (Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson) an accountant, housemaids and so on. Life is good and he's just defended his title and won! What could possibly go wrong?

Well, you could get into a brawl at a charity event at which you have just spoken, be confronted by a challenger for your title who also disrespects your wife in public, and then she gets accidentally shot, bleeds out and dies in your arms while dozens of onlookers stand around gawping and helpless! Exit stage left Maureen, thanks for coming and rest in peace while Billy's life spirals out of control, he drinks, takes drugs, contemplates suicide, looses custody of his precious Leila, the house gets repossessed, the cars sold and everything he owns is gone!

To regain custody of his daughter he must prove to the courts that he is capable of providing for her in a responsible mature manner which recently has been beyond him. We see him as his life implodes and he struggles to come to terms with the sudden death of his wife, his new responsibilities, his rapidly dwindling wealth, he's out on the street and everyone has abandoned him as a no hoper has-been now.

He joins a back street gym to keep fit and get a cleaning job. That gym is owned and operated by former boxer Titus 'Tick' Wills (Forest Whitaker) - sounds like familiar territory when Rocky teamed up with Mickey Goldmill (Burgess Meredith) - and gradually over time the two win a mutual respect for each other. Tick agrees to (re)train Billy back to fighting strength and agility for a chance at redemption against the challenger Miguel 'Magic' Escobar (Miguel Gomez) who taunted him that ill fated night of Maureen's shooting. What follows is a back to basics low-tech training regime the like of which we saw in 'Rocky' too with Tick, like Mickey, proclaiming that it has to be done his way, or its the highway!

Amidst all of this Billy is still trying to convince the authorities that he is fit to take back charge of his daughter, but they remain unconvinced so she remains in the stewardship of Child Services, steadily distancing herself from him. All comes good in the end though as Billy accepts what he must do in order to win back his daughter and reclaim his place in boxing history, as well as his integrity having fallen so publicly from grace. With six weeks only to the big showdown at Caesar's Palace the pressure is on from a personal and professional level.

The final fight scene sees Billy reunited with Leila and she watches on from the comfort of a suite in the arena while Billy and Escobar go head to head in the ring, with Billy very much the underdog (as was Rocky when he went head to head against Apollo Creed). Round after round the two pugilists pummel each other with the fight not expecting to go beyond three of four rounds (cue another 'Rocky' marker) but of course it does, all the way up to a bloody embattled twelve when with a killer southpaw punch Escobar is sent flying horizontally backwards amidst arcs of glorious blood and sweat slo-mo. In the final analysis Billy is declared the winner by a split decision (in 'Rocky', Creed was declared the winner by a split decision too which set up 'Rocky II' nicely for the rematch of the century), and Billy and Leila live happily ever after, we assume, and once again all is good in the world.

I don't mind a pugilistic film offering at all and have seen many, and when it stars Jake Gyllenhaal what other reason to you need to see a film? His transformation into the role physically is impressive, and his lost fractured and struggling character is a testament to his range. The story may be familiar, offering little that is original or new, but it is the deft hand of the Director, there are strong performances from its lead especially and solid believable dialogue that carry this film forward, and ensures it punches above its weight. But, unlike Rocky it didn't keep me on the edge of my seat in the all important boxing ring sequences that for me make this a lesser offering . . . but only just!



-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 20th August 2015.

Having ventured back to the mildly warmer climatic conditions of Sydney over the weekend to celebrate the Birthday of yours truly, I now find myself back in Adelaide 24 hours later still shivering in what I am told is the coldest Winter in 17 years! This makes me think of 'The Day After Tomorrow' when the world turned very cold all of a sudden, everyone froze on the spot and starred a cool 24 year old Jake Gyllenhaal who is also the lead in the up & coming rags to riches Boxing tale. Read on for more heart warming stuff!

For the week ahead there are four new filmic offerings coming to a multiplex or a small independent movie theatre near you. There are some big name attachments to these main stream movies this week that sit both in front and behind the camera that give us pugilistic emotion from an action Director and a transformative Actor at the top of his game; a holiday destination in the form of a reworked franchise from the early 80's that enjoyed reasonable success, but that was then, and this is now!; then some philosophical commotion with a long term perennial Writer Director still going strong both sides of his camera; and wrapping up with a crime dramedy infusion of 90's hip-hop, punk, drugs and kids on the run.

A right old mix then from which to choose, and when you have done so, and sat through your movie preference this week ahead, drop us all a Comment at Odeon Online and share your experience with us other like minded movie geeks below this, or any other Post. In the meantime, enjoy your film.

SOUTHPAW (Rated MA15+) - In case you didn't know it a 'Southpaw' is a left handed Boxer, and in this case we refer to here one very talented, beefed up, toned, muscled, six pack owning Jake Gyllenhaal in the role of Champion Boxer Billy Hope. Directed by Antoine Fuqua this film was made for US$25M and has already raked in over US$60M since its 24th July release Stateside. I don't mind a pugilistic film offering at all and have seen many, and when it stars Jake Gyllenhaal what other reason to you need to see a film? The story may be familiar offering little that is original or new, but it is the deft hand of the Director, strong performances from its lead especially and solid believable dialogue that carry this film forward, and ensures it punches above its weight.

As we join the story Boxer Billy Hope is defending his World Light Heavyweight Title which he does successfully but sustains an injury to his eye. Being at the height of his career and his popularity he enjoys all the trappings of success, and so do his family. After so many bouts and too many injuries he is convinced by his wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) to retire, but soon afterwards tragedy strikes and Billy is very quickly taken from the top of his game to the bottom of the barrel. He risks losing everything and before things get better they of course get worse. Eventually, he realises that he needs to claw his way back up to regain his reputation, his integrity and custody of his young daughter. He enlists the help of gym owner and one time Boxer Titus Wills (Forest Whitaker) to become his trainer to give him another stab and claiming back his former titles and putting him once again in the spotlight. Oscar recognition has so far eluded Jake Gyllenhaal - could this be the one to do it for him? You decide!

DOPE (Rated MA15+) - Forest Whitaker is getting about a bit this week having a role in the aforementioned 'Southpaw' and turning up here on Producer and Narrator duties in this Rick Famuyiwa Directed film. 'Dope' was made for a meagre US$700K and has so far grossed US$17M since it's June release in the United States. The story here surrounds a bunch of teens living in the troubled L.A. suburb of Inglewood who hang out together and listen to 90's Hip Hop music and play in their own Punk revivalist band. A chance meeting with a drug dealer puts them in a night club celebrating a birthday party, but things get ugly and the gang flee unaware that a secret stash of Ecstasy has been holed away in a back pack carried by one of them. Needless to say the owners of the said stash want their spoils back and so the lads find themselves on the run from a bunch of tooled up thugs whom they must evade to survive and get on with their lives which they are trying to keep on track amidst various distractions of the teen kind. Starring Shameik Moore as Malcolm, Tony Revolori as Jib,  Kiersey Clemons as Diggy, Zoe Kravitz as Nakia and A$AP Rocky as Dom.

IRRATIONAL MAN (Rated M) - Woody Allen is back at it again with his 46th film as Director and this time starring Joaquin Phoenix as Professor of Philosophy Abe Lucas working at a small town college campus in no-name USA. He gets the hots for one of his students and hits on Jill Pollard  (Emma Stone) and the two have a relationship. Things get complicated when having a meal together one day they overhear a fellow diner recounting a story that she will lose custody of her children if she goes before a certain Judge. This unexpectedly gives meaning to Lucas's life and so he decides to take the law into his own hands, play the Good Samaritan and the Smiling Assassin all in one, and dispense with the Judge so that he cannot rule against the woman diner. When Pollard gets wind of this she urges Lucas to turn himself him, but of course not wanting to do this he decides to dispense with Pollard but things don't go quite according to plan with disastrous consequences for some! Parker Posey also stars.

VACATION (Rated MA15+) - The original National Lampoons film series of the 1980's were hugely successful and influential for their time with the initial film in the 'Vacation' series released in 1983 at a cost of US$15M and grossing US$62M. What followed was 'European Vacation' in '85, 'Christmas Vacation' in '89 and then 'Vegas Vacation' in '97. Now in 2015 we have a reboot, remake, retooling, and a reimagining of that series that introduced us to The Griswold's with the aptly named 'Vacation'. This time around original Daddy Griswold, Clark as played by Chevvy Chase is back in a cameo with Ed Helms playing Russell Griswold who packs up his nuclear dysfunctional family to head back to the theme park of theme parks, Walley World for a parental bonding road trip with the two sons in tow, ably assisted by Mum Debbie Griswold (Christina Applegate). Of course you can bet that before they even get out of the driveway that misadventure, mishap and mayhem is likely to ensue along the way, as their trip just goes from bad to worse and drags in various innocent bystanders and bemused onlookers en route! Was this really necessary I am thinking? Quite possibly a waste of US$31M but, it has raked in US$53M at the time of writing! Chris Hemsworth also stars, but I'm not sure why!

There you have it - four films of choice and all packed with something different. Get out amongst it and do yourself a favour in the week ahead by catching a latest release movie, and then share your experience with us here.

See you at the Odeon.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-