PENGUIN BLOOM : Wednesday 27th January 2021.

'PENGUIN BLOOM' is a PG Rated Australian film which I saw at my local independent movie theatre earlier this week, and is Directed by Glendyn Ivin in only his second feature film outing following 'Last Ride' in 2009, although he has directed a number of TV series and mini-series including 'Puberty Blues', 'Gallipoli', 'Safe Harbour' and 'The Cry' most recently. This family drama film is based on the 2016 book of the same name by Cameron Bloom and Bradley Trevor Greive, saw its World Premier screening at TIFF back in September last year, and was released theatrically last week in Australia and in the US, UK, France and a number of Asian countries on 27th January on Netflix. The film has generated mixed or average Reviews, and taken US$2M at the Australian Box Office so far. 

The film opens up with the outdoorsy adventurous Bloom family enjoying a holiday in Thailand, with the oldest son Noah (Griffin Murray-Johnston) providing the voiceover narration saying that he and his two younger brothers wanted to go to Disneyland but instead their parents decided on Thailand instead - not that the boys weren't enjoying themselves traipsing through the jungle, enjoying the surf, the markets, the unusual foods, the evening fireworks and spending time with their fun loving outgoing parents. That is to say that 'everything was pretty much perfect, until last year happened' comments Noah. We see Noah and his Mum Sam (Naomi Watts, who also Co-Produces here) climb the steps up onto the rooftop of their hotel to take in the views, with Dad Cameron (Andrew Lincoln) trailing behind with his camera - he's a professional photographer. In an unguarded moment, Sam leans against a railing to pose for a photo and the wooden supports holding the railing in place give way causing Sam to fall to the ground two storeys below. 

We then fast forward several months to the family back home on Sydney's Northern Beaches where Sam is wheelchair bound having suffered severe damage to her spinal cord leaving her paralysed from the waist down. Sam is feeling sorry for herself (understandably), angry, frustrated and depressed - so much so that she spends much of her time in bed, with the curtains drawn blocking out the Australian sunshine and the sweeping views out across the ocean and to Barrenjoey Lighthouse in the middle distance. She longs to be the woman and the mother she once was - enjoying the surf and being in the water rather than being a burden on the whole family and practically unable to do anything for herself. 

Then one day while the young boys were out playing at their local beach Noah happens to come across a young Magpie chick that had fallen out of its nest from a tree high above, and had injured itself. Noah picks up the young chick and with his two younger brothers Rueben (Felix Cameron) and Oli (Abe Clifford-Barr) they take the injured bird back home. Cameron agrees to let it stay in the house and for the family to nurse it back to health, but Sam is much more reluctant seeing the Magpie as just another unnecessary distraction to add to the mounting chores and familial responsibilities now firmly resting on Cam's shoulders. Noah hits upon the name Penguin, because of its black and white markings, and so Penguin Bloom is welcomed into the family unit.

When the kids go off to school, and Dad is out on a photographic assignment, Sam is left home alone to fend for herself while Penguin becomes increasingly annoying cheeping and chirping craving attention and when it doesn't get it jumps out of its basket and parades around the house knocking over vases, pecking at a sock monkey, picking out the teabag from Sam's hot cuppa and leaving a trail of bird poop wherever she goes. However, as time progresses and the bird begins to heal and grow, so Sam's attitude to Penguin begins to change, as she begins to play a more active role in caring for the bird and nurturing it. Sam starts to see in Penguin a common connection and her mood changes for the better as a result, and often Penguin is the first one to alert the rest of the family when Sam is in difficulty or distressed. 

In the meantime, Sam's Mother Jan (Jacki Weaver) is on hand to help out with chores around the house and provide some light relief, but more often that not tends to nag at her daughter and son-in-law by providing good intentioned but useless advice rather than offer a sympathetic ear and an understanding point of view. One day Cameron comes home to find that Sam, who has had a particularly bad day, has smashed all the wall mounted photographs of her and her family that were a throwback of the outdoor pursuits she once enjoyed in her former able bodied life. After clearing up the mess Cam suggests that she should get into kayaking as a means to get back in the water and give her some focus. Sam initially dismisses the notion and berates her husband for even suggesting the idea. 

However, in time, she relents and agrees to give it a go. And so the family go down to kayak rental place and meet with instructor Gaye (Rachel House) the no nonsense instructor who takes Sam through her paces before announcing that she needs to capsize the kayak, and if she doesn't do it herself then she'll do it for her. Sam at first refuses point blank but when Gaye tells her that she still has her arms and her ability to breathe to keep her afloat, she relents and voluntarily capsizes the kayak. From that point forward there is no looking back.

One year on from her accident and on the occasion of Sam's birthday, Jan invites the family around for lunch. Gaye is in attendance with Sam's sister Kylie (Leeanna Walsman) and while Jan is nagging Sam and Cam, Penguin who also came around has walked out onto the balcony and has been attacked by two other very territorial Magpies. With the family shouting from the deck above at the birds in an attempt to stop their fighting, Cam rushes downstairs to disperse the birds and in doing so Penguin flies off. So begins a fruitless search. After several days, with still no sign of Penguin, Cam arranges for a makeshift chair to be constructed with which they will carry Sam up to the top of the Barrenjoey Lighthouse look out, using the brute strength of Gaye, Kylie, Cam and a former nursing colleague of Sams, Bron (Lisa Hensley) with Jan in tow. After a heartfelt reconnection between Sam and Cam in which she announces 'I'm back' they return home to the familiar chirping of Penguin who has also returned home for one final time to bid her fond farewells before flying the nest for good. 

'Penguin Bloom' is a feel good family orientated movie that tugs at the heartstrings and leave you with at least a lump in your throat or even a tear in your eye by the time the end credits roll, and we see those credits accompanied by stills taken by the real Cameron Bloom of the real Sam Bloom and their family and the ubiquitous Penguin. Naomi Watts delivers another first rate authentic performance as the initially broken woman and mother who clambers herself away from the edge of the abyss thanks to a Magpie whose performance almost matches her own (although to be fair there were several Magpies, a CGI version and an animatronic one used in the making of this film apparently), and the sweeping vistas of Sydney's Northern Beaches is also quite spectacular. Andrew Lincoln is solid enough, Jacki Weaver's talents are under utilised and Griffin Murray-Johnston as the eleven year old Noah is quite a revelation. Despite being just a tad predictable and sticking to the formula, this is a well crafted tale of over coming adversity and having faith in the loved ones around you to help and guide you through those difficult times. All credit must also go to the real Bloom family for allowing Glendyn Ivin such unrestricted access to their own home for the shoot and for allowing him to tell their emotional story with aplomb.

'Penguin Bloom' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

WIDOWS : Wednesday 28th November 2018.

'WIDOWS' which I saw earlier in the week at my local multiplex, is an American heist drama film based on the 1983 and 1985 British television series of the same name that was written by Lynda La Plante, and which ran for two series each of six episodes. Now in 2018 that earlier inspiration has been given a makeover some thirty years later and this time is written for the screen by Gillian Flynn, the author of the acclaimed novel and later film 'Gone Girl'. Directed by Steve McQueen whose previous Directorial credits include 'Hunger', 'Shame' and '12 Years a Slave', here he has amassed an ensemble cast for a Production Budget of US$42M and what has so far received widespread Critical praise. The film saw its Premier screening at TIFF back in September, was released in the UK early in November, the US and Australia mid-November, has so far grossed US$42M and has been Critically praised.

The story here surrounds a Police shootout that leaves four career thieves and partners in crime dead during an explosive armed robbery attempt in Chicago that goes horribly wrong for the gang of four. Those men were Harry Rawlins (Liam Neeson), Carlos Perelli (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), Florek Gunner (Jon Bernthal) and Jimmy Nunn (Coburn Goss). We see the four men in the lead up to their fateful robbery living the domestic life with their wives, children, pets, jobs and each man leaving their domestic situation on the morning of the daring heist . . .  never to return. We then cut to the funerals of each one in turn - mostly small & private, expect for Harry's which was a much grander affair attended by many guests and a few dignitaries. The widows left behind are Veronica Rawlins (Viola Davis), Linda Perelli (Michelle Rodriguez), Alice Gunner (Elizabeth Debicki) and Amanda Nunn (Carrie Coon). At Harry's funeral, after his body is lowered into the ground, Veronica is approached by Jack Mulligan (Colin Farrell) who is running for election for the position of Alderman in the South Side Ward of Chicago, offering his deepest sympathies and his support, if ever she needs anything.

Meanwhile Jamal Manning (Brian Tyree Henry) is also running for election as Alderman of the South Side Ward against Mulligan, and there is a fierce rivalry between the two. Mulligan believing that as his father and grandfather before him occupied that seat, that he has a divine right to it having been born into the role, and Manning believes that he is a man of the people and is their voice at a grassroots level. However, Manning is also a crime boss, and has his younger brother Jatemme (Daniel Kaluuya) to do his dirty work for him, including dispensing with ruthless efficiency with those that would cross the pair or stand in the way of them getting what they want. We quickly learn that Harry and his gang robbed Jamal of US$2M which went up in smoke, and now the Manning's are wanting their money back, as this money was to fund Manning's electoral campaign against Mulligan. The pair look on menacingly from a distance at Harry's funeral.

Harry's trusted long time driver Bash (Garret Dillahunt) while driving Veronica around, hands her a small package containing a key and a handwritten note with the location of a safety deposit box. Recovering the box she opens it up to reveal a note book, in which are contained copious detailed notes of Harry's former robberies, and those planned. In it are contained notes of a future robbery worth US$5M in cash. Meanwhile, Jamal has visited Veronica in her home, demanding repayment of the US$2M that her husband stole from him, and gives her one month to pay up in full or suffer the consequences. Veronica claims to have known nothing about her husbands criminal activities and doesn't have that sort of money, despite the facade of living in a plush apartment with all the trappings of success. Despite what she may or may not claim to know about her husbands 'business', she has one month.

Veronica, realising the seriousness with which Jamal speaks and the threats made against her, decides to carry out the plan as laid out in Harry's note book in order to repay her debt to Jamal. She sets up a secret meeting with the three other widows whom she has never met before, and whose details she coerced out of Bash. Veronica is successful in recruiting both Alice and Linda to assist execute her plan, but this is completely new territory to the widows and they are each pretty clueless about what's involved - they just know they've gotta complete the task now in hand, and live with the consequences whatever they might be. The fourth widow however, Amanda, does not show to their initial meeting. Veronica outlines the plan in brief and says that if the girls are 'in' to meet tomorrow night at 11:30pm at a secret location which turns out to be Harry's former warehouse and and centre of operations, which remains just as the gang left it before their last job.

At that meeting, after some soul searching and weighing up their options, Alice and Linda are both in. Veronica charges Alice to buy the getaway van and three Glock pistols, while Linda is tasked with deciphering a blueprint in Harry's plan that is the location of the planned heist. Alice purchases a van from a used vehicle auction house, and the three pistols from a gun fair. Linda however, struggles to locate the whereabouts of the building depicted on the photocopied blueprint. Meanwhile, Alice has become an 'escort' at her mother Agnieska (Jacki Weaver) suggestion, to raise some much needed cash and all the trappings that go with it. On her first 'date' she falls into a transactional relationship with David (Lukas Haas) a real estate developer. She uses David's knowledge to trace the origin of the blueprint and the location of the building depicted thereon. He comes back some days later stating that it is a safe room within Jack Mulligan's home. As for Amanda, Veronica visits her and learns that she has a four month old newborn baby, and so decides not to mention their upcoming heist or to seek her involvement. 

Bash is visited unannounced in his home by Jatemme and his henchmen seeking the whereabouts of the notebook, realising the value contained in its detailed handwritten pages. When Bash claims no knowledge of its whereabouts he is promptly beaten to a pulp and murdered while Jatemme looks on. Still with no driver to provide their getaway, Linda recruits Belle (Cynthia Erivo), her children’s babysitter, and a hairdresser in a Salon underpinned by funding from Mulligan. Veronica is reluctant, but with six days only remaining on the month long deadline to pay up, she agrees to take Belle on, and it seems like she is made of sterner stuff, and can drive. Veronica visits the Mulligan home to ask Jack for protection from Manning, to which he politely declines, and to scout out the building in advance of the heist, while Belle scans the external security systems. Veronica also successfully acquires the code to the Mulligan safe by blackmailing the CEO of the Mulligans' security company, Ken (Matt Walsh) using explicit photographs of him of a sexual nature left in Harry's notebook.

The group commences the heist at night by creating a distraction down the street to divert police attention. The house is believed to be empty save for a lone Security Guard whom they taser and incapacitate. Jack Mulligan is away at an election debate between him and Jamal Manning. Having gained access to the safe and loaded up with US$5M in cash, in making their exit they are interrupted by Tom Mulligan (Robert Duvall), father of Jack and the current sitting Alderman, who shoots and wounds Alice. Linda returns fire and kills him. They escape with the money, but are caught by Jamal's brother Jatemme who is holding Belle at gunpoint and who in turn steals it from them, leaving the four girls standing on the side of the road penniless. 

Thinking he is clear Jatemme relaxes with a big smile on his dial behind the wheel of the girls getaway van, only to be heavily shunted from behind by a station wagon with the four widows giving chase and Belle at the wheel. Jatemme looses control of the vehicle and smashes into a crash barrier head-on killing him instantly. The girls retrieve the money and make their getaway. Linda takes Alice to the nearest hospital for medical attention to her gun shot wound and remains with her. Veronica drops Belle off at home before returning to the hideout with the stash of cash. Upon leaving the hideout having taken care of some final business, Veronica torches their getaway car, before loading up the final bag of swag into her own car. 

A few days later it is announced on the radio that Jack Mulligan won the election on a wave of public sympathy following his father's murder. Linda reacquires the store she lost upon her husband's death due to his gambling debts, Alice sets up her own business, and Belle moves out of town with her own children. Out of danger of Manning, Veronica donates much of her share to endow a library building in her and Harry's deceased son's memory and name at the school he attended.

I enjoyed 'Widows' but not as much as I thought I would, and I felt let down by the glowing Critical acclaim that seemingly has been bestowed upon McQueen's heist actioner. The performances are top rate - especially Viola Davis and Elizabeth Debicki, the film looks good enough, but for a heist movie set in Chicago of all places, the actual and only heist takes place in the final ten minutes of a two hour+ long movie, and there are plot holes aplenty too. Four dead career criminal husbands, four grieving and at a complete loss desperate wives, political power play, father and son machinations, gangsters making demands, violence, death and emotional turmoil are all at play here, together with a seemingly completely incompetent Chicago PD. The film moves along at a goodly pace, but some of the scenes felt rushed, especially towards the end leaving questions unanswered and plot holes uncovered, and some of the characters were left hanging without any real sense of closure. Critics seems to be raving about 'Widows' but audiences less so, and I'm in the camp with the audience I must say. Despite this the film has plenty of redeeming features too and is worth a look - it's good, but it's not great!

'Widows' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard, from a potential five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

Birthday's to share this week : 21st - 27th May 2017

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Jacki Weaver does on 25th May - check out my tribute to this Birthday Girl turning 70, at the end of this feature.

Do you also share your birthday with a well known, highly regarded & famous Actor or Actress; share your special day with a Director, Producer, Writer, Cinematographer, Singer/Songwriter or Composer of repute; or share an interest in whoever might notch up another year in the coming seven days? Then, look no further! Whilst there will be too many to mention in this small but not insignificant and beautifully written and presented Blog, here are the more notable and noteworthy icons of the big screen, and the small screen, that you will recognise, and that you might just share your birthday with in the week ahead. If so, Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online!

Sunday 21st May

• Mr. T (aka Laurence Tureaud) - Born 1952, turns 65 - Actor 
• Judge Reinhold - Born 1957, turns 60 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Director
• Nick Cassavetes - Born 1959, turns 58 - Actor | Director | Writer | Producer  

Monday 22nd May

• Gary Sweet - Born 1957, turns 60 - Actor
• Maggie Q - Born 1979, turns 38 - Actress | Producer  

Tuesday 23rd May

• Joan Collins - Born 1933, turns 84 - Actress | Producer | Singer
• Melissa McBride - Born 1965, turns 52 - Actress
• Drew Carey - Born 1958, turns 59 - Actor | Television Personality | Producer | Writer | Director
• Tom Tykwer - Born 1965, turns 52 - Director | Producer | Writer | Composer | Songwriter  
• John Ortiz - Born 1968, turns 49 - Actor | Producer

Wednesday 24th May

• James Cosmo - Born 1948, turns 69 - Actor 
• Roger Deakins - Born 1949, turns 68 - Cinematographer | Cameraman
• Jim Broadbent - Born 1949, turns 68 - Actor | Writer
• Alfred Molina - Born 1953, turns 64 - Actor | Producer
• John C. Reilly - Born 1965, turns 52 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Singer
• Priscilla Presley - Born 1945, turns 72 - Actress | Producer
• Kristin Scott Thomas - Born 1960, turns 57 - Actress | Director  

Thursday 25th May

• Jacki Weaver - Born 1947, turns 70 - Actress 
• Octavia Spencer - Born 1970, turns 47 - Actress | Producer | Writer | Director 
• Ian McKellen - Born 1939, turns 78 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Singer
• Frank Oz - Born 1944, turns 73 - Actor | Director | Producer | Singer | Writer
• Mike Myers - Born 1963, turns 54 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Singer | Songwriter | Director
• Neil Marshall - Born 1970, turns 47 - Director | Producer | Writer | Editor
• Cillian Murphy - Born 1976, turns 41 - Actor | Producer

Friday 26th May

• Alex Garland - Born 1970, turns 47 - Writer | Producer | Director
• Matt Stone - Born 1971, turns 46 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director | Singer | Songwriter
• Pam Grier - Born 1949, turns 68 - Actress | 
• Helena Bonham Carter - Born 1966, turns 51 - Actress | Singer   

Saturday 27th May

• Louis Gossett Jnr. - Born 1936, turns 81 - Actor | Producer
• Joseph Fiennes - Born 1970, turns 47 - Actor | Director | Producer
• Paul Bettany - Born 1971, turns 46 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director 

Jacqueline Ruth Weaver was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia to mother Edith Simpson and father Arthur, a Sydney based solicitor. She attended Hornsby Girls High School, in Sydney's Upper North Shore, and then gained a scholarship to study sociology at University, but instead chose to pursue a career in acting. She began her acting career on the stage in 1962 in a production of 'A Wish is a Dream' followed up in 1963 in 'Once Upon a Surfie'. In 1964, she gained her first role on the made for television film 'Split Level' and in 1966 she first appeared in the ABC Television children's science fantasy series 'Wandjina!' and then on nine episodes of the long running police procedural television series 'Homicide' in 1967. Single episodes on television series 'Riptide', 'Division 4', 'Woobinda, Animal Doctor', 'The Godfathers' and 'Spyforce' all came before her first big screen role in 1971. 

Her debut feature film appearance came in 1971 in 'Stork' based on the David Williamson play, and for which Weaver won her first Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actress. From here there was no looking back for the young Actress with numerous roles on the big screen, small screen and stage throughout the '70's. More notable roles came in the form of 'Alvin Purple' in 1973, 'Petersen' in 1974, Peter Weir's critically acclaimed 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' in 1975, 'Caddie' in 1976 for which Weaver won her second Best Actress Award at the Australian Film Institute Awards. In between time there were episodes on TV series including 'Matlock Police', 'The Last of the Australians', 'Water Under the Bridge' and stage appearances in 'Love's Labour's Lost', 'The Seagull' and 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.

The '80's and '90's were leaner times for Weaver with sporadic film and television appearances only, with the likes of 'Squizzy Taylor' in 1982, 'The Perfectionist' in 1987, 'Cosi' in 1996, and TV mini-series 'The Challenge'. There was stage work during this time that included 'The Real Thing', 'Blithe Spirit', 'Emerald City', 'Away' and 'After the Ball'.

2007 saw television film 'Hammer Bay', then 'Three Blind Mice' before her Academy Award and Golden Globe nominated performance in David Michod's Written and Directed 2010 Melbourne crime family drama 'Animal Kingdom' in which Weaver stars as family matriarch Janine 'Smurf' Cody alongside Guy Pearce, Joel Edgerton and Ben Mendelsohn. The film won a total of 38 awards and a further 55 nominations. 'Summer Coda' followed that same year with Rachael Taylor, Alex Dimitriades and Susie Porter.

RomCom 'The Five-Year Engagement' with Jason Segel, Emily Blunt and Chris Pratt came next in 2012 and served as Weaver's Hollywood debut film, with the highly acclaimed David O'Russell Written and Directed 'Silver Linings Playbook' coming next, with Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro, for which Weaver gained her second Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. All up the film picked up 88 award wins and another 145 nominations and returned US$237M from its US$21M budget outlay.

2013 saw psychological thriller 'Stoker' with Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode, Dermot Mulroney and Mia Wasikowska, then historical drama film about the events that unfolded following the assassination of John F. Kennedy 'Parkland' with Billy Bob Thornton, Zac Efron, Paul Giamatti, James Badge Dale with Weaver starring as Marguerite Oswald, the mother of infamous assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. A change of pace and genre followed with 2013 horror offering 'Haunt'. 

The next year, 2014, saw drama thriller 'Reclaim' with John Cusack, Ryan Phillippe and Louis Guzman, then black comedy horror offering 'The Voices' with Ryan Reynolds, Anna Kendrick and Gemma Arterton; then Woody Allen's 'Magic in the Moonlight' with Colin Firth and Emma Stone and to follow 'Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks' with Gena Rowlands. 'The Last Cab to Darwin' followed in 2015, as did Sci-Fi romantic drama 'Equals' with Nicholas Hoult, Kristen Stewart and Guy Pearce.

2016 saw Aussie outback murder mystery 'Goldstone' with David Wenham, Aaron Pedersen, Alex Russell and David Gulpilil with television film 'Sister Cities' following. Coming up and yet to be released in Australia is 'Polka King' with Jack Black; Netflix Produced crime thriller 'Small Crimes' with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Robert Forster and Gary Cole; 'The Disaster Artist' with an all star cast recounting the making of Tommy Wiseau's infamous 2003 film 'The Room'; 'Zeroville' Directed and Starring James Franco with Will Ferrell, Seth Rogen, Danny McBride, Dave Franco and Megan Fox; cheerleading retirees comedy 'Poms' with Diane Keaton in pre-production currently; and in post-production are 'Irreplaceable You' with Christopher Walken, Steve Coogan, Michael Huisman and Gugu Mbatha-Raw; with comedy 'Life of the Party' due in 2018 with Melissa McCarthy. Currently filming and due for release in 2018 is 'Widows' for Director Steve McQueen with Elizabeth Debicki, Michelle Rodriguez, Viola Davis, Daniel Kaluuya, Liam Neeson and Robert Duvall.

In between this filmic output there has been television series and mini-series 'Gracepoint', 'Secret City', and 'Blunt Talk' over the last few years and further stage appearances most notably with the Sydney Theatre Company in 'A Hard God', 'Entertaining Mr. Sloane' and 'Uncle Vanya' with Cate Blanchett. This brings us up to date. All up, Weaver has 72 acting credits to her name and she is the recipient of twenty award wins and a further 31 nominations, including two Oscar and one Golden Globe nod. Weaver was married to David Price from 1966 to 1970, to Max Hensser from 1975 to 1977, to radio and television personality Derryn Hinch from 1983 to 1996 and again from 1997 until 1998 and most recently to actor Sean Taylor whom she married in 2003. She has a son Dylan, born in 1969, with her partner at the time John Walters.

Jacki Weaver - has been in the film, stage and television business for six decades spanning fifty-one years; has a second bite of the cherry in the last ten years and is making the most of her critical acclaim; is short in stature barely reaching five feet tall, yet is big in personality and gives it all to the characters she portrays; is more in demand now than she ever was; and continues to surprise and delight us with her roles and film choices. Happy 70th Birthday to you Jacki, from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 6th August 2015.

These days you can pick up just about any book, magazine or social media page and there'll be the greatest, the best, the worst, the most this, that and the other of all time, to stuff you should eat, drink, go, see and listen to before you die, and just about everything in between. We seem to have an insatiable appetite for someone's else opinion of the good, the bad and the ugly in life that is rated on some kind of scale and tells us just how many and what is considered great, best, most, worst or whatever!

And so last month I read with interest such a poll of the 300 Greatest Movies Of All Time as published in a certain popular Australian movie magazine that shall go nameless, but to which I have loyally subscribed since issue #1. Of those 300 I have seen 218, all 30 out of the Top 30, and 48 out of the Top 50. I'm fascinated by this stuff which of course is just someone else's opinion, often regurgitated, who may consider themselves an authority on the subject, and which can then be sliced, diced, repackaged and churned out again for another unsuspecting reader to dive into . . . like me! It got me thinking how much people take note of such lists, but I guess it must be a lot - because the magazines sell, the books get published, people 'like' the social media commentary and another Critic, Reviewer, Author or Blogger will publish another such list tomorrow no doubt!

Speaking of which, this week ahead there are four new films with which to tempt, that include a reboot of a superhero franchise that first appeared in a two film series in 2005; then an Aussie stage play based on a true story road trip now adapted for the big screen; a RomCom of a mis-matched pair consisting a OTT party girl and her would be boyfriend; and finally a foreign language life & death drama comedy that seems to have divided audiences but is likely to provoke thought & discussion.

In the coming week when you have sat through your movie of choice, drop your like minded cinema going readers a Comment, following this or any other Post, and share your own views, opinions, observations and critique of your movie experience with Odeon Online. Enjoy your film.

FANT4STIC FOUR (Rated M) - Back in 2005 Marvel released its first 'Fantastic Four' offering as Directed by Tim Story and made for US$100M grossing US$331M. Whilst a reasonable commercial success only, it was hardly hailed as a critical one, but, nonetheless it spawned a sequel in 2007 with 'Fantastic Four : Rise of the Silver Surfer' also Directed by Tim Story and made for US$130M but grossing only US290M this time around. Proving that you can do less with more, the Fantastic Foursome were mothballed as Marvel Studios, as they were to become, rolled out more & more of its rich comic catalogue, developed new franchises based on its source material, got bigger and better at it and raked in mega-bucks along the way! Which brings us up to 2015 and those fantastic guys have been bought out of retirement in a reboot costing US$122M with Josh Trank in the Director chair.

You know the story here but in case you don't, essentially four mere humans are thrust together and end up teleporting to a alternate universe (as you do!) and in so doing so have their physical form altered and new weird wonderful and wild powers and abilities bestowed upon them. Upon returning to life as the know it they discover their new found powers and so have to learn to control them and harness them as they are pitched against an old friend turned foe who threatens to bring our little green & blue planet to its knees! Starring Miles Teller as Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm/Human Torch, Kate Mara as Susan Storm/Invisible Woman, with Jamie Bell as Ben Grimm/Thing and Toby Kebbell as Victor von Doom/Doctor Doom. With this first retelling already generating a sufficient amount of pre-release buzz, the sequel has been announced for June 9th 2017, and with Marvel's track record since that 2007 film there is little doubt that this will be a success. Fantastic!

TRAINWRECK (Rated MA15+) - Directed and Produced by Judd Apatow, this film was Written by, and Stars Amy Schumer as Amy Townsend a thirty something magazine writer who lives an over the top existence of men, booze, parties, promiscuity and complete lack of commitment to just about anything & everything. It is what her Dad told her 25 years earlier and the ongoing philosophy by which she has lived her life. Working at S'Nuff Mens Magazine she is tasked by her Boss, Dianna (Tilda Swinton) that she needs to write an article on a well known Sports Doctor, Aaron Conners (Bill Hader), even though she knows nothing about sports, doctors and doesn't want the gig! She has to go along with it and while interviewing the Doctor, researching her piece for the article and getting to know Conners she finds herself unwittingly falling for the guy (horror of horrors, what's a girl to do?) It seems also that the feeling is mutual and Conners is attracted to Townsend too. As time progresses and the couple realise they have much in common Townsend comes to learn that maybe the whole commitment thing isn't so bad after all and maybe it's time to get serious about being serious!

LAST CAB TO DARWIN (Rated M) - Originally a stage play released in 2003 under the same name, this big screen adaptation of the Reg Cribb story is based on the true life of taxi driver Max Bell who in the early 90's was diagnosed with stomach cancer, and chose to drive from Broken Hill in New South Wales to Darwin in the Northern Territory so he could end his life there by voluntary euthanasia. Here our taxi driver is called Rex and is played by Michael Caton who embarks on this epic road trip to end it all on his own terms and with some dignity still intact, but along his journey up to Darwin he learns a lot about himself and others, and that dying is as much about living as it is about sharing and caring. Also starring Jacki Weaver as Dr. Farmer and Directed by Jeremy Sims.

THE FAREWELL PARTY (Rated M) - Coincidentally another offering tackling the touchy subject of euthanasia, but this time set in an Jerusalem aged care facility where the residents have secretly built a device to allow the user to self-euthanise, which they intend to allow a terminally ill dear & close friend use. However, as more & more people become aware of the machine, so demand for its use increases, and so the group of friends have to deal with the decisions this forces them into, and the emotional upheaval that goes with this territory. Directed and Written by Tal Granit and Sharon Maymon this film stars local talent Ze'ev Revach as Yehezkel and Levana Finkelstein as Levana as ageing husband and wife team, and has so far picked up nine award wins and a further eleven nominations. This poignant dark comedy is a tale of compassion, friendship, love, loss and deciding when it's time to call it a day!

Four to choose from, and I'm not sure they're all fantastic but with two treading a similar pathway, another off the rails and the last off the planet there is choice it must be said that will give you something to ponder, something to discuss and debate, something to escape into and something that you may want to 'snog, marry, avoid'! Whatever you select for your filmic enjoyment in the week ahead, share your thoughts and maybe add another to your own list of movie recommendations as you compile you own 300 Best, Biggest, Baddest and Boldest films in the known universe stretching out to infinity and beyond!

See you at the Odeon!

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week - Thursday 28th August 2014.

A fist full of films for your cinematic consideration over the coming week that range from the experimental, the Sci-Fi fantastic, the largely predictable, the local long arm of the law, and another Sci-Fi that you may have seen before . . . or maybe not! Down Under it is the last week of Winter and Springtime beckons with the promise of longer days and warmer evenings - but, having been in the grip of an almost continuous deluge for the last two weeks there is no better time to get out to your local movie theatre for an evening of great entertainment in front of the big screen to forget about the rain and steal yourself off to someplace else!

When you have done that drop me at line at this, your trusted filmic Blog, and let me and my other Reader know what you thought of your big screen experience by recording it in the Comments sections following immediately after every Post. Thanks!

LOCKE (Rated MA15+) - Ivan Locke is played by Tom Hardy, and he occupies all 90 minutes or so of screen time at the wheel of his car driving down an English Motorway from Point A to Point B. He will step out of his car eventually a very different man to when he stepped in, and this is the central premise of the film - handled deftly by relative newcomer Director, Stephen Knight who also wrote the Screenplay. As the film begins Locke we learn is a construction worker leaving his building site place of work - he is a respected worker and a committed family man. He jumps into his car to begin his journey and along the way through the darkness of night, his family life will crumble away and his career will implode as he unburdens himself en route with what will be the biggest mistake of his life. All this occurs through phone conversations he has with other key players in his life during his journey. These other actors are not seen, simply heard over the speaker phone in the car but give compelling voice performances to make this taught, tight and gripping from start to end. This coupled with dazzling night time lights, the darkness and solitude of Locke's vehicle, his own musings broken up by telephone calls, and his muffled sounds contemplating the magnitude of his actions should make for compelling viewing from an actor who is quickly establishing himself at the top of his form.

MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT (Rated PG) - another year and another Woody Allen film - this time a period piece set on the Cote d'Azur in the early 20's. We find Englishman abroad, Stanley Crawford (Colin Firth who is in just about a new film every fortnight right now!) who plays Chinese magician by night and a debunker of all things mystic, psychic and paranormal during the day. He crosses paths with American clairvoyant Sophie Baker (Emma Stone) engaged by rich well-to-do socialite Grace Catledge (Jacki Weaver) to connect with her dearly departed husband. Needless to say Crawford is less than impressed . . . initially, but in time comes to believe in Baker's powers - despite that fact too that as an old letch advanced enough in years to be her father, he is drawn to her beauty -  physical, mental and emotional. This looks good, and it seems that Allen has recreated the era very well, and predictably it will doubtless contain all the usual Allen touchstones with which we have become all too familiar. Is this in the same vein as his recent 'Blue Jasmine' - methinks not, but is likely to be enjoyable fluff for ardent Allen fans!

PREDESTINATION (Rated MA15+) - Directed and Written by Australian brothers Michael and Peter Spierig this is going to mess with your mind in a way that 'Inception' did - but in a good way and leave you musing over it for long after the credits have rolled. As the film opens we are in 1975 New York where a man is attempting to diffuse a bomb set by the mysterious 'Fizzle Bomber', but things go awry and he awakens in the future, in hospital and with a new face (this is Ethan Hawke, our time travelling hero of the piece) who is now a 'temporal agent' that can travel through time with a portable device he carries around in a violin case. He needs to go back to that time, but can do so with a whole new persona to go incognito (becoming 'The Bartender'), and so ultimately thwart the Fizzle Bomber and his/her evil plot. Along the way The Bartender encounters a strange man who goes by the name of 'The Unmarried Mother' (played in a career defining best by Australian Sarah Snook) from whom he must eek out the truth, and her connection with The Fizzle Bomber. There are twists & turns aplenty here to keep you guessing all the way to the end in what has been described as intelligent, original and brave film making that is sure to find it's place in the annals of Sci-Fi cult classic.

FELONY (Rated M) - Writen, Produced and Starring our own Joel Edgerton, 'Felony' is his offering to the gritty Police drama seen from the perspective of Sydney's mean streets with its dark underbelly, on both sides of the law! Following a successful drug bust, Detective Malcolm Toohey (Joel Edgerton) drives himself home after a night of celebration under the influence of alcohol, and is involved in an car accident that leaves a young lad in a coma. The following investigation sees young cop Jim Melic (Jai Courtney) and old hand Detective Carl Summer (Tom Wilkinson) working to uncover the truth or cover it up, and in doing so just how far will these three Policemen go to let the truth be told, or conceal it forever! With a strong cast that also includes Melissa George, this has some great hallmarks of a true big screen Aussie Drama that we can turn on so well when we want to!

EARTH TO ECHO (Rated PG) - this is a 'found footage' style of film involving three young lads who have spent their lives together (Tuck, Munch & Alex) - up until now, and that is all about to change when the Las Vegas suburb in which they live is to be uprooted to make way for a new highway. Spending their last week together before they all relocate with their respective families to the far flung corners of the US they experience strange and weird things happening with mobile phone signals, and all manner of sounds and messages emanating from the handsets across the suburb . . . but only within the suburb. The construction company working on the new highway believe it is their fault, and so hand out new phones to the locals thinking this will cure the problem. What Munch discovers from an image he receives is that it matches a desert some 20 miles away, and so the lads decide they had better investigate. Going undercover of darkness having spun a yarn to their unsuspecting parents, and taking local young hot chic, Emma, along too, they venture out in to the desert armed only with each other for support, their wits and a torch. They discover a small and friendly alien robot who has become stranded on Planet Earth -  they call it 'Echo', and quickly learn that our pint sized robot needs spare electrical parts to repair his space ship so he can return home (are you thinking 'E.T.' here or 'Super 8' as I am?). So the lads come to the rescue with trouble along the way in the form of Government Officials also hot on the trail of a crashed UFO somewhere in the vicinity. Needless to say all undoubtedly ends well; the lads discover something about themselves, each other and their friendship; and everyone returns home - some further away than others!

Some solid entertainment choices to tempt you out to your local multiplex this coming week! So pay a visit and let me know what you think!

Movies - see as many as you can!

-Steve, at Odeon Online-