Birthday's to share this week : 6th - 12th March 2016.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Matthew Vaughn does on 7th March - check out my tribute to this Birthday Boy turning 45, 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 6th March

• Rob Reiner - Born 1947, turns 69 - Director | Producer | Writer | Actor | Singer | Songwriter
• Tom Arnold - Born 1959, turns 57 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Alan Davies - Born 1966, turns 50 - Actor | Writer | Television Personality

Monday 7th March

• Bryan Cranston - Born 1956, turns 60 - Actor | Producer | Director
• Peter Sarsgaard - Born 1971, turns 45 - Actor Producer
• Matthew Vaughn - Born 1971, turns 45 - Director | Producer
• Rachel Weisz - Born 1970, turns 46 - Actress | Producer

Tuesday 8th March

• Freddie Prinze Jnr. - Born 1976, turns 40 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Micky Dolenz - Born 1945, turns 71 - Actor | Producer | Director | Writer | Singer | Songwriter
• James Van Der Beek - Born 1977, turns 39 - Actor
• Aidan Quinn - Born 1959, turns 57 - Actor

Wednesday 9th March

• Oscar Isaac - Born 1979, turns 37 - Actor | Singer
• Juliette Binoche - Born 1964, turns 52 - Actress

Thursday 10th March

• Olivia Wilde - Born 1984, turns 32 - Actress | Producer
• Sharon Stone - Born 1958, turns 58 - Actress | Producer
• Jon Hamm - Born 1971, turns 45 - Actor | Producer
• Chuck Norris - Born 1940, turns 76 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Rafe Spall - Born 1983, turns 33 - Actor
• Paul Haggis - Born 1953, turns 63 - Director | Producer | Writer

Friday 11th March

• Terrence Howard - Born 1969, turns 47 - Actor | Producer | Singer
• Jerry Zucker - Born 1950, turns 66 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Johnny Knoxville - Born 1971, turns 45 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Peter Berg - Born 1964, turns 52 - Director | Producer | Actor | Writer
• Anton Yelchin - Born 1989, turns 27 - Actor

Saturday 12th March

• Aaron Eckhart - Born 1968, turns 48 - Actor | Producer
• Rob Cohen - Born 1949, turns 67 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Liza Minelli - Born 1946, turns 70 - Actress | Singer

Matthew de Vere Drummond was born Matthew Allard Robert Vaughn, in London, England to mother Kathy Ceaton who passed away in mid-2013 and . . . here's where it gets complicated! His father was believed to be the American Actor Robert Vaughn following an affair with his mother. Before a paternity investigation was carried out, Robert Vaughn sought for the young lad to bear his surname and so from birth Matthew Vaughn was it. That subsequent investigation in fact revealed that the young lad's true father was George de Vere Drummond - an English aristocrat and Godson of King George VI. As a consequence of all of this, Matthew goes by the de Vere Drummond name in his personal life and by the Vaughn name in his professional life. Matthew was educated at the prestigious independent boys and girls boarding school - Stow School - in Stow, Buckinghamshire. Taking a gap year before university, he travelled the world and ending up in Los Angeles found work assisting a Director. Following his gap year he returned to England and attended University College, London, but dropped out after a matter of weeks.

Having been bitten by the film bug, he returned to LA after dropping out of university to begin his career in the movie business. His first foray in to the world of film was as Producer on a little known thriller in 1996 called 'The Innocent Sleep' which starred Michael Gambon, Rupert Graves and John Hannah. Having forged a close friendship with Guy Ritchie in the meantime, Vaughn went onto Produce Ritchie's critical and financially successful films - 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' and then 'Snatch' with 'Swept Away' thereafter which he probably wishes had been well & truly swept away! 'Mean Machine' can along in the meantime which he also Produced with Guy Ritchie and starring many of those names from the two aforementioned films, including Vinnie Jones in the lead role.

His Directorial debut came in 2004 with 'Layer Cake' which he also Produced, and starring Daniel Craig, Tom Hardy, Michael Gambon, Ben Whishaw and Sienna Miller. The film was nominated for several awards and Vaughn picked up the Empire Award for Best British Director on his first such outing.

'Stardust' came next in 2007 which he Directed, Wrote and Produced and which starred a Who's Who of A-List acting talent including Ian McKellen, Robert De Niro, Peter O'Toole, Mark Strong, Henry Cavill, Rupert Everett, Ricky Gervais, Dexter Fletcher, Jason Flemyng, Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes and Sienna Miller. The film picked up five award wins and six other nominations and made US$136M off its US$89M budget. After this he Produced 2009's British vigilante revenge thriller 'Harry Brown' with Michael Caine in the title role.

A year later came 'Kick-Ass' which he again Directed, Produced and wrote the Screenplay for based on the comic book of the same name, and which helped launch the career of eleven year old wise cracking gun totting Chloe Grace Moretz, and which also starred Mark Strong and Nicolas Cage. The film was marred by its use of graphic violence and profanity but it gelled with audiences (including this Reviewer!) making US$97M from its US$30M production budget, and along the way it picked up sixteen award wins and 61 further nominations. Vaughn also served as Producer on the 2013 sequel 'Kick-Ass 2' which fared less well as the Box Office bringing home just US$61M, but off a slightly reduced budget. He also Produced the video game spin-off.

That same year in 2010 he Produced and Wrote 'The Debt' which John Madden Directed and starred Helen Mirren, Jessica Chastain, Sam Worthington and Tom Wilkinson. 'X-Men : First Class' in 2011 saw a return to the Directors chair with a writing credit too on this fifth film in the 'X-Men' franchise taking the story back to the 1960's and the origin of 'The X-Men' and 'The Brotherhood of Mutants' with James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender in the younger Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen roles respectively as Charles Xavier and Magneto respectively. With an ensemble cast the film made US$354M off its US$140M budget and so was deemed a critical and commercial success. Vaughn also gained a further Writing credit on 2014's follow-up 'X-Men : Days of Future Past' which made US$750M globally.

2015 saw 'Kingsman : The Secret Service' based on the comic book of the same name which again saw Vaughn serve as Director, Producer and Writer, and off a budget of US$81M brought home US$415M and launching the career of Taron Egerton in the process, taking a much needed change of direction for Colin Firth and staying true to form Samuel L. Jackson and Michael Caine in strong supporting roles. A sequel is in the works with filming due to begin in April of this year with a release date of June 2017 announced. Vaughn is again writing the Screenplay and is believed to be Directing once again.

He served as Producer on the 2015 Marvel reboot of 'Fantastic Four', as Producer on the about to be released 'Eddie the Eagle' with Taron Egerton, Hugh Jackman and Christopher Walken, and 'I Am Pilgrim' announced with Vaughn taking on Director and Producer duties with a release date yet to be finalised.

All up Vaughn has twenty Producer credits to his name, seven Director credits and seven as Writer, and so far en route he has garnered five award wins and another 15 nominations. He often calls upon Mark Strong, Dexter Fletcher and Jason Flemyng to star in his films and he dropped out of 'Thor', 'Casino Royale' and 'X-Men : Days of Future Past' for which he was slated to Direct. Vaughn also has his own Production Company 'Marv Films' which he founded in 2004. He married German Supermodel Claudia Schiffer in 2002 with whom he has three children - Casper Matthew (born in 2003), Clementine (born in 2004) and Cosima Violet (born in 2010).

Matthew Vaughn - favoured genre is clearly the comic book adaptation, was Best Man to Guy Ritchie when he married Madonna, has made some classic films which have been referenced here both recently and in the past, and looks set to continue doing so. Keep doing what you do best Matthew, and we'll keep watching . . . and writing! Happy Birthday to you - from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

KINGSMAN : THE SECRET SERVICE - Tuesday 10th February 2015.

Well, it's official! Colin Firth can now say that he is a bona fide movie action star having kicked more butt and amassed a body count to match that of any of Sly's, Arnie's or Bruce's singular movie outings of yesteryear, and along the way spin a mightily entertaining yarn that is 'KINGSMAN : THE SECRET SERVICE' which I saw last night with a couple of movie buddies. From Matthew Vaughan's opening title sequence that sees two middle eastern looking insurgents taken out by two black clad dudes hanging perilously from an oncoming chopper to the opening riffs of Dire Straits 'Money for Nothing' you just know you're in for a treat!

In Directing this modern take on the spy spoof that winks all the way at James Bond, Derek Flint, John Steed with a little Harry Palmer too (note the specs worn by the Kingsmen) and more recently Jason Bourne, Jack Bauer and thankfully not Austin Powers, Matthew Vaughan has added all the touchstones we have come to know and love over the years from the action spy genre, shaken them up, thrown them asunder and given us the middle finger of his right hand as if to say 'I did it my way'!

And so he has . . . and in spades! We have the English gentlemen types, the suave Saville Row suits, gadgets galore, space age technology, sophisticated residences, hideaway command centres, stunning locations as well as some pretty down to Earth ones, a megalomaniac villain with a plan to change the world and a beautiful henchwoman with the most evil pair of 'legs' you have ever seen. It's all good fun, and then of course there is the body count, and Vaughan's creative imaginative way of dispensing death at the hands of our heroes and villains. It all makes for a very enjoyable romp, and I bet that Colin Firth has not had so much fun on a movie set in years . . . if ever!

The story opens in the mid-90's with the opening credits sequence that for the Kingsmen doesn't quite go according to plan and one of them ends up very dead at the hands of a suicide vest wearing insurgent. Back in some downbeat looking council estate in London and Harry Hart (aka 'Galahad', played by Colin Firth) breaks the news to his wife and the young boy 'Eggsy' who then is about four years of age. He hands over a Kingsman medallion and says that is ever she needs help to call the number on the reverse said and say simply 'Oxfords not Brogues' and the matter will be dealt with.

Seventeen years later and we cut to a scene in deepest mountainous Argentina where a man is being held hostage -  and in arrives 'Lancelot' (Jack Davenport) who takes out the captors swiftly and with Kingsman precision, but in turn becomes a casualty at the hands of 'Gazelle' (Sofia Boutella) who has prosthetic razor sharp steel blades for legs . . . and she knows how to use 'em! Gazelle, is the henchwoman of Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) the semi-retired multi-billionaire who speaks with a lisp, is always colourfully attired and hates violence and the sight of blood but just wants to make the world a better place by seriously downsizing the population to deal with the climate change issue! As such, he has hatched a cunning plan involving the free distribution of his manufactured SIM cards that when activated by a certain broadcast signal set off a neurological impulse that turns humans uncontrollably violent against each other.

Eggsy (played in young adulthood by newcomer and one to watch Taron Egerton) meanwhile makes contact with the Kingsman through the medallion given to his mother and is recruited in this Secret Service by Galahad in an attempt to make good on the death of his father all those years ago. Eggsy has a life of council estate petty crime and no hope to look forward to so jumps at the chance for some adventure and daring-do! What follows is the usual training sequence where other hopefuls are put to the test and through their paces over several months as they all fall by the way side one by one leaving only one successful! The training regime is managed by 'Merlin' (Mark Strong) under the watchful eye of 'Arthur' (Michael Caine) to ensure the best outcome is achieved for the Secret Service.

All the while Valentine's plan is unfolding as he persuades more & more world leaders that his plan has credence and should been adopted to prevent climate and environmental disasters in the not too distant future that thus far have been caused by human over population. This all plays out on screen as the clock ticks down on the broadcast of the necessary signal to unleash violent mayhem on an unsuspecting global populace. Vaughan has choreographed some great action set pieces - most notably when Valentine tests his signal on an amassed Church congregation in the US mid-west that Galahad attends having been tipped off. Here we see Firth like you have never seen him before dispensing with crazed churchgoers with acts of extreme violence that result in impalings, dismemberment's, shootings, spearings, stranglings, bone crunching body blows, pistol acrobatics and fist fight gymnastics aplenty - it's a hoot and all largely at the hands of the English gent himself.

The final act as the countdown is on for gathered world dignitaries who have succumbed to Valentine's moral platitudes, is also a finale to behold as the resultant 'firework' display takes us into hitherto unknown territory - brilliantly executed (pardon the pun) and laugh out load OTT.

Needless to say the good guys win the day in what is another nod to Bond, and live to fight another day (or 'Die Another Day')  (well, most of them anyway) and in Eggsy it would appear we have a new suave, savvy, street smart secret service spy in the making. Hugely entertaining,  lavish and stylish, violent and extreme, well cast and deftly handled throughout this is delivered with the tongue firmly planted in the cheek, and definitely one of the most entertaining and engaging films of the year so far. Can't wait for the sequel.

  

-Steve, at Odeon Online-