What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 9th March 2023.

The 75th Directors Guild of America Awards were handed out on Saturday 18th February, followed by the 34th Producers Guild of America Awards on Saturday 25th February, followed by the 29th Screen Actors Guild Awards on Monday 27th February, followed by the 75th Writers Guild of America Awards on Sunday 5th March. The DGA Awards were hosted by Judd Apatow and held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California; the PGA Awards were also held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, the SAG Awards were held at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel, Century City, California and the WGA Awards were also held at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel. All of these awards honour the best achievement in film and television for the 2022 year. 

The winners for each of these awards ceremonies are as given below, in the feature films category :-

DGA AWARDS - honouring the outstanding Directorial achievement in feature films, documentary, television and commercials.

* Feature Film Award presented to Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once', beating out Todd Field for 'Tar', Joseph Kosinski for 'Top Gun : Maverick', Martin McDonagh for 'The Banshees of Inisherin' and Steven Spielberg for 'The Fabelmans'.

* Documentaries Award presented to Sara Dosa for 'Fire of Love', beating out Matthew Heineman for 'Retrograde', Laura Poitras for 'All the Beauty and the Bloodshed', Daniel Roher for 'Navalny' and Shaunak Sen for 'All That Breathes'. 

* First Time Feature Film Award presented to Charlotte Wells for 'Aftersun', beating out Alice Diop for 'Saint Omer', Audrey Diwan for 'Happening', John Patton Ford for 'Emily the Criminal' and Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic for 'Murina'.

PGA AWARDS - honouring the best film and television Producers.

* Darryl F. Zanuck for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures Award presented to Jonathan Wang, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once', beating out the Producers of 'Avatar : The Way of Water', 'The Banshees of Inisherin', 'Black Panther : Wakanda Forever', 'Elvis', 'The Fabelmans', 'Glass Onion : A Knives Out Mystery', 'Tar', 'Top Gun : Maverick' and 'The Whale'. 

* Outstanding Producers of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures Award presented to Guillermo del Toro, Gary Ungar and Alex Bulkley for 'Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio', beating out the Producers of 'Marcel the Shell with Shoes On', 'Minions : The Rise of Gru', 'Puss in Boots : The Last Wish' and 'Turning Red'.

* Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures Award presented to Odessa Rae, Diane Becker, Melanie Miller and Shane Boris for 'Navalny', beating out the Producers of 'All That Breathes', 'Descendant', 'Fire of Love', 'Nothing Compares', 'Retrograde' and 'The Territory'. 

SAG AWARDS - honouring the best achievements in film and television performances.

* Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role Award presented to Brendan Fraser for 'The Whale', beating out Austin Butler for 'Elvis', Colin Farrell for 'The Banshees of Inisherin', Bill Nighy for 'Living' and Adam Sandler for 'Hustle'.

* Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Award presented to Michelle Yeoh for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once', beating out Cate Blanchett for 'Tar', Viola Davis for 'The Woman King', Ana de Armis for 'Blonde' and Danielle Deadwyler for 'Till'.

* Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role Award presented to Ke Huy Quan for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once', beating out Paul Dano for 'The Fabelmans', Brendan Gleeson for 'The Banshees of Inisherin', Barry Keoghan for 'The Banshees of Inisherin' and Eddie Redmayne for 'The Good Nurse'.

* Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Award presented to Jamie Lee Curtis for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once', beating out Angela Bassett for 'Black Panther : Wakanda Forever', Hong Chau for 'The Whale', Kerry Condon for 'The Banshees of Inisherin' and Stephanie Hsu for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once'.

* Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Award presented to 'Everything Everywhere All at Once', beating out 'Babylon', 'The Banshees of Inisherin', 'The Fabelmans' and 'Women Talking'.

* Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture Award presented to 'Top Gun : Maverick', beating out 'Avatar : The Way of Water', 'The Batman', 'Black Panther : Wakanda Forever' and 'The Woman King'. 

WGA AWARDS - honouring the best writing in film, television and radio.

* Best Original Screenplay Award presented to 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' Written, Directed and Co-Produced by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, beating out 'The Fabelmans', 'The Menu', 'Nope' and 'Tar'.

* Best Adapted Screenplay Award presented to 'Women Talking' Written and Directed by Sarah Polley, beating out 'Black Panther : Wakanda Forever', 'Glass Onion : A Knives Out Mystery', 'She Said' and 'Top Gun : Maverick'.

* Best Documentary Screenplay Award presented to 'Moonage Daydream' Written, Directed, Produced and Edited by Brett Morgen, beating out '2nd Chance', 'Downfall : The Case Against Boeing', 'Last Flight Home' and 'Viva Maestro!'.

For all the details of the TV Awards and those others given out where applicable, you can go to the official websites for the Directors Guild Awards at : https://www.dga.org/awards/annual.aspx; the Producers Guild Awards at : https://producersguild.org/category/all-news/awards/; the Screen Actors Guild Awards at : https://www.sagawards.org/awards/nominees-and-recipients/29th-annual-screen-actors-guild-awards; and the Writers Guild Awards at : https://awards.wga.org/awards/nominees-winners.

This week we have seven new release movies coming to a big screen Odeon near you, kicking off with a Sci-Fi actioner that sees an astronaut crash landing on a mysterious planet, only to learn that he's not alone! This is followed by a film inspired by true events in which a West Texas single mother wins the lottery and squanders it just as fast, leaving behind a world of heartbreak. Next we have another real life drama telling the story set in 1955, and after the brutal murder of her fourteen year old son, his mother vows to expose the racism behind the attack while seeking to have justice served on those perpetrators of that crime. Then we turn to the sixth instalment in this horror franchise that sees the survivors of the Ghostface killings leave Woodsboro behind and start afresh in New York City, or so they thought! Next up is another true story of a former minor-league basketball coach who, after a series of missteps, is ordered by the court to manage a team of players with intellectual disabilities. Following on we have a highly acclaimed documentary showing rare footage and intimate interviews providing an insight into the life and work of renowned photographer and activist Nan Goldin; before closing out the week with an Aussie doco telling the true story of polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and the crew of the Endurance.

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

'65' (Rated M) - this American Sci-Fi action thriller film is Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods in their third feature film pairing that has previously brought us 'Nightlight' in 2015 and 'Haunt' in 2019. The pair also penned the script for 2018's multi-award winning and nominated 'A Quiet Place'. With a budget of US$91M this film is released Stateside too this week. The film was originally slated for release at the end of April last year, before being moved several times to its current release window.

Here, following a catastrophic crash on an unknown planet, pilot Mills (Adam Driver) quickly discovers he is stranded on Earth 65 million years ago. Now, with only one chance at rescue, Mills and the only other survivor from a passenger list of thirty-five, Koa (Ariana Greenblatt), must make their way across an unknown terrain riddled with dangerous prehistoric creatures in an epic fight to survive. Also starring Chloe Coleman and Nika King. 

'TO LESLIE' (Rated M) - is an American independent drama film directed by Michael Morris in his feature film Directorial debut, that saw its World Premier screening at South by Southwest in March 2022 before its limited release Stateside in early October. Costing less that US$1M to produce the film has so far collected just US$32K at the Box Office but has garnered universal critical acclaim, and has collected six award wins and another eight nominations including an Oscar nod for lead Actress Andrea Riseborough. Inspired by true events, a West Texas single mother Leslie 'Lee' Rowlands (Andrea Riseborough) wins the lottery of US$190K and squanders it just as fast on alcohol and drugs, leaving behind a world of heartbreak. Six years later, with her charm running out and nowhere to go, she reunites with her estranged twenty-year-old son James (Owen Teague) and fights to rebuild her life and find redemption when a motel owner offers her a job. Also starring Allison Janney, Marc Maron and Stephen Root. 

'TILL' (Rated M) - is an American biographical drama film Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Chinonye Chukwu in her third feature film making effort following 'alaskaLand' in 2012 and 'Clemency' in 2019. The film saw its World Premier showcasing at the New York Film Festival in early October last year, was released in the US in mid-October and in the UK in early January, and is released in Australia this week, having generated widespread critical acclaim and collecting eighteen award wins and another eighty-three nominations from around the awards and festival circuit. It has so far grossed US$11M from its US$20M production budget. Based on real life events, in 1955, after fourteen-year-old Emmett Till (Jalyn Hall) is murdered in a brutal lynching while visiting his cousins in Mississippi, his mother Mamie Till-Mobley (Danielle Deadwyler) vows to expose the racism behind the attack while working to have those involved brought to justice. Also starring Frankie Faison, Haley Bennett, Whoopi Goldberg and Sean Patrick Thomas.

'SCREAM VI' (Rated MA15+) - this American slasher horror film is Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, whose last feature film offering was 2019's 'Ready or Not' and before that 'Devil's Due' in 2014. This is the sixth instalment in the 'Scream' franchise with Wes Craven Directing the first four films in the series and Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett Directing the last two. The first film in the series was released in 1996, with 'Scream' the fifth offering released in January last year, with a total Box Office haul so far of US$745M off the back of combined production budgets of US$142M. Following on from the events of 2022's 'Scream', here the survivors of the latest Ghostface killings, sisters Samantha (Melissa Barrera) and Tara (Jenna Ortega) Carpenter and twins Chad (Mason Gooding) and Mindy Meeks (Jasmin Savoy Brown), leave Woodsboro behind and begin a new chapter of their lives in New York City, only to again be plagued by a streak of murders by a new Ghostface killer. Also starring Dermot Mulroney, Samara Weaving, Hayden Panettiere, Henry Czerny and Courteney Cox. The film is released Stateside too this week.

'CHAMPIONS' (Rated M) - is an American comedy sports film Directed by Bobby Farrelly in his first solo Directorial outing following his numerous film making credits with his brother Peter including 'There's Something About Mary' in 1998, 'Me, Myself and Irene' in 2000, 'Shallow Hal' in 2001, 'Stuck On You' in 2003, 'Fever Pitch' in 2005, 'Hall Pass' in 2011 and 'Dumb and Dumber To' in 2014. This film is a remake of the 2018 Spanish film of the same name and tells the story of a temperamental minor-league basketball coach, Marcus (Woody Harrelson) who finds himself in legal trouble. In order to satisfy a community service requirement, he is ordered by the court to coach a basketball team consisting of players with intellectual disabilities and works with them to compete in the Special Olympics. Also starring Kaitlin Olson, Ernie Hudson and Cheech Marin. 

'ALL THE BEAUTY AND THE BLOODSHED' (Rated R18+) - this American documentary film is Co-Produced and Directed by Laura Poitras whose previous documentary film credits take in the likes of 'The Oath' in 2010, 'Citizenfour' in 2014 and 'Risk' in 2016. This film had its World Premier showing in early September last year at the Venice International Film Festival, where it was awarded the Golden Lion, making it the second only documentary to win the top prize at Venice. It also screened at the 2022 New York Film Festival, where it was the festival's centre piece film. The film examines the life and career of photographer and activist Nan Goldin and her efforts to hold Purdue Pharma, owned by the Sackler family, accountable for the opioid epidemic. Goldin, a well known photographer whose work often documented the LGBT subcultures and the HIV/AIDS crisis, founded the advocacy group P.A.I.N. (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now) in 2017 after her addiction to Oxycontin, and had a near fatal overdose of Fentanyl. P.A.I.N. specifically targets museums and other arts institutions to hold the art community accountable for its collaboration with the Sackler family and its well publicised financial support of the arts. Since P.A.I.N.'s activities most of the targeted museums have severed all ties with the Sackler family and in 2021 Purdue Pharma filed for bankruptcy. Released in the US in late November last year where it has received critical acclaim, was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the upcoming Academy Awards and has so far grossed US$950K in Box Office receipts. The film has so far collected twenty-nine award wins and another forty-seven nominations from around the awards and festival circuit, and is mostly narrated by Nan Goldin.

'SHACKLETON : THE GREATEST STORY OF SURVIVAL' (Rated PG) - is an Australian historical adventure documentary film that is Directed by Bobbi Hansel and Caspar Mazzotti. Twenty-eight lost adventurers must fight for their lives after their only lifeline is destroyed in November 1915 in the most uninhabitable place on Earth, Antarctica. The film reveals the true story of polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and the crew of the Endurance, told by the only man ever to have repeated their incredible feat – explorer and adventurer Tim Jarvis. Following in the beset crew’s footsteps, Tim reveals the enduring legacy of Shackleton’s crisis leadership in the face of seemingly impossible odds. Starring the voices of Rupert Degas as Ernest Shackleton and Tim Jarvis. 

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

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 13th January 2022.

And so the 2022 award season has officially launched following the postponement of the American Film Institute Awards on 7th and the Critics Choice Awards on the 9th January due to the ongoing ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the 79th annual Golden Globe Awards were held on January 9th honouring the very best in film and American TV from 2021 and as chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. This year, the awards are marred by controversy as various media outlets including regular US broadcaster NBC, Netflix, Amazon, WarnerMedia, Actors, and other creatives planned on boycotting the ceremony over the HFPA's lack of action to increase the membership diversity of the organisation. The HFPA still went ahead with a ceremony behind closed doors. This marked the first time since the 36th Golden Globe Awards in 1979 that there was no telecast, and the 65th Golden Globe Awards in 2008 that there was no traditional ceremony. 

This years winners, grinners and also rans in the feature film categories are as given below :-

* Best Motion Picture, Drama - presented to The Power of the Dog, beating out Belfast, CODA, Dune and King Richard. 

* Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy - awarded to West Side Story, beating out Cyrano, Don't Look Up, Licorice Pizza, and Tick, Tick . . . Boom!.

* Best Motion Picture, Animated - presented to Encanto beating out Flee, Luca, My Sunny Maad and Raya and the Last Dragon.

* Best Motion Picture, Foreign Language - awarded to Drive My Car from Japan, beating out Compartment No. 6  from Finland, Russia and Germany, The Hand of God  from Italy, A Hero from France and Iran, and Parallel Mothers from Spain.

* Best Director, Motion Picture - presented to Jane Campion for The Power of the Dog, beating out Kenneth Branagh for Belfast, Maggie Gyllenhaal for The Lost Daughter, Steven Spielberg for West Side Story and Denis Villeneuve for Dune.

* Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama - awarded to Nicole Kidman for Being the Ricardos, beating out Jessica Chastain for The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Olivia Colman for The Lost Daughter, Lady Gaga for House of Gucci and Kristen Stewart for Spencer.

* Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy - presented to Rachel Zegler for West Side Story, beating out Marion Cotillard for Annette, Alana Haim for Licorice Pizza, Jennifer Lawrence for Don’t Look Up and Emma Stone for Cruella.

* Best Supporting Actress, Motion Picture - awarded to Ariana DeBose for West Side Story beating out Caitriona Balfe for Belfast, Kirsten Dunst for The Power of the Dog, Aunjanue Ellis for King Richard and Ruth Negga for Passing.

* Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama - presented to Will Smith for King Richard, beating out Mahershala Ali for Swan Song, Javier Bardem for Being the Ricardos, Benedict Cumberbatch for The Power of the Dog and Denzel Washington for The Tragedy of Macbeth.

* Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy - presented to Andrew Garfield for 'Tick, Tick . . . Boom!, beating out Leonardo DiCaprio for Don’t Look Up, Peter Dinklage for Cyrano, Cooper Hoffman for Licorice Pizza and Anthony Ramos for In the Heights.

* Best Supporting Actor, Motion Picture - awarded to Kodi Smit-McPhee for The Power of the Dog, beating out Ben Affleck for The Tender Bar, Jamie Dornan for Belfast, Ciaran Hinds for Belfast and Troy Kotsur for CODA.

* Best Screenplay, Motion Picture - awarded to Kenneth Branagh for Belfast, beating out Paul Thomas Anderson for Licorice Pizza, Jane Campion for The Power of the Dog, Adam McKay for Don’t Look Up and Aaron Sorkin for Being the Ricardos.

* Best Original Score, Motion Picture - presented to Dune by Hans Zimmer, beating out The French Dispatch by Alexandre Desplat, Encanto by Germaine Franco, The Power of the Dog by Jonny Greenwood and Parallel Mothers by Alberto Iglesias.

You can get the full low down on all the recipients and nominees of this years Golden Globe Awards in both the movie and television categories, by visiting the official website, at : https://www.goldenglobes.com/

Turning attention back on this weeks four new release movies, we launch with a biopic that tells the true story of how a pair of sibling tennis superstars became who they are after the coaching from their determined father. Next up is a spy drama about a top-secret weapon falling into mercenary hands, and so a wild card CIA agent joins forces with three international agents on a lethal mission to retrieve it, while staying a step ahead of a mysterious woman who's tracking their every move. This is followed up by an Aussie survival thriller that tells the story of two men who uncover the biggest gold nugget ever found in the harsh Australian desert, who must then find a way to extract the nugget from the ground. And we close out the week with the fifth film in a slasher franchise that is set twenty-five years after the original series of brutal murders in Woodsboro, a new killer emerges, and a former resident and survivor must return to uncover the truth.

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

'KING RICHARD' (Rated M) - this is an American biographical drama film Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green whose feature film debut came with 'Monsters and Men' with John David Washington in 2018 which he followed up in 2020 with 'Joe Bell' with Mark Wahlberg. The film was originally scheduled for release in late November 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and ultimately premiered at the Telluride Film Festival in early September last year and was released in mid-November 2021 Stateside in cinemas and on HBO Max. Having garnered largely critical acclaim, this has failed to materialise into Box Office receipts, having taken so far US$27M off the back of a production budget of US$50M. 'King Richard' has so far picked up twenty-one award wins and a further eighty-four nominations from around the awards and festival circuit, with many of those nods still pending a final outcome. 

Based on the true story, this film follows the journey of Richard Williams (Will Smith), an undeterred father instrumental in raising two of the most extraordinarily gifted athletes of all time, who will end up changing the sport of tennis forever. Driven by a clear vision of their future and using unconventional methods, Richard has a plan that will take Venus (Saniyya Sidney) and Serena Williams (Demi Singleton) from the streets of Compton, California to the global stage as legendary icons of the tennis world. Also starring Jon Bernthal and Dylan McDermott. Will Smith also Co-Produces here with both Venus and Serena Williams serving as Executive Producers. 

'THE 355' (Rated M) - is an American spy film Directed, Co-Written and Co-Produced by Simon Kinberg whose only other directorial credit is 'Dark Phoenix' (of the 'X-Men' franchise) in 2019. He has however, written and/or produced numerous other mainstream pictures taking in 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith', 'Sherlock Holmes', 'X-Men : Days of Future Past', 'The Martian', 'Deadpool', 'X-Men : Apocalypse', 'Murder on the Orient Express' and 'The New Mutants'. Originally slated for a release in mid-January 2021 the film was delayed by a whole year to mid-January 2022, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before moving up by a week to 7th January in the US and this week in Australia. The film cost in the region of US$70M to produce and has so have recovered just US$2M following mostly negative or average Reviews. When a top-secret weapon falls into mercenary hands, wild card CIA agent Mason Brown (Jessica Chastain) will need to join forces with rival German agent Marie (Diane Kruger), former MI6 ally and cutting-edge computer specialist Khadijah (Lupita Nyong'o), and skilled Colombian psychologist Graciela (Penelope Cruz) on a lethal, breakneck mission to retrieve it, while also staying one-step ahead of a mysterious woman, Lin Mi Sheng (Bingbing Fan), who is tracking their every move. As the action takes us around the world from the cafes of Paris to the markets of Morocco to the opulent auction houses of Shanghai, the quartet of women will forge a tenuous loyalty that could protect the world, or get them killed. Sebastian Stan, Edgar Ramirez and Jason Flemyng also star. In case you were wondering, 'The 355' derives its name from the codename of a female spy for the Patriots during the American Revolution between 1765 and 1791. 

'GOLD' (Rated M) - this Australian survival thriller film is Directed, Co-Written, Co-Produced and also stars Anthony Hayes who has ninety screen acting credits to his name and five as Director taking in his debut feature in 2002 with 'New Skin' and then 'Ten Empty' in 2008, with 'Stingray' due for a future release. Filmed in South Australia, this tells the story of two men (Zac Efron and Anthony Hayes) who stumble across the biggest gold nugget ever discovered while travelling through a remote desert. The two men hatch a plan to protect and excavate the nugget with one man leaving to secure the necessary equipment to pull it out of the earth. The other man remains and must endure harsh desert conditions, preying wild dogs and mysterious intruders, whilst battling the sinking suspicion that he has been abandoned to his own fate. Also starring Susie Porter. 

'SCREAM' (Rated MA15+) - is an American slasher film Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett whose previous film making credits take in 'The Devils Due', 'Southbound' and 'Ready or Not'. It is the fifth instalment in the 'Scream' film series which began in 1996 and which over the first four films grossed US$605M off the back of combined production budgets of US$118M. Though billed as a relaunch of the film series, the film is a direct sequel to 2011's 'Scream 4' and the first in the series not to be directed by Wes Craven, who died in 2015. Set twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, California, a new killer wears the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town's deadly past. The film stars franchise newcomers Melissa Barrera, Mason Gooding, Jenna Ortega, and Jack Quaid, with Marley Shelton, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Neve Campbell, and Roger L. Jackson reprising their roles from previous instalments.

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

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

READY OR NOT : Tuesday 29th October 2019

'READY OR NOT' which I saw earlier this week, is an MA15+ rated American comedy thriller horror offering Directed by the pairing of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who after a string of short films, Directed this their only second feature film following 2014's horror thriller 'Devil's Due'. The film was released in the US in late August following its World Premier screening at Montreal's Fantasia International Film Festival in late July, has received generally positive Reviews and has so far grossed US$56M off the back of a US$6M production budget. Critics have in particular, praised Samara Weaving's performance in the lead role, and the combination of thrills and humour which I can attest to judging by the several laugh out loud moments coming form the gathered audience on the evening of my viewing.

The film opens with two young lads chasing through the corridors of a huge house at night - Alex Le Domas (Chase Churchill) and his brother Daniel (Etienne Kellici), who come to a halt when they bear witness to the killing of a man named Charles who has just married their Aunt Helene. Fast forward thirty years, and Alex (Mark O'Brien) who has been estranged from his family for many years now - returns to the Le Domas estate to marry a young woman named Grace (Samara Weaving) who seems to have a questionable past that is not entirely to the liking of the super wealthy Le Domas family. While he is hesitant to be back, Grace is reassuring and eager to become part of his family, something she never really had growing up having been past around from foster home to foster home.

Post ceremony, and after the guests have departed, Grace is told by Alex of a generations long tradition of playing a game at midnight on the wedding night with each new addition to the family. Putting a new spin on her plans for her wedding night, Grace reluctantly has little alternative but to join the family initiation custom and meets with the rest of the in-laws. Participating in the tradition with Grace are Alex, his alcoholic brother Daniel (Adam Brody), their father Tony (Henry Czerny), their mother Becky (Andie MacDowell), Daniel's snobbish wife Charity (Elyse Levesque), Alex's drug-addled sister Emilie (Melanie Scrofano), Emilie's whining husband Fitch (Kristian Bruun), and the constantly sombre Helene (Nicky Guadagni), who is Tony's older sister.

Tony states for the gathered guests in time honoured tradition, that Grace must participate in a game at midnight where she is required to draw a card from a mysterious wooden box and play the game written on the card to become a fully fledged family member. Tony also tells the history of his Great-Grandfather Victor Le Domas who made a deal with a man named Mr. Le Bail where Le Bail would help create the Le Domas fortune if the Le Domas family established the tradition, which they have now done so for decades, hence their amassed family wealth. Grace draws from the box a card that reads 'hide and seek'. 

Believing the game to be harmless, Grace leaves to hide somewhere in the now locked down family mansion while the Le Domas family, excluding Alex who has chosen to sit it out, arm themselves with antique weapons to hunt her down, and begin the countdown from 100. Grace hides in a dumb waiter, for what seems like an eternity and eventually gets jack of that notion and steps out, ripping her wedding gown in the process. Emile passes by and Grace hides out of sight only to be grabbed from behind by her new husband. They both hide in their bedroom and the pair witness Emilie accidentally kill one of the estate's maids by shooting her in the head with a shotgun. The rest of the family arrive in the room to see the carnage and carry off the corpse to dispose of it later. Alex explains that hide and seek is the only game from the box that would prompt the Le Domas family to try to kill Grace, and he didn't tell her believing the odds of which were unlikely. The Le Domas family believes that if they fail to kill Grace before dawn, they will all die as agreed decades previously by Victor Le Domas and Mr. Le Bail.

Grace is overwhelmed, understandably anxious and furious at Alex for having not told her about the ritual for fear that she would leave him. Against his family's wishes, Alex promises to Grace that he will help her escape the estate. He then heads to the house's security room after instructing her to go to the exit at the kitchen. En route she returns to the games room where it all began and arms herself with an antique looking shotgun and an ammunition belt. While looking for the exit, Grace returns to the dumb waiter and encounters a second maid who has hidden therein, and who is crushed to death when Grace activates the mechanical dumbwaiter door system to silence her. Daniel who, like Alex, hates the culture within his own family, discovers her in the study. Grace begs him for assistance, but he sadly states that he has no option but to alert the others and grants her a ten second head start to run. Alex deactivates the estate's security cameras and unlocks the doors of the house. However, he is discovered by Tony and Daniel who capture and restrain him for his betrayal. Grace manages to escape the house after eluding the family's Butler Stevens (John Ralston) by scalding his face with a freshly brewed pot of piping hot tea.

The family members regroup and can't believe their difficulty in capturing Grace, but remind each other of the urgency to find her before sun up. During this discussion, a third maid is accidentally killed by Emilie with a crossbow through the head. Stevens informs the family that Grace has left the house through the now deactivated doors, but promises to go find her. Grace takes refuge in the barn within the grounds of the estate, but after being shot in the hand by Emilie's young son Georgie (Liam MacDonald), and knocking him out cold with a fierce punch to the head falls backwards into the 'goat pit' where the family hid the remains of its previous victims. She manages to clamber out but not before putting her already injured hand through the protruding nail in the lip of the goat pit. She makes a dash for the wrought iron fence surrounding the property and further injures her back while gingerly squeezing through a hole in the fence in an attempt to flag down a passing car.

After a failed attempt by Stevens to capture Grace in which she incapacitated him briefly, she escapes in one of the family vehicles only for it to be remotely disabled because it had been reported as being stolen. This gives Stevens the opportunity to catch up with the now stranded Grace and tranquillise her. While Stevens drives her back to the household, Grace comes round and violently kicking him from behind causes him to crash the car, so killing him. Climbing out of the upturned vehicle and still bound to the legs and arms, Grace is discovered by Daniel who, knowing that Tony is secretly watching, knocks her out again and recaptures her. The Le Domas family prepares to sacrifice Grace in a Satanic ritual by binding her spread eagle to a table. After the family collectively drink from a chalice of wine as part of the ritual, they all start to vomit, except for Daniel who non-lethally poisoned the wine, coming to the realisation that his family are really all better of dead. 

Daniel frees Grace and they try to leave the house before Daniel is shot in the neck at close range and killed by Charity. Grace starts a fire, which is ignored and gradually takes hold as the family continues to pursue her as the clock counts down on sunrise. She gets into a fight with Becky and manages to beat her to death with the box with several calculated blows to the head. Alex meanwhile has also managed to escape his captivity and he arrives to see the lifeless body of his mother. Coming to the realisation that even if he lets Grace live she won't want to be with him, he captures her, and calls to the other family members.

Now for the second time, the gathered remaining family members try to sacrifice Grace. Alex, is unable to kill his wife, and stabs Grace in her shoulder instead. Just as dawn breaks through the curtains, Helene makes a last-ditch attempt to see off Grace by attacking her with her axe, but upon approach and without warning she explodes in a cloud of blood and gore. The other members of the family look at each other in horror. By this time Grace has freed herself from her bindings. As Tony pleads to Mr. Le Bail for a reprieve all explode one by one. Last to go, Alex begs Grace for forgiveness, but explodes when Grace removes her wedding ring, throws it at her husband and demands a divorce. As the flames take hold and steadily engulf the house, they momentarily form the outline of Mr. Le Bail sitting at the head of the table. He makes eye contact and nods in approval as Grace turns to escape, covered from head to toe in the blood of the exploded Le Domas family members.

I enjoyed 'Ready or Not', and I think you will too if bloody tongue in cheek horror tinged with indiscriminate laugh out loud moments of humour are your thing. Samara Weaving is the revelation here, proving her acting chops through a wide range of emotions as she experiences anxiety, fear, pain, hysteria, frustration, courage, conviction, stress and relief while fighting for her own survival against a determined family Hell bent on seeing her off, and the Devil himself. The plot is simple enough but there are enough twists in there to keep it fresh, the cast all looked as though they were having a good time and don't take it too seriously, and there is hidden meaning in the storyline of course - and that is one of just how far the privileged have's will go to protect their wealth and standing from the underprivileged ring-in have not's - and it seems, all the way no matter what the consequences are. Plenty of gore, buckets of blood, brutal killings, dark comedy, a simple story well told and never a dull moment. On a production budget of just US$6M Co-Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have proven what's possible on a micro-budget and have helmed a film that is much bigger than the sum of its parts.

'Ready or Not' warrants four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 24th October 2019.

The 63rd British Film Institute London Film Festival took place between the 2nd and 13th October this year. This annual film festival founded in 1953 is held in the UK, runs for two weeks in October with cooperation from the British Film Institute, and screens more than 300 films, documentaries and shorts from approximately 50 countries.






This years opening film was 'The Personal History of David Copperfield' in this UK Production Directed by Armando Iannucci. Starring Dev Patel in the title role with Ben Whishaw, Hugh Laurie, Peter Capaldi and Tilda Swinton this film tells the classic Charles Dickens story following Copperfield from early youth through to middle age, tracing his social awakening and charting his huge personal ups and downs as he witnesses the best and worst of humanity in this Victorian England set epic.
The closing night film was Martin Scorsese's epic 'The Irishman' which by now I'm sure needs no introduction other than to say it unites an all star cast taking in Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, Al Pacino, Ray Romano, Stephen Graham, Bobby Cannavale and Anna Paquin.

This year there were ten films in Official Competition, which were :
* 'FANNY LYE DELIVER'D' - this UK and German Co-Produced historical drama film set in 1657 England is Directed by Thomas Clay and stars Maxine Peake, Charles Dance and Freddie Fox.
* 'HONEY BOY' - this US Production is Directed by Alma Har'el and Written by Shia LaBeouf and starring Shia LaBeouf, Lucas Hedges and Noah Jupe about a child Actor in Hollywood struggling with an unconventional and brutalising past.
* 'LINGUA FRANCA' - is a US Production Directed by Isabel Sandoval and starring Eamon Farren, Lynn Cohen, Lev Gorn and Isabel Sandoval and is about an undocumented Filipino immigrant woman living in Brooklyn searching for safety and security in her chosen country.
* 'LA LLORONA' - not be confused with the recent supernatural horror film 'The Curse of La Llorona', this Guatemalan and French Co-Produced film by Director Jayro Bustamante tells the story of a retired general in failing health who witnesses spectres of his past which come back to haunt him as he his tried for genocide.
* 'MOFFIE' - is a UK and South African Co-Production Directed by Oliver Hermanus and stars Kai Luke Brummer, Ryan de Villiers, and Matthew Vey and tells the story of the violent persecution of gay men during their national service years under South Africa's 1981 Apartheid regime.
* 'MONOS' - a multi-national Co-Produced war drama film Directed by Alejandro Landes and starring Julianne Nicholson and Moises Arias in this hallucinogenic thriller about child soldiers high up in the South American mountains who are hiding an American Doctor prisoner.
* 'THE OTHER LAMB' - here this Irish, Belgian and US Co-Produced film is Directed by Malgorzata Szumowska and stars Raffey Cassidy, Michael Huisman and Denise Gough and is about life in an otherworldly cult known as The Flock, a community of women and girls ruled over by Shepherd, the only male, and a seemingly benevolent but undisputed leader of the strictly regimented and isolated woodland settlement.
* 'THE PERFECT CANDIDATE' - this German and Saudi Arabian Co-Production is Directed by Haifaa Al Mansour and tells the story of a young Doctor who unexpectedly becomes an electoral candidate, challenging Saudi Arabia's strict social codes of what is expected of a young woman in that country.
* 'ROSE PLAYS JULIE' - this Irish and UK Co-Produced drama film is Directed by Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor and stars Ann Skelly, Orla Brady and Aiden Gillen and is about a young woman seeking her biological mother ultimately taking us through longing and revenge to arrive at the darker places of power and its abuse.
* 'SAINT MAUD' - here this UK Produced psychological drama is Directed by first timer Rose Glass and stars Morfydd Clarke and Jennifer Ehle and tells the story of a young nurse with a mysterious past who becomes dangerously obsessed with a former and dying dancer, whom she is now looking after as her live in carer.

In Official Competition, 'MONOS' took out the Award for Best Film. Special Commendations were also given by the Jury for 'Honey Boy' and 'Saint Maud'.

To get all the news on the years BFI London Film Festival, you can visit the official website at : https://www.whatson.bfi.org.uk

This week we have six new film releases to tease you out to your local Odeon. We start the week with a story of a gifted young, albeit bullied Pakistani poet growing up 50kms northwest of London in 1987, who who is given a new outlook on life through the music of 'The Boss'. We then have a comedy horror offering surrounding a newly wed bride who must survive an age old family ritual playing hide and seek with potentially deathly consequences. With weddings featuring heavily this week, we have next a story set in 1974 Melbourne involving a marriage between a couple who were promised to each other in their early childhood by their fathers, only now 21 years later feelings and attitudes have changed! Following on we have a tale of an Indian orphanage founder who travels to New York as the behest of a wealthy benefactor, only to be invited to her daughters wedding the next day from which ghosts from the past are unexpectedly resurrected. Then we have a horror offering in time for Halloween that sees a smartphone app able to predict with pinpoint accuracy exactly when you are going to die, and when a young nurse downloads the app to her dismay it seems she has only three days to live - it's a race against time then to stop the clock or stop the mystery figure haunting her. And we wrap up the week with a biography of perhaps the worlds greatest operatic tenor who died in 2007.

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

'BLINDED BY THE LIGHT' (Rated PG) - is a British comedy drama film Directed and Co-Produced by Gurinder Chadha whose previous Directorial credits include 'Bhaji on the Beach', 'Bend it Like Beckham', 'Bride and Prejudice', and 'Viceroy's House' most recently. Inspired by the life of journalist Sarfraz Manzoor and his love of the works of Bruce Springsteen, Manzoor co-wrote the script with Chadha. It is based on Manzoor's memoir 'Greetings from Bury Park: Race, Religion and Rock N’ Roll'. The film saw its Worldwide Premier screening at this years Sundance Film Festival, went on general release in the UK in early August, in the US in mid-August, has received generally positive critical acclaim, and has so far taken US$17M at the Box Office off the back of US$15M cost of production.

Javed Khan (Viveik Kalra) is a Pakistani teenager who experiences racial and economic turmoil while living in Luton, England, in 1987 in Margaret Thatcher's Britain. He writes poetry and lyrics for his best friend Matt's (Dean-Charles Chapman) band as a way to escape the intolerance of his hometown and the stubborn views of his traditional father Malik (Kulvinder Ghir). When a classmate introduces him to the music of Bruce Springsteeen, Javed sees parallels between the singer's powerful lyrics and his own working-class environment. Springsteen's melodies soon inspire Javed to find his own voice and follow his dreams. Also starring Hayley Atwell, Rob Brydon and Nell Williams.

'READY OR NOT' (Rated MA15+) - is an American comedy thriller horror offering Directed by the pairing of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. The film was released in the US in late August, has received generally positive Reviews and has so far grossed US$53M off the back of a US$6M production budget. And so the story here surrounds Grace Le Domas (Samara Weaving) who couldn't be happier after she marries the man of her dreams, Alex Le Domas (Mark O'Brien) at his family's luxurious country estate. There's just one catch - she must now hide from midnight until dawn while her new in-laws hunt her down with guns, crossbows and other weapons in a macabre game of Hide and Seek which is a generations long standing family ritual of playing a game at midnight on the wedding night with each new addition to the family. As Grace desperately tries to survive the night against seemingly overwhelming odds, she soon finds a way to turn the tables on her not-so-lovable relatives. Also starring Adam Brody, Henry Czerny and Andie MacDowell.

'PROMISED' (Rated PG) - this Australian and Italian Co-Produced Romantic Drama film is Written, Produced and Directed by first timer Nick Conidi. Here, back in the Melbourne of 1953 two young Italian children - five year old Robert (Daniel Berini) and newborn Angela (Antoniette Iesue) are promised in marriage by their fathers, Sal (Paul Mercurio) and Joe (Mirko Grillini). Against the reservations of Angela’s mother Rosalba (Tina Arena), Sal is insistent that he must uphold his promise to Joe – a man with 'connections'. Twenty-one years on to 1974, and Angela is now a beautiful, intelligent and modern lady whose dreams and aspirations lie well beyond the family pastry shop. Robert, now 25, has just returned home from studying law abroad at Oxford. Despite changing times, fading traditions, Angela’s love for another man, and the more liberal attitudes of the mid-'70's, she is still expected to marry Robert. As a web of secrets, lies and revelations rise to the surface, it teaches everyone involved that love, like life, can never be perfectly arranged.

'AFTER THE WEDDING' (Rated M) - is an American drama film Written and Directed by Bart Freundlich whose previous film making credits take in 'World Traveller', 'Catch That Kid', 'Trust the Man', 'Rebound' and 'Wolves' more recently. This film is a remake of the 2006 film of the same name by Susanne Bier. The film saw its World Premier at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, its release in the US in mid-August, has so far received generally mixed or average Reviews and has grossed just US$2M. Here, Isabel (Michelle Williams), a co-founder of an orphanage in the Indian city of Kolkata travels to New York to meet a potential benefactor, Theresa Young (Julianne Moore). Despite her frustration by the need to justify a charitable donation, she agrees to the meeting, which falls a day before the wedding of Theresa's daughter (Abby Quinn). Isabel is unexpectedly invited to the wedding and the events that ensue force her to confront decisions she made twenty years previously as well as a man from her past, who turns out to be Theresa's husband (Billy Crudup).

'COUNTDOWN' (Rated CTC) - Directed and Written by Justin Dec in his feature film debut this American horror thriller arrives just in time for Halloween. Here whilst it seems that everything about our lives are on our smart phones, now it appears so to is our death. Everyone around young nurse Quinn (Elizabeth Lail) is having fun with a new app called 'Countdown' which predicts to the exact second how much longer you have got left to live. But when Quinn downloads the app to her horror and dismay it tells her that she has just three days left to live. With time running out, the clock counting down and a mysterious figure haunting her, she must find a way to to save her life before the clock says it's time to die. Also starring Charlie McDermott, Anne Winters and P.J. Byrne. The film is released in the US this week too.

'PAVAROTTI' (Rated M) - this UK and USA Co-Produced documentary film is Directed by Ron Howard and is about the world renowned Italian operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti who died in September 2007 at the age of 71 having been active in his chosen field of singing since 1955. The film was produced with the cooperation of Luciano Pavarotti's estate using family archives, interviews and live music footage, was released in the US in early June this year, then in the UK in mid-July and now for a limited release in Australia. The film has garnered generally positive press and has so far grossed US$7M.

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

-Steve, at Odeon Online-