COCAINE BEAR : Tuesday 28th February 2023.

I saw the M Rated 'COCAINE BEAR' earlier this week, and this American dark comedy action film is Co-Produced and Directed by the American Actress, Producer, Writer and Director Elizabeth Banks in her third feature film making effort following 2015's 'Pitch Perfect 2' and 2019's 'Charlie's Angels'. Released in the US and Australia last week, the film has so far grossed US$34M from a production budget of US$35M and has garnered mixed or average Reviews. 

This film is inspired by real events that occurred in December 1985, and opens up with Andrew C. Thornton II (Matthew Rhys) hauling duffel bags filled with cocaine from his light aircraft. As he is preparing himself to parachute out of the aircraft carrying a duffel bag loaded with coke, he inadvertently knocks himself out on the door frame, falls out of said aeroplane and lands in a crumpled heap, very dead, in Knoxville, Tennessee. The body of Thornton is recognised by Bob (Isiah Whitlock Jnr.) a local Detective who deduces that the drug stash he was carrying is from a Syd White, operating out of St. Louis. In the meantime, somewhere in the Chattahoochee National Forest in Georgia, an American Black Bear consumes some of the cocaine and as a consequence becomes very aggressive and sets upon two hikers, Elsa (Hannah Hoekstra) and her partner Olaf (Kristofer Hivju), killing Elsa. 

Middle schooler Dee Dee (Brooklynn Prince) lives with her mum, Sari (Keri Russell), a nurse. Dee Dee bunks of school with her best friend Henry (Christian Convery) to paint a picture of the falls in the forest. On the trail to the falls, the pair finds a lost brick of cocaine, and try eating some before they are attacked by the bear. 

Sari goes into the forest to search for the kids with Park Ranger Liz (Margo Martindale) and Peter (Jesse Tyler Ferguson), a wildlife activist. The three find Henry half way up a tree clinging on for dear life, hiding from the bear. The bear attacks, first of all homing in on Henry, while Peter stumbles through a pile of cocaine, and slashing Liz on the butt cheek in the process. Attracted to a cocaine-coated Peter, who has now also climbed a nearby tree, the bear clambers up and kills him, ignoring Henry. While the bear dispenses with Peter, Henry climbs down and he and Sari flee deeper into the forest, and Liz sends for help.

In St. Louis, Syd (Ray Liotta in one of his final film appearances before his untimely death in May 2022, aged 67) sends his fixer Daveed (O'Shea Jackson) to recover the remaining cocaine. Daveed travels to Georgia with Eddie (Alden Ehrenreich), Syd's son, who is depressed following the death of his wife and has abandoned his son. They arrive in Georgia, as does Bob. At the forest station, Daveed gets into a brawl with the Duchamps gang, three delinquents who cause trouble in the forest, overpowering them easily. One of the members, Stache (Aaron Holliday), takes Daveed and Eddie to recover some of the cocaine he stashed in a gazebo. 

Liz arrives back at the station, pursued by the bear. Liz accidentally shoots one of the Duchamps in the head killing him outright before the bear slaughters the other. Paramedics Beth (Kahyun Kim) and Tom (Scott Seiss) arrive and collect Liz who has been further slashed to the shoulder after a brief skirmish with the bear. They leave with Liz in an ambulance, but the bear pursues and jumps into the back of the vehicle, which ultimately results in the death of all three.

Sari and Henry discover that Dee Dee has left them a trail of paint and clothing, with which they are able to track her. Daveed and Eddie arrive at the gazebo with Stache, but find Bob there stranded on the roof with a duffel bag stashed full of cocaine. The bear appears but Bob distracts it with the bag of coke which it swallows whole. Bob is suddenly fatally shot by Syd, who reveals that he is under a huge amount of pressure by his superiors to retrieve the cocaine. 

Sari and Henry come across Olaf mourning over the loss of Elsa. He leads them to Dee Dee’s hiding place in a cave containing the bears two cubs, revealing that the bear is a mother. Olaf leaves and is killed by the bear returning to her cave. Syd, Eddie, and Daveed also find the cave, which leads out to a ledge behind the falls. The bear returns to the cave. Sari, Henry, and Dee Dee jump into the water below to safety, followed by Eddie and Daveed - who have chosen to quit the drug business together - and they all survive. However, Syd refuses to leave the duffel bag of cocaine found in the cave. He shoots and wounds the bear but is unsuccessful in killing it and is shortly thereafter disemboweled by the bear and her cubs.

With 'Cocaine Bear' what you're gonna get is exactly what's written on the side of the tin - a bear stoned on cocaine, just like those other aptly named movies 'Snakes on a Plane' and 'Sharknado' for instance. Director Elizabeth Banks takes a lot of liberties with this story inspired by real events - sure an American black bear did consume a duffel bag full of cocaine dropped from a light aeroplane somewhere over north Georgia in late 1985 but that's where the similarities end. The real 'Cocaine Bear' did not go on a murderous rampage and no one got killed as a result, and the bear wound up dead three months later, found beside dozens of opened containers of cocaine. All of that said, this film is entertaining enough with the emphasis more on comedy than on horror, although there is plenty of blood and gore to satisfy the gore hounds amongst us, but the plot is silly and contrived despite the A-list cast doing the best they can with what they've been given and the lean 95 minute run time just about ensures this film does not outstay its welcome. 

'Cocaine Bear' merits two claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

The Odeon Online Obituary : Remembering the screen celebrities who passed away in May 2022.

In May, the world bid a fond farewell to a number of stars of the silver screen and the small screen. In brief, shown below, is my passing tribute to those stars who leave an indelible mark on the entertainment industry, and in particular the world of film and television. May you all Rest In Peace, and thanks for the memories . . . . . Jerry verDorn, Lion Capolicchio, Kenneth Welsh, Dennis Waterman, John R. Cherry III, Fred Ward, Qin Yi, Maggie Peterson, Kay Mellor, John Aylward, Marnie Schulenburg, Colin Cantwell, Jamie Bartlett, Ray Liotta, Bo Hopkins, Patricia Brake and Milton Goncalves.

* Jerry verDorn - born 23rd November 1949 and died 1st May 2022, aged 72. verDorn was an American soap opera Actor who notched up just five screen acting credits during his career which began on the TV series 'Guiding Light' and on which he starred as Ross Marler for 351 episodes from 1979 through until 2005. verDorn also portrayed Ross in a 1983 television movie, 'The Cradle Will Fall', an adaptation of a book to film. In October 2005, verDorn took over the role of Clint Buchanan on 'One Life to Live' and continued in the role until the series cancellation in 2012 having appeared in 545 episodes, and in January  2013, verDorn became the first actor to sign on for the revival of 'One Life to Live' on a rival network starring in a further forty episodes. His final screen role came on a single episode of 'Venice the Series' in 2019. For his role on 'The Guiding Light' he won two Daytime Emmy Awards and was nominated another five times, together with three other award nods. 

* Lino Capolicchio - born 21st August 1943 and died 3rd May 2022, aged 78. Capolicchio was an Italian Actor, Director and Writer who amassed sixty-one screen acting credits, two as Director and two as Writer during his career which kicked off with the TV mini-series 'The Count of Monte Cristo' in 1966. His big screen debut came the following year in 1967 in an albeit uncredited role in 'The Taming of The Shrew' with Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, and over the years that followed he would have roles in other features including 'The Last Days of Mussolini' in 1974 with Rod Steiger, Franco Nero and Henry Fonda, 'Cross Shot' in 1976 with John Saxon and Lee J. Cobb, 'Lion of the Desert' in 1980 with Anthony Quinn, Oliver Reid and Rod Steiger, 'Traveling Companion' in 1996 with Asia Argento with his final screen appearance coming in 2019's 'Il signor Diavolo'. Capolicchio won three awards and was nominated twice. In 1995 he wrote and Directed 'Pugili', an award-winning film about the world of boxing, and for three seasons he provided the voice for Bo Duke in the Italian broadcasts of 'The Dukes of Hazzard'.

* Kenneth Welsh - born 30th March 1942 and died 5th May 2022, aged 80. Welsh was a Canadian film and TV Actor who accumulated 242 screen acting roles throughout his career which began on seven episodes of 'Shoestring Theatre' in 1963/64. From here he went onto appear in numerous TV series and movies taking in the likes of 'Piaf : The Early Years' in 1974 and his feature film debut, then 'Perfect' in 1985 with John Travolta and Jamie Lee Curtis, 'Crocodile Dundee II' in 1988 with Paul Hogan, 'Death Wish : The Face of Death' in 1994 with Charles Bronson, 'Legends of the Fall' in 1994 with Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins, 'Absolute Power' in 1997 for and with Clint Eastwood, 'Focus' in 2001 with William H. Macy and Laura Dern, 'The Day After Tomorrow' in 2004 with Jake Gyllenhaal and Dennis Quaid, 'The Aviator' in 2004 with Leonardo DiCaprio and Cate Blanchett, 'Survival of the Dead' in 2009 for George A. Romero, 'The Art of the Steal' in 2013 with Kurt Russell with 'Compton Manor' recently finished filming and 'Midnight at the Paradise', 'Deadly Draw' and 'Afterwards' all in post-production awaiting a future release. In the meantime he also had roles in TV shows including on ten episodes of 'Twin Peaks' in 1990/91, 'The X-Files', 'The Outer Limits', 'Due South', 'The Practice', 'The Best Laid Plans', 'The Divide', 'Star Trek : Discovery' and 'Charmed'. Welsh was the recipient of five wins and another six nominations from around the awards circuit, and he was awarded the C.M. (Member of the Order of Canada) in October 2004, for his services to Performing Arts in Canada.

* Dennis Waterman - born 24th February 1948, died 8th May 2022, aged 74. Waterman was an English Actor and singer who notched up eighty-nine screen acting credits throughout his six decades in front of the camera, beginning at the age of twelve in 1960 in the feature film 'Night Train for Inverness'. He would follow this up with other feature film credits including 'Snowball' also in 1960, 'The Pirates of Blood River' in 1962, 'Go Cart Go' in 1964 and 'Up the Junction' in 1968 all before he had reached the age of twenty. Then he appeared in 'Wedding Night' in 1969, 'My Lover, My Son' and 'Scars of Dracula' both in 1970, 'Man in the Wilderness' in 1971 with Richard Harris, then 'Sweeney!' in 1977 and 'Sweeney 2' in 1978 with John Thaw, 'The First Kangaroos' in 1988, 'Vol-au-Vent' in 1996, 'Back in Business' in 2007 with Martin Kemp, 'Run for Your Wife' in 2012 and 'Never Too Late' in 2020 with James Cromwell and Jacki Weaver being his final screen role. In the intervening years there were also numerous TV series, with perhaps the most memorable and long standing being on fifty-four episodes of 'The Sweeney' as Detective Sergeant George Carter between 1974 and 1978, then on seventy-three of 'Minder' as Terry McCann opposite George Cole, on nineteen of 'On the Up' between 1990 and 1992, on twenty-seven of 'Stay Lucky' between 1989 and 1993, and finally on ninety-nine episodes of 'New Tricks' between 2003 and 2015. Waterman sang the theme tunes to both 'Minder' and 'New Tricks' and had a UK Top 3 hit record with 'I Could Be So Good For You' - the theme tune for 'Minder'. 

* John R. Cherry III' - born 11th October 1948 and died 8th May 2022, aged 73. Cherry was an American Director, Producer and Writer who generated twenty-two Directing credits, nine as Producer and thirteen as Writer in a career which began with the video 'Knowhutimean? : Hey Vern, It's My Family Album' in 1983. He is however, perhaps best known for creating the character of Ernest P. Worrell, played by Jim Varney, the American Actor and comedian. Cherry's first Ernest offering was the video 'The Ernest Film Festival' in 1986 which was followed by a string of Ernest films thereafter taking in 'Ernest's Greatest Hits Volume 1', 'Ernest Goes to Camp', 'Hey Vern, Win $10,000', 'Ernest Saves Christmas', 'Ernest Goes to Jail', 'Ernest Scared Stupid', 'Ernest Rides Again', 'Slam Dunk Ernest', 'Ernest Goes to Africa' and 'Ernest in the Army' all between 1986 and 1998. Cherry retired the Ernest character after Varney's declining health made it impossible for him to continue in the role (Varney died in 2000). He directed two other films without Ernest, those being 'For Love or Mummy' and 'Pirates of the Plain' both in 1999.

* Fred Ward - born 30th December 1932 and died 8th May 2022, aged 79. Ward was an American Actor and one time Producer who accumulated eighty-nine screen acting appearances during his five decade spanning career which launched in the TV mini-series 'The Age of the Medici' in 1973. His first big screen role came a year later in 1974 in 'Ginger in the Morning', which would lead to numerous other feature films roles over the ensuing years including 'Escape from Alcatraz' in 1979 with Clint Eastwood, 'The Right Stuff' in 1983 with Scott Glenn, Ed Harris, Sam Shepard and Dennis Quaid, 'Silkwood' also in 1983 with Kurt Russell, Meryl Streep and Cher, 'Off Limits' in 1988 with Willem Dafoe, 'Tremors' in 1990 with Kevin Bacon, 'Miami Blues' in 1990 with Alex Baldwin and which he also Executive Produced, 'Henry & June' in 1990 with Uma Thurman, 'The Player' and 'Bob Roberts' both in 1992 and both with Tim Robbins, 'Short Cuts' in 1993 with an all star cast, 'Chain Reaction' in 1996 with Keanu Reeves and Morgan Freeman, 'Joe Dirt' in 2001 with David Spade, 'Sweet Home Alabama' in 2002 with Reece Witherspoon, 'Farewell' in 2009 with Willem Dafoe and '2 Guns' in 2013 with Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg being his final feature film role. In the years in between there were also sporadic appearances on TV shows taking in 'The Incredible Hulk', 'Invasion Earth', 'Grey's Anatomy', 'ER', 'United States of Tara' and 'True Detective' in 2015. Ward was the recipient of three award wins, two of which were for the ensemble cast for 'Shorts Cuts' plus two other nominations. 

* Qin Yi - born 4th February 1922 and died 9th May 2022, aged 100. Yi was a Chinese Actress who rose to prominence for her stage performances in the war-time capital Chongqing during the Second Sino-Japanese War between 1937 and 1945. After the war, she became one of China's most popular film actresses throughout the 1950's and '60's and was recognised as one of the country's top four actresses. Her big screen debut came in 1946 in 'The Loyal Family', and in 1947 she had her first leading role in 'Far Away Love' which made her a famous movie star. After 1949, Qin Yi became an actress of the recently established Shanghai Film Studio, and was appointed deputy head of the Actors' Theatre Troupe. She played the leading roles in many films including 'Railway Guerrillas', 'Woman Basketball Player No. 5', 'Song of the Youth', and 'Loyal Overseas Chinese', as well as supporting roles in many others. After making just one film between 1984 and 2012 her career took a resurgence in 2012 with 'Promise', then 'The Beautiful Kokonor Lake' and 'Legend of the Demon Cat' both in 2017 and 'Goddesses in the Flames of War' in 2018 being her final screen outing. All up Yi won ten awards including six Lifetime Achievement Awards. 

* Maggie Peterson (aka Maggie Mancuso) - born 10th January 1941 and died 15th May 2022, aged 81. Peterson was an American Actress, Location Manager and singer who notched up just seventeen screen acting credits during her career and seven as a Location Manager. Her screen credits for television series beginning with six episodes on 'The Andy Griffith Show' in 1963 and then eight episodes on 'The Bill Dana Show' in 1964, with two feature films only, those being 'Angel in my Pocket' with Andy Griffith in 1969 and 'The Love God?' that same year with Don Knotts. Her other TV roles were mostly for one off appearances including 'Love, American Style', 'Green Acres', 'The Odd Couple', 'Odd Man Out' and her final screen role coming in a single episode of 'The Magical World of Disney' in 1987. Her location work included the likes of 'Casino', 'Mars Attacks!', 'Perdita Durango', 'Go' and 'Pay It Forward'. 

* Kay Mellor - born 11th May 1951 and died 15th May 2022, aged 71. Mellor was an English Screenwriter, Producer, Actress, and Director who notched up thirty writing credits, eleven as Producer, eight as an Actress and five as Director. As an Actress her career kicked off on two episodes of 'The Practice' in 1985, followed by the likes of eight episodes on 'Just Us' between 1992 and 1994, then the made for TV movies 'Jane Eyre', 'A Good Thief' and 'Gifted' in 2003 being her final screen role. Her Directing credits included her big screen debut in 1999 with 'Fanny and Elvis' with Kerry Fox and Ray Winstone, then the TV series 'In the Club', 'Girlfriends' and ten episodes of 'The Syndicate' between 2012 and 2021. Her writing credits took in numerous TV shows and feature films taking in 'Some Kind of Life' in 1996, 'Girls' Night' in 1998 and the aforementioned 'Fanny and Elvis'. Mellor was awarded the BAFTA Dennis Potter Award in 1997 for Outstanding Writing for Television and the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2009 HRH the Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to Drama.

* John Aylward - born 7th November 1946, died 16th May 2022, aged 75. Aylward was an American Actor with ninety-eight screen acting credits to his name. His career began in 1976 in the made for TV movie 'The Secret Life of John Chapman' and it would then be another nine years before his next screen role, coming in the feature film in 1985 with 'Strings' and he would follow this up with other cinematic offerings taking in the likes of 'Seven Hours to Judgment' in 1988 with Beau Bridges, 'Buddy' in 1997 with Susan Sarandon, 'Armageddon' in 1998 with Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck, 'Finding Graceland' also in 1998 with Harvey Keitel, 'Thirteen Days' in 2000 with Kevin Costner, 'Bad Company' in 2002 with Anthony Hopkins and Chris Rock, 'North Country' in 2005 with Charlize Theron, 'Water for Elephants' in 2011 with Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon, 'Gangster Squad' in 2013 with Sean Penn and Ryan Gosling, 'A Million Ways to Die in the West' in 2014 for and with Seth MacFarlane and 'The Way Back' in 2020 with Ben Affleck being his final film appearance. In the meantime, there were also notable small screen roles including 'Northern Exposure', 'The Others', 'Family Law', 'Ally McBeal', 'The X-Files', 'The Practice', 'Boston Legal', 'Alias', 'The West Wing', on seventy-four episodes of 'ER', 'Mad Men', 'Nobodies', 'Yellowstone' and 'Briarpatch' being his final screen role in 2020. 

* Marnie Schulenburg - born 21st May 1984 and died 17th May 2022, aged 37. Schulenburg was an American Actress who generated twenty-four screen acting credits throughout her all too short career which kicked off in 2007 on a single episode of 'The Young and the Restless'. Her most well known role however, came with 307 episodes on 'As the World Turns' up to 2010 as Alison Stewart. Her other TV appearances included on 'Blue Bloods', 'Royal Pains', 'Elementary', 'Tainted Dreams', 'The Good Fight' and 'City on a Hill', with the feature films 'Made for Each Other' in 2009 and 'The Golden Scallop' in 2013.

* Colin Cantwell - born sometime in 1932 and died 21st May 2022, aged 89 or 90. Cantwell was an American visual effects and concept artist whose debut in special photographic effects came with Stanley Kubrick's '2001 : A Space Odyssey' in 1968. From here he worked in the miniature and optical effects unit on additional spacecraft design for 'Star Wars : A New Hope' in 1977 including concept models for the X-wing fighter, the Y-wing, the TIE fighter, the Star Destroyer, the Death Star, the landspeeder and the sandcrawler. He followed this up with the computer graphics design for 'Buck Rogers in the 25th Century' in 1979 and as the computer graphics design consultant in the 1983 feature 'WarGames'. During Walter Cronkite's historic moon landing broadcast in 1969 Cantwell was on the communications line between NASA and the astronauts getting updates that he fed to Cronkite, who in turn broadcasted that information to the world on live TV. He was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects on 'WarGames'.

* Jamie Bartlett - born 9th July 1966 and died on 23rd May 2022, aged 55. Bartlett was a British born South African Actor of theatre, cinema and television who accumulated twenty-four screen acting credits to his name in a career beginning with the 1987 feature film 'American Ninja 2 : The Confrontation' with Michael Dudikoff. He would follow this up with more feature films including 'Blind Justice' with Christopher Cazenove in 1988, 'The Revenger' in 1990 with Oliver Reed, 'American Ninja 4 : The Annihilation' in 1990 with Michael Dudikoff again, 'Bravo Two Zero' in 1999 with Sean Bean, 'Beyond Borders' in 2003 with Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen, 'Red Dust' in 2004 with Hilary Swank, 'Prey' in 2007 with Bridget Moynahan and Peter Weller, 'Mandela : Long Walk to Freedom' in 2013 with Idris Elba and Naomie Harris, with 'Nothing for Mahala' also in 2013 being his final film role. His most noted TV series credit came with over three thousand appearances as David Genaro on 'Rhythm City' between 2007 and 2019 for which he won three awards and was nominated three other times in the South African Film and Television Awards. 

* Ray Liotta - born 18th December 1954 and died 26th May 2022, aged 67. Liotta was an American Actor and Producer who accumulated 126 screen acting credits and eight as Producer throughout his career which launched across thirty-six episodes of 'Another World' between 1978 and 1981. During this time he also had roles in two made for TV movies - 'Hardhat and Legs' in 1980 and 'Crazy Times' in 1981. His big screen debut came in 1983 in 'The Lonely Lady' with Pia Zadora and then 'Something Wild' in 1986 Jeff Daniels and Melanie Griffith (which gained Liotta his first Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor). His other notable feature film appearances include 'Field of Dreams' in 1989 with Kevin Costner, then perhaps his most acclaimed role in Martin Scorsese's 'Goodfellas' in 1990 as mobster Henry Hill opposite Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. This was followed by the likes of 'Unlawful Entry' with Kurt Russell in 1992, 'Corrina, Corrina' in 1994 with Whoopi Goldberg, 'Cop Land' in 1997 with Sylvester Stallone and Harvey Keitel, 'Hannibal' in 2001 with Anthony Hopkins, 'Blow' that same year with Johnny Depp, 'Narc' in 2002 with Jason Patrick, 'Identity' in 2003 with John Cusack, 'Revolver' in 2005 with Jason Statham, 'Smokin' Aces' in 2006 with Ryan Reynolds, 'Crossing Over' in 2009 with Harrison Ford, 'Killing Them Softly' in 2012 with Brad Pitt, 'The Place Beyond the Pines' also in 2012 with Ryan Gosling, 'Sin City : A Dame to Kill For' in 2014 with Mickey Rourke, 'Kill the Messenger' in 2014 with Jeremy Renner, 'Marriage Story' in 2019 with Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson, 'No Sudden Move' with Benecio Del Toro and Don Cheadle in 2021 and 'The Many Saints of Newark' in 2021 too with Alessandro Nivola. Liotta also had five feature films either completed, in post-production or currently filming at the time of his passing. He also had roles in TV series including 'Our Family Honour', 'Just Shoot Me!', 'ER', 'Texas Rising', 'The Making of the Mob', 'Modern Family', 'Young Sheldon', on thirty-six episodes of 'Shades of Blue', on six of 'Hanna' and on six of 'Black Bird' which has recently completed filming. All up Liotta won nine awards and was nominated a further fourteen times around the awards and festival circuit. 

* Bo Hopkins - born William Mauldin Hopkins on 2nd February 1938 and died 28th May 2022, aged 84. Hopkins was an American Actor who accumulated 131 screen acting roles throughout his career which kicked off in 1966 on a single episode of 'The Phyllis Diller Show'. His first big screen role came two years later in 1968 in 'Dayton's Devils' with Leslie Nielsen, and then the likes of Sam Peckinpah's 'The Wild Bunch' in 1969 with William Holden, Ernest Borgnine and Robert Ryan, 'The Bridge at Remagen' also in 1969 with George Segal and Robert Vaughn, 'The Getaway' in 1972 for Sam Peckinpah again and with Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw, 'American Graffiti' in 1973 for George Lucas, 'The Day of the Locust' in 1975 with Donald Sutherland, 'The Killer Elite' for Sam Peckinpah once more and with James Caan and Robert Duvall, 'Midnight Express' in 1978 for Alan Parker and with Brad Davis, 'U Turn' in 1997 for Oliver Stone and with Sean Penn and Jennifer Lopez, 'The Newton Boys' in 1998 for Richard Linklater with Matthew McConaughey and Ethan Hawke, 'South of Heaven, West of Hell' in 2000 with Billy Bob Thornton with 'Hillbilly Elegy' in 2020 for Ron Howard with Glenn Close and Amy Adams being his final screen appearance. In the meantime, there were also roles on TV shows including 'The Virginian', 'Gunsmoke', 'The Wild Wild West', 'Bonanza', 'Ironside', 'Hawaii Five-O', ' The Rockford Files', 'Charlie's Angels', 'Fantasy Island', 'The A-Team', 'Hotel', 'The Fall Guy', on eighteen episodes of 'Dynasty', and 'Murder, She Wrote'. 

* Patricia Brake - born 25th June 1942 and died 28th May 2022, aged 79. Brake was an English Actress who generated sixty-seven screen acting roles during her career with launched on thirty-seven episodes of 'Home Tonight' in 1961. Her first acting roles were with the Royal Shakespeare Company where she performed alongside such colleagues as Judi Dench, Diana Rigg, Ian Richardson and Ian Holm. Alongside her extensive body of work in West End theatres, and at the Bath Theatre Royal (her home town), she appeared mostly in TV series taking in the likes of 'Lorna Doone', 'Emergency-Ward 10', 'Z Cars', on thirteen episodes of 'Second Time Around', 'Emmerdale Farm', 'Porridge', 'Going Straight', 'The Glums', on thirteen of 'Troubles and Strife', 'The Bill', on 128 episodes of 'Eldorado', 'EastEnders', 'Coronation Street', 'Holby City', on fourteen of 'Doctors', 'Casualty', 'Truth Seekers' and 'Manhunt' as recently as 2021 being her final screen role. There were a small handful of feature films that were 'My Lover, My Son' in 1970 with Romy Schneider and Dennis Waterman, 'The Optimists' in 1973 with Peter Sellers, 'Love/Loss' in 2010 with Keith Michell and Virginia McKenna and 'Headlock Security' in 2015 being her final film role. 

* Milton Goncalves - born 9th December 1933 and died 30th May 2022, aged 88. Goncalves was a Brazilian Actor and Television Director who accumulated 171 screen acting credits and ten Directorial credits to his name in a career which began with a small role in the 1958 feature film 'The Grand Moment'. While most of his output was within his own local Brazilian cinema and TV series, he did enjoy a certain amount of mainstream Hollywood roles which took in the likes of 'Kiss of the Spider Woman' in 1985 with William Hurt and Raul Julia, 'Moon Over Parador' in 1988 with Richard Dreyfus and Raul Julia, 'Wild Orchid' in 1989 with Mickey Rourke and Angela Bisset, 'Four Days in September' in 1997 with Alan Arkin, 'Cobrador : In God We Trust' in 2006 with Peter Fonda and 'Pele : Birth of a Legend' with Vincent D'Onofrio and Diego Boneta in 2016. In the meantime, there were numerous appearances on single and multiple episodes of local TV series. Goncalves was the recipient of five award wins and another nomination during his career. 

With seventeen deaths reported this month from the film and television community at large, that community is just a little bit poorer as a result. As many of us the world over are now learning to live with COVID and life is regaining a degree of normalcy, however, we should all continue to be cautious by remembering the basic principles that continue to be advocated - maintain a reasonable safe distance, hand hygiene and wear a mask if you are unable to maintain a safe distance and get vaccinated and then get a booster jab - together we can all overcome this thing and keep on top of it. Stay safe and remain healthy wherever you are in the world. R.I.P. you screen legends.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK : Tuesday 9th November 2021

I saw 'THE MANY SAINTS OF NEWARK' earlier this week at my local independent movie theatre, and this MA15+ Rated American crime drama story is Directed by Alan Taylor whose previous film making credits take in his debut 'Palookaville' in 1995, 'The Emperor's New Clothes' in 2001, 'Thor : The Dark World' in 2013 and 'Terminator : Genisys' in 2015. In the meantime he has also Directed multiple episodes of 'Homicide : Life on the Street', 'Sex and the City', 'The Sopranos' and 'Game of Thrones'. Co-Written by and based on characters created by David Chase this film serves as a prequel to Chase's HBO crime drama series 'The Sopranos', and takes place during the 1960's and '70's in Newark, New Jersey. The film has garnered largely positive critical acclaim, has so far recouped US$12M off the back of a US$50M production budget, saw its World Premier showcasing at the Tribeca Film Festival in late September and went to general release in the US on 1st October along with a month-long simultaneous release on HBO Max. 

In 1967 a young Tony Soprano (William Ludwig) is travelling with his uncle and mentor Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola) to greet Dickie's fathers 'Hollywood' Dick Moltisanti (Ray Liotta) off a cruise ship with his new young Italian bride in tow Giuseppina (Michela De Rossi). Moltisanti in a 'soldier' in the DiMeo crime family which comprises of Johnny Soprano (Jon Bernthal) and his brother Junior (Corey Stoll) amongst others. Over dinner later that evening with the newlyweds, Dickie and his wife Joanne (Gabriella Piazza), Dickie can hardly tear his eyes away from Giuseppina. 

A few days later a black taxi driver is unceremoniously dragged out of his cab and set upon by two uniformed white Police Officers which sparks the Newark riots of mid-July 1967. One of Dickie's black henchmen, Harold McBrayer (Leslie Odom Jnr.) takes part in the riots by throwing a molotov cocktail at a Police patrol car which erupts in a ball of flame. Harold kills a young black man, Leon Overall (Mason Bleu) stealing from their business, forcing him to escape the heat to North Carolina. Before leaving, he asks Dickie for a loan of US$1,000 saying that he will repay it, but instead Dickie gives him US$500 as a gift.

Later, at a carnival, Tony witnesses Johnny and Junior being arrested. Subsequently, Johnny is sentenced to four years in prison for assault with a deadly weapon. During an argument, Hollywood Dick kicks Giuseppina down a flight of stairs in their home. Dickie, in speaking with a downtrodden Giuseppina the next day finds out. He confronts his father later that night in the garage of their house, and an argument breaks out with the pair seated in the front of the car. The argument turns into a physical altercation where Dickie repeatedly slams his fathers head against the steering wheel in a fit of rage, accidentally killing him. He moves the body into the passenger seat and drives the vehicle through the riot torn streets to one of his father's businesses, douses the lifeless body and the building with petrol and sets it alight to make it look like it was destroyed in the riots. Wracked by guilt, Dickie visits his father's twin brother, Salvatore 'Sally' Moltisanti (Ray Liotta) who is serving a life sentence behind bars for the murder of another made man in his own family. Dickie's says he wants to do a 'good deed' hence his wanting to strike up a relationship with Sally, which his father had previously always forbidden. Dickie also starts a relationship with Giuseppina as his mistress. Meanwhile Tony has been suspended from school for starting up an illegal gambling operation, and so Dickie makes him swear a pinkie promise to do the right thing and follow the rules. 

We then fast forward four years to 1972, and Johnny is released from prison and Harold returns to Newark because the prosecuting Police Officer died and the case just dropped by the wayside. Harold starts up his own black-led criminal operation and begins by killing one of Dickie's men and stealing their protection money. Giuseppina has an affair with Harold after a fight with Dickie. Dickie and his crew locate one of Harold's crew, Cyril (Germar Terrell Gardner) in an auto repair shop late at night and torture him using an impact wrench to the mouth to gain the name of the man who ordered the hit, and then kill him. Before he died, Cyril blurted out Harold's name. In retaliation for Cyril's death, Harold and his gang engage in a drive-by shooting with Johnny's crew, during which one is killed. Harold and Dickie have a standoff, but they flee the scene when they hear Police sirens approaching.

After Tony (Michael Gandolfini) steals the answers for a school exam, the school counsellor tells Tony's mother, Livia (Vera Farmiga), that he has a high IQ and that on the Myers–Briggs scale he demonstrates the personality traits of a leader. The counsellor also tells Livia how Tony told her about a time in which his mother hugged him after his father was committed to prison and read to him from a book until he fell asleep and how it was one of his best memories ever. The next day, Livia tries to show her affection for Tony by cooking him up a burger for his dinner, but she mentions how her Doctor wanted to prescribe her antidepressants. When Tony suggests taking it, she retaliates against him. Tony subsequently asks Dickie if he could get the drug Elavil for his mother, but Dickie is reluctant.

Following the wake of Johnny's man who was shot and killed in the drive by shooting, Junior slips and falls on the rain soaked steps of the church. This results in Dickie laughing out loud uncontrollably in his face at his pain and suffering, so infuriating Junior. Dickie reconnects with Giuseppina and promises her a beauty parlour for her to run as a business joint venture between them but he acting as a silent partner and completely hands-off. This is her dream come true. During a walk on the beach, she confesses to her affair with Harold. Dickie is so besides himself with rage that he drowns her in the ocean. Dickie again visits Sally, who says that everyone close to Dickie ends up dead eventually. He goes on to say that the best Christmas present he could give to Tony, is to stay out of his life. Dickie listens to Sally's advice and begins to avoid Tony, refusing to see him or answer his calls. 

Later that night, one of Dickie's henchmen Silvio (John Magaro) encourages Dickie to reconcile with Tony, and Dickie relents and agrees to a catch-up at a local cafe the next morning at 9:00am, before the planned hit on Harold at 10:00am having learned where he is staying. However, before he can arrive home, Dickie is shot in the back of the head by an unknown assailant while unpacking Christmas gifts from the trunk of his car. Junior is seen later limping across the street to answer a ringing payphone. The voice at the other end simply says 'it's done' and hangs-up. The next morning at 9:00am Tony is waiting patiently at the cafe for Dickie to arrive, which of course he never does. At Dickie's wake, it is revealed that Dickie did acquire the Elavil for Tony, and had it in his pocket when he was killed. Tony looks despondently down at Dickie's corpse and imagines another pinkie promise with him, like the two had done all those years ago. Some time later, Harold has moved into a white neighbourhood, his organised crime operation reaping its rewards. 

For someone who has never seen a single episode of 'The Sopranos' I was neither wowed or disappointed by 'The Many Saints of Newark', but I was expecting more development of the young Tony Soprano and the experiences, influences, motivations and emotions that made him into the character that would become the leader of a criminal organisation. Instead what we get at the end is a young mid-teenage lad Tony Soprano, on the edge of adulthood, who could go either way - down the straight and narrow, or into a life of underworld crime - the jury is still out on that one, or maybe that was the whole intention! What we do get however, is a more intimate look inside the world of Tony's favourite Uncle Dickie Moltisanti, from his rise up the ranks as a result of the death/murder of his father, the murder of his mistress, the relationship with his fathers twin brother, his clashing with Harold, to his untimely death orchestrated by Junior with only fleeting glimpses of his influences over Tony. And how does Dickie explain away the death of his mistress, known to many of his cohort, who was last seen drifting away in the ocean? As a stand alone movie this works fine, but 'Goodfellas', 'The Godfather', 'The Irishman', 'Carlito's Way' or a whole host of other American mobster films you care to mention, this ain't. Perhaps as a three or four part mini-series this could have worked better with greater emphasis placed on the development of the young and impressionable Tony Soprano. The casting is however, spot on with special mention going to Alessandro Nivola, Ray Liotta and Michael Gandolfini who really carry the film through every scene. 

'The Many Saints of Newark' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps. 

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

MARRIAGE STORY : Tuesday 26th November 2019.

'MARRIAGE STORY' which is an M Rated American comedy drama film which I saw earlier this week, is Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Noah Baumbach, whose previous Directorial outings include 'The Squid and the Whale', 'Greenberg', 'Frances Ha', 'While We're Young', and 'The Meyerowitz Stories' most recently. The film saw its World Premier screening at the Venice International Film Festival in late August, and also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival in early September where it was first runner-up for the People's Choice Award, was in the Centrepiece selection at the New York Film Festival in early October and the BFI London Film Festival at the same time. It cost just US$9M to make, and has received universal Critical acclaim so far, and is released on a limited theatrical run before digital streaming on 6th December through Netflix. 'Marriage Story' has so far picked up five award wins and another eleven nominations from around the awards and festival circuit.

The film opens up with the voiceover of Charlie Barber (Adam Driver) speaking about the things he likes most about his wife Nicole (Scarlett Johansson), and in turn then cuts to Nicole speaking about the things she likes about her husband Charlie. We then cut to the room of a mediator, as this couple is experiencing marital challenges, who has suggested they each write down what they like about one another, but Nicole is too embarrassed to read hers aloud and they decide to forego the counselling. Charlie is a successful theatre Director in New York City. His theatre company is currently producing a play that stars Nicole, a former moderately successful teen film Actress.

Nicole is offered a starring role in a TV pilot programme to be shot in Los Angeles, and she decides to leave the theatre company and temporarily move in with her mother Sandra (Julie Hagerty) in West Hollywood, taking the couple’s eight year old son Henry (Azhy Robertson) with her. Charlie elects to remain in New York, as the play is in the process of moving to Broadway. When he flies out to Los Angeles to visit his family, he is served with divorce papers by Nicole's sister Cassie (Merritt Weaver) in the kitchen of the family home.

The pair initially agree to separate amicably and forego lawyers, but Nicole then hires family lawyer Nora Fanshaw (Laura Dern), who urges her to pressure Charlie into seeing his own legal counsel. Charlie first meets with Jay (Ray Liotta), a brash and expensive lawyer who charges US$900 an hour, plus an up front retainer of US$25K, and who strongly recommends Charlie to fight dirty, because the whole affair is going to end up 'somewhere between reasonable and crazy'. Baulking at the cost of hiring Jay, he decides to hire Bert Spitz (Alan Alda) instead, a retired family lawyer who is more in favour of a civil and conciliatory approach, and charges just US$450 an hour with a US$10K up front retainer.

Upon Bert's expert advice, Charlie rents an apartment in Los Angeles to be closer to his family and strengthen his custody case for Henry. Charlie wants to avoid having to appear in court, so Bert arranges a meeting with Nora and Nicole. Nora claims that Charlie refused to respect Nicole’s several wishes over the period of their marriage to move back to Los Angeles, and that Henry would prefer to stay with his mother than fly back and forth between coasts, particularly now that he is settled at a new (temporary) school, has made new friends, and is engaged in several extra curricular activities. In a private meeting, Bert advises Charlie to drop his New York residency altogether, but a frustrated and increasingly anxious Charlie refuses and decides to fire him.

Charlie wins a MacArthur Fellowship grant of US$625K (which is paid in quarterly instalments over five years) and uses his first payout to hire Jay on a retainer. The case moves to court where things turn ugly. Nora and Jay argue aggressively on behalf of Nicole and Charlie and try to show the other party in a negative light. Nora highlights Charlie’s past infidelity and emotional distance, while Jay exaggerates Nicole’s drinking habits as alcoholism. The presiding Judge is new to the area, and so seeks an adjournment while the feuding couple and their son are properly evaluated by a third party expert for a final determination over custodial rights. Meanwhile, Charlie and Nicole remain friendly out of court and share time with Henry, who is becoming frustrated and tired with the toing and froing.

Completely at odds with the legal process, the couple decides to meet in private away from the lawyers in Charlie's modest rented apartment. What starts out to be a friendly enough discussion quickly dissolves into a bitter very heated argument in which Nicole claims he doesn’t care about her and Charlie punches a wall and says he wishes she would die. He then breaks down in a flood of tears out of shame for what he just said, and for his anger and resentment towards her and apologises. Nicole consoles him. The pair after agree to relax their demands and reach an amicable agreement to finalise the divorce. Nora negotiates slightly better terms for Nicole on the basis of a 55/45 custody split over Henry in Nicole's favour.

Fast forward twelve months or so and Charlie’s play closed prematurely on Broadway, while Nicole’s pilot (which she has also Directed several episodes for) is nominated for a number of awards. Charlie informs Nicole that he’s taken a one-year UCLA residency working on two stage Productions, and as such will be living in Los Angeles full-time for the foreseeable future to be closer to Henry. Later, he discovers Henry sitting at the end of his Mum's bed reading Nicole’s list of things she likes about Charlie that she’d been too embarrassed to read. Henry asks Charlie to read it aloud to him as he is struggling with some of the words, and Charlie does so, becoming emotional as Nicole watches from the bedroom door, unknown to her ex-husband.

Adam Driver has had a busy twelve months or so it seems putting out 'BlacKkKlansman', 'The Man Who Killed Don Quixote', 'The Dead Don't Die', 'The Report', this film, and the upcoming 'Star Wars : The Rise of Skywalker' due in December. Here Writer and Director Baumbach has crafted perhaps his most personal story yet, pulled together on screen by two gut wrenching, heartfelt, powerful and emotional performances from Johansson and Driver who imbue the characters with an all too grounded realism that pulls you into the centre of their personal anguish, frustrations and battle with each other. And a special mention should also go to the three lawyers as portrayed by Dern, Liotta and Alda who each come at the divorce proceedings from a different angle, and are all relatable in someway. Anyone who has been through a divorce, particularly one involving the custody of a child or children, will find something to relate to in this film as it lurches from two people who still care and have a degree of affection for each other to the depths of despair, anger and denial as experienced by that same couple. Despite the darkness of the subject matter, Baumbach also offers up some real moments of levity, zippy one liners and a sense of humour that ultimately anchors the whole sorry sad affair. The film goes to prove that in a divorce, ultimately its the lawyers who win, and whilst the feuding couple will eventually go their separate ways and settle down into new lives, the emotional scars of that deep rooted personal upheaval will always remain.

'Marriage Story' warrants four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard, out of a possible five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-