EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE : Tuesday 27th April 2021.

I saw 'EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE' earlier this week, and this MA15+ Rated American thriller offering is Directed by Vaughn Stein in only his third film making outing after 2018's 'Terminal' and 2020's 'Inheritance'. This film has been in development since 2012 when Rob Reiner was slated to be Directing this film, and over the years that followed that mantle passed to Christine Jeffs in October 2019 before Vaughn Stein was announced as Director in December of that year. Costing US$10M to produce, the film was released in the US in early April to largely unfavourable Reviews. 

Here our film opens up with a car travelling down some deserted highway in Washington State - a big moon in the corner of the shot. We then cut to inside the vehicle which is being driven by Mum Grace Clark (Michelle Monaghan) and her young son Evan (Brenden Sunderland) in the back seat, the pair swapping jokes. Evan is wearing an ice hockey outfit and holding onto a new pair of ice skates, and clearly somewhat reluctant about his debut game. Then out of nowhere, a pick up truck slams straight into the car being driven by mother and son. For one of them it's fatal - and it's not mother Grace.

We then fast forward three years to a lavish isolated home in the hills. Grace is swimming laps in the outdoor heated lap pool while psychiatrist husband Phillip Clark (Casey Affleck) listens intently and takes copious notes from what his patients reveal to him about the inner most thoughts, anxieties and depressions. We subsequently learn that Evan was Grace's only son by a former marriage, and Phillip has a troubled and angst ridden teenage daughter Lucy (India Eisley) also from a former marriage, who was expelled from high school only one week ago because she snorted a line of cocaine in the laboratory during a class. 

One of Phillip's patients is a young 23 year old woman named Daphne (Emily Alyn Lind), who has a history of psychosis in the family and several failed suicide attempts, on whom he performed radical therapy by sharing things about his own personal life and revealing his thoughts and actions that he never even shared with his own wife. This empathetic behaviour, which is somewhat out of the box for psychiatrist's, is frowned upon by some colleagues, most notably Dr. Vanessa Fanning (Veronica Ferres), Phillip's Dean of Faculty at a local psychiatry institute where he also works. Fanning offers words of caution to Phillip, but he replies that Daphne after nine months of therapy has turned the corner, is off her medication, is happy with her life, is being creative for the first time in a very long time and is now in the throes of writing a book about her journey out of the darkness. The only remaining challenge for her is in trying to wrestle herself away from the overly controlling boyfriend. 

Soon afterwards Phillip receives a phone call while travelling home from Daphne who is distraught, saying that her long term best friend was killed in a hit and run accident. This sends Daphne into a downward spiral, although she commits to seeing Phillip the next day. However, the next day never comes, when Police arrive at their home to say that Daphne listed Phillip as her point of contact in the event of an emergency, and that she is now dead, having jumped off the balcony at home and cracked her skull open on the concrete below. Viewing the scene and identifying the body, her brother James Flagg (Sam Claflin) is understandably beside himself. 

A few days later James swings by Phillip's and Grace's home late in the afternoon to return a book that he had lent Daphne. Grace invites James in for dinner where he is more than charming, explains away his English accent, and that he is a failed first time novelist but is working on a second novel which he has higher hopes for. Lucy sends swooning glances James' way throughout dinner, while Phillip is somewhat wary. 

Over the next few days and weeks James gradually works his way into Lucy's life, and she is more than ready and willing to accept his advances. Meanwhile, James has also recruited Grace, who is also a real estate agent, to handle the sale of his sisters lavish home, and at the same time, begins to come on strong with her too. It seems that Phillip, Grace and Lucy have all retreated into their own little closeted worlds since the death of Evan three years ago with very little by way of communication, emotional support or intimacy to go around. 

At about the midway point Phillip comes to the realisation that James is the one behind a series of complaint letters sent to Dr. Fanning and the Washington State Board of Psychiatry about his alleged malpractices. His client base starts to dry up and pretty soon Phillip has lost the majority of his patients. James has been able to finagle his way into Phillip's life as a result of three years of silence and unprocessed grieving which Phillip opens upto Grace one evening asking for her forgiveness, which she grants him. In the meantime, Lucy has persuaded James to take her with him when he eventually leaves, and to get away to anywhere but here. That day is fast approaching. 

With Phillip's and Grace's fractured relationship seemingly repaired, James goes after Grace. In the passenger seat of his car sits Grace without a seatbelt because it is broken, with James tearing down the road at increasing speed. She begs him to stop, but he is not listening. She calls Phillip, and as James veers the car violently from side to side, Grace is knocked unconscious temporarily. James continues the conversation with Phillip telling him of their location. Phillip catches up just as James is about to drive headlong into a truck which would have resulted in the certain death of both. But seconds before, James veers and brings the car to a grinding halt averting a collision. With Grace safely out of the car and in Phillip's arms, James hurriedly drives off, grinning from ear to ear.

Later that night James hands himself into the authorities and is immediately sent to a psychiatric hospital for assessment. He demands to see Phillip as he is the only one he will speak with. Reluctantly Phillip attends an interview with James with Dr. Fanning and a consulting medical physician Dr. Toth (Hiro Kanagawa) in attendance. James comes clean, but clearly is showing signs of being mentally unhinged. Later that night over dinner with Dr. Fanning and her husband Stuart (Vincent Gale), Stuart presents Phillip with James' first novel which he had asked to procure. Turning to the back cover to read the bio of the author James Flagg, the photo of the author is not of the James Flagg that they know. Immediately alarm bells begin to ring. 

Phillip then attempts to call Lucy at home having deduced that James Flagg is a fake and he is in reality Daphne's over controlling boyfriend who threw the girl off the balcony and killed her. Phillip then calls the facility in which James is being held and warns Dr. Toth that there is an imminent danger and to go check on him. In so doing Toth discovers a dead orderly in James' room and no sign of James. While attempting to call Lucy, James has already rocked up to the Clark household, warmly embraced Lucy and told her to go and collect her things, they're leaving tonight. As Lucy goes to collect her bag, James enters the house after her, bolting the door locked from the inside behind him. He grabs Lucy violently and drags her kicking and screaming by the hair up the stairs and into a room with a balcony. By this time Phillip and Grace have arrived, gain easy access to the house, and immediately hear Lucy screaming upstairs. Phillip jumps on James and a fist fight breaks out with each raining down punches on to the other. Lucy and Grace both get thrown across the room, and with James straddling Phillip with his hands clenched tightly around Phillips neck, Grace renders two blows to James's back with Evan's brand new and unused ice skates, and when he reels in pain onto his back she lands another two blows to his chest. James crawls out of the room onto the balcony, rolls over on to his back and dies, just as Police sirens approach. 

'Every Breath You Take' has three fine Actors helming Director Stein's third feature film outing, and each give a solid enough performance, but that said this alone is not enough to lift this all too familiar predictable revenge thriller that offers little by way of surprises and the plot twists and turns you can see coming from a mile away. There is nothing new to see here that hasn't been done before, and better, in countless other similar pot boiling psychological thrillers, and when the end finally comes it all seems almost hurried and underdone, and, left me thinking of Russell Crowe's eventual demise in last years 'Unhinged'. 

'Every Breath You Take' warrants two claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

THE NIGHTINGALE : Tuesday 3rd September 2019.

'THE NIGHTINGALE' which I saw earlier this week, is an MA15+ rated Australian period piece thriller Directed, Co-Produced and Co-Written by Jennifer Kent in only her second film making outing following 2014's highly acclaimed horror offering 'The Babadook'.  This film saw its World Premier screening at the Venice International Film Festival back in September 2018 where it won the Special Jury Prize, had its Australian Premier at the 2018 Adelaide Film Festival, saw its US release earlier in August and in Australia last week after its screening at the recent Sydney Film Festival too. It has so far received generally positive Reviews, although has divided audiences with its graphic depictions of rape and murder. Kent subsequently defended the decision to depict such violence, claiming that the film contains historically accurate representations of the colonial violence and racism that took place against the Australian Indigenous people of that time (circa 1825). The film was produced in collaboration with Tasmanian Aboriginal elders who feel that this is an honest and necessary depiction of their history, and a story that needs to be told.

Set in Tasmania (then known as Van Diemen's Land) in 1825 and the early on-set of the Black War, Clare Carroll (Aisling Franciosi), a 21-year-old Irish convict is serving out her time working as a servant in some remote British military outpost overseen by Lieutenant Hawkins (Sam Claflin) and Sergeant Ruse (Damon Herriman). The unit is being visited by a commanding officer to determine if Hawkins is fit to be considered for promotion to the rank of Captain.

After her night shift has finished, with Clare serving the soldiers drinks and singing them a few songs, she asks Hawkins about her now long overdue letter of recommendation that would allow the family, husband Aidan (Michael Sheasby) and their baby child, their freedom. Hawkins takes her request as insolence and consequently rapes and beats her. The next night Aidan, liquored up, gets into a brawl with Hawkins, Ruse and a Private Jago (Harry Greenwood) while asking for the same letter of recommendation that Clare had enquired about the previous day. The commanding officer walks in on the brawl unfolding and bears witness to the whole sorry affair and determines that this, along with other acts of misconduct and inappropriate behaviour displayed by Hawkins and his small group of soldiers, deem him unfit for promotion.

Mightily pissed-off by this turn of events, Hawkins commands Ruse and Jago to gather supplies, a few extra convict men to help fetch and carry and a local black tracker named Charlie (Charlie Jampijinpa Brown) for an impromptu five day journey on foot through dangerous and near impenetrable bushland to the town of Launceston in order to secure his promotion via an officer contact he has there, and with whom he seems to have some sway. Before they leave early the next morning, the soldiers intercept the Carroll family attempting to flee. Hawkins taunts Aiden about the many occasions he’s had sex with Clare before he and Ruse gang rape Clare, shoot Aiden at point blank range in the neck, and Jago kills their baby and then knocks Clare unconscious with the butt end of his rifle. Clare comes round the next morning with the sight of her dead husband lying in a pool of blood and her baby's lifeless body on the hard stone floor by the door.

The next day Clare reports the incident to a suspicious Royal Military Police official, carrying the dead body of her baby, who is less than sympathetic - after all why should he believe the rantings of a convict woman over the story of Officers in the Army. She decides to seek out revenge for herself with a help of an Aboriginal tracker named Billy (Baykali Ganambarr) whom she entices with the promise of two shillings in payment. Clare is guarded about her motives and states that she wishes to catch-up with her soldier husband en route to Launceston. The travelling pair initially share a mutual hostility towards one another but begin to bond over stories about their tragic upbringings and shared hatred of the English.

Hawkins meanwhile en route with his small party takes a liking to one of the convicts, an eight year old orphan child named Eddie (Charlie Shotwell), and Ruse kidnaps an Aboriginal woman named Lowanna (Magnolia Maymuru) that he stumbled across in the bushland, to be used as a sex slave. The next day when a small group of Aboriginal men have located their missing Lowanna, they kill one of the convicts and injure Jago with a spear in the leg, in a rescue mission, but their attack proves unsuccessful as Hawkins shoots Lowanna in the back in retaliation. Clare and Billy stumble upon a limping and delirious Jago, and Clare corners and brutally kills him by stabbing him several times in the chest and smashing his face to a pulp with the butt-end of her rifle.

Billy has witnessed this and considers leaving Clare to her own devices in the dense forest, but works out her revenge motivations and decides to stay. Charlie meanwhile as the trusted tracker to Hawkins party, and as revenge for the soldiers' inhumanity, diverts the journey to a dead end on the summit of a mountain. Ruse kills Charlie but Hawkins chastises the rash decision and forces Ruse to be their guide on the way back down the mountain, handing over Ruse's former responsibilities to the eight year old Eddie. Clare and Billy come across Charlie’s body while tracing their steps, and Billy performs customary burial rites and informs Clare that he now seeks
revenge too for killing his Uncle figure.

Clare and Billy catch up with the group of four and hide behind a rocky outcrop. Armed with her rifle pointing directly at Hawkins, Clare freezes when she sees him, allowing Hawkins to retaliate fire grazing her shoulder with a shot from his rifle. Clare flees and the pair split up and are separated. Billy, however, is found and forced to be the new guide, replacing Charlie and a clueless Ruse. Billy reluctantly leads the soldiers to the main path to Launceston, at which point Hawkins commands Eddie to shoot Billy. The eight year old Eddie naturally hesitates, so allowing Billy to escape. Hawkins berates Eddie and turns his back on him saying that when he arrives in Launceston he will advise the local Police that there is a convict child running wild on the path into town. Eddie gets very upset by this threat and cries out for a second chance to prove his worth. Hawkins turns and shoots the boy dead to shut him up.

Having spent the night nestled under a tree in the forest hinterland of Launceston, Clare the next morning finds her way back onto the main path and reunites with Billy. While on their way, they come across what looks like an abandoned house. Entering they see a recently murdered couple in their bed having both suffered several gunshot wounds to the chest. From the house they take a rifle, some food and a change of clothes. Walking towards Launceston they encounter a chain gang of Aboriginals, led by three armed white fellas. In their native tongue Billy speaks of his origin and that he is seeking to reunite with his people in the north. One of the chained Aboriginals informs Billy that he is the last of his people, they had been wiped out and all killed. When the prisoner yells at his captors for their callousness, they shoot him and the others dead. Clare and Billy pass, on the pretext that Billy is Clare's prisoner and she is taking him to Launceston to see that justice is served on him.

In Launceston, Clare and Billy are sighted in the street by Hawkins and Ruse. Hawkins orders Ruse to notify the Police that a black boy is on the loose in town, and tells Clare that if he ever sees her again, he will have no hesitation in killing her. The newly promoted Hawkins joins his commanding officer in a men only bar for a welcome drink, at which point Clare bursts in and confronts Hawkins about his war crimes in front of a now silent bar full of fellow soldiers and officers all looking on. Billy watches through the window from a hiding spot. The two then flee town for the night. During the night while Clare is sleeping, Billy covers himself with white war paint and has carved two spears. He makes his way back to Launceston. By this time Clare has woken up and has given chase arriving in Launceston just as she spies Billy entering the hostel where Hawkins and Ruse are lodged. Billy first spears Hawkins right through the heart killing him instantly and then drives his second spear though Ruse's throat pinning him to a wall. Ruse however, before he died got off a single rifle shot wounding Billy in the stomach. Claire and Billy flee the commotion at the hostel on the back of Clare's horse which Hawkins has previously stolen from her. In time following the river, they arrive at a beach where Billy dances and declares himself a free man before slumping down on the wet sand as Clare sings a folk song and the two watch the sun rise over the horizon.

'The Nightingale' is a confronting film and at times an uneasy watch for its repeated rape scenes, violence and callous cold blooded murders of men, women and children mostly of native Australian origin, but also of white convicts for simply speaking up or being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But, in choosing to depict such scenes of human depravity Director and Writer Jennifer Kent has captured the essence of that era in a story that has to be told as it resonates as much today as it did back then. Aisling Franciosi and Baykali Ganambarr give powerful and convincing performances, and Sam Claflin is definitely playing against type here and does so with a disturbing intensity. It's interesting to note that the depiction of the horrors that befell Australia's Indigenous population back in the days of early white settlement is particularly apposite given last weeks Reviewed 'The Australian Dream'. Kent has here shown that she is an Australian film maker to watch and that this is a very noteworthy follow up to her debut of five years ago, that will further cement her position as a master of her craft. My only criticism is that at a running time of 136 minutes, the film drags on for a little too long and consequently becomes a tad repetitive and predictable especially in the last half an hour, when shaving off 15 or 20 minutes in the editing suite would perhaps have served for greater coherence and less monotony.

'The Nightingale' warrants four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard, from a potential five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

THEIR FINEST : Wednesday 3rd May 2017.

'THEIR FINEST' which I saw mid-last week is Directed by Lone Scherfig and based on the Lissa Evans 2009 book 'Their Finest Hour and a Half'. The film was first screened at TIFF in September last year, and had its US release in early April and its UK and Australian release toward the back end of April. The film has received generally positive critical Reviews, but this has yet to materialise in hard dollar return on its US$39M budget investment.

This WWII drama film is a film within a film as The British Ministry of Information set about making a morale boosting propaganda film about the evacuation of Dunkirk during the Battle of Britain and Hitler's devastating bombing raids on London. Set in a 1940 war torn London, we are first introduced to screen writer Tom Buckley (Sam Claflin) as he stands eating hot chips out of a newspaper wrapping while watching a film about the British war effort in a packed cinema. But the audience are paying little attention, and laughing at the on screen antics that they should be taking seriously. Such is the quality of the acting, the film-making and the messages being conveyed.

We then move to Welsh lass Catrin Cole (Gemma Arterton), an out of work Secretary who is summonsed to the Ministry of Information to attend for an interview to help write script for short information films to be played at cinemas across the land in between the main features. She lives with her husband Ellis Cole (Jack Huston) a moody artist who is unable to gain work or an exhibition for his paintings of dark industrial Britain, and who avoided the conscript due to an old Spanish Civil War leg wound. They are unable to pay the rent, so she accepts the gig at the Ministry for two pounds a week, but Ellis belittles Catrin's contribution and threatens to send her back to her home to the Welsh valley's under the smokescreen of protecting her from the Blitz. Needless to say, Catrin will have none of this and stands firm in her determination to take the job and the money that goes with it.

Quickly proving her worth, Catrin is promoted by Roger Swain (Richard E. Grant) the Head of Film at the Ministry of Information to work on a British propaganda film that shows 'authenticity and optimism' to the audience, and designed to lift the spirits and the hearts and minds of the British public at a time when they needed it the most. Catrin's role is to write the 'slop' - the women's dialogue that will appeal and be understood by a largely female audience. Her skills with dialogue and story telling catch the attention of Tom Buckley, who also works as a writer at the Ministry. He takes her under his wing to help work on a feature film about two sisters who supposedly helped rescue wounded British soldiers home from Dunkirk in their drunken fathers ramshackle steam boat across the English Channel back to Southend. Catrin visits the sisters for research purposes and discovers that the alleged 'true' story is subject to some poetic licence, and has to make a decision to report back the fact, or the fiction. She opts for the latter - after all, why let the truth get in the way of a good story!

Fairly soon the two writers aided by Raymond Parfitt (Paul Ritter) as another writer are frantically tapping away at their typewriters devising the foundation of the story, the dialogue, the dramatisation and the characters. They sign up ageing dapper screen lothario Ambrose Hilliard (Bill Nighy) much to his disgust having usually played romantic leads but now assigned to a supporting drunken uncle role described as 'a shipwreck of a man, sixties, looks older'. He initially rejects the offer to his Agent Sammy Smith (Eddie Marsan), but when Sammy is killed in an air raid, he is convinced by sister Sophie (Helen McCrory) to take the gig in the absence of anything else, and she becomes Hilliard's new Agent.

Filming starts on the propaganda film down in Devon, and then the team get a summons to attend the Ministry of War offices in London. There they meet with the Secretary of War (Jeremy Irons) who orders the crew to write in a part of an American to give the film an appeal to a US audience. Furthermore, the Secretary has just the man for the job - a very photogenic American-Norwegian fighter pilot Carl Lundbeck (Jack Lacy) who was great in silent films but can't act in the talkies to save his life!

With the Director, the Producers and the Scriptwriters besides themselves over Lundbeck's hamfisted attempts at dialogue, Catrin's persuades Hilliard to give Lundbeck on the run acting lessons in return for enhancements to his role, so saving the picture.

During the location shoot Catrin and Buckley start to develop a fondness for each other, that culminates in him asking her to marry him. Buckley has learnt from another crew member that Catrin isn't in fact married to Ellis, but has taken his name out of propriety. Catrin refuses, and the pair argue.

When shooting returns to London for final studio filming, Catrin has had chance to cool off and spends the evening during an air raid rewriting the closing scenes of the film, and penning a note to Buckley with her change of heart. She leaves the finished script and her letter on Buckley's desk. The next day in the studio Catrin and Buckley share a moment of passion together out of view from the rest of the cast and crew. Buckley found the finished script and says she nailed it, and her letter too. Just when you thought of the happily ever after, a freak accident occurs that has far reaching ramifications for the couple, and which you would never have seen coming.

As the film draws to a close we see Catrin sneak into a packed cinema to see the fruits of her efforts up on the big screen. The film is a huge success and has struck the right chords with its target audience. She is persuaded by Hilliard to write the next screenplay for a film he is being pitched for and for which he has an idea of a character outline - a cat burgling air raid warden. Catrin sits down at her typewriter and begins to tap away with the seed of another film script slowly maturing.

This is a feel good film with just the the right amount of war torn London horrors and emotional upset to keep it real, grounded and believable. Underpinned too by some standout performances most notably from Gemma Arterton and Bill Nighy, with Jeremy Irons, Eddie Marsan and Jack Lacy all doing well with the little screen time they have. The film within a film structure allows for all the levity and WWII era filmmaking quirks, tricks and smoke & mirrors camera work that adds an authenticity to this offering and is delivered by a sharp intelligent script, witty dialogue, solid acting all round and a message of the female inequality of the era being overcome by working women out of necessity.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

Birthday's to share this week - 26th June - 2nd July 2016.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Sam Claflin does on 27th June - check out my tribute to this Birthday Boy turning 30, at the end of this feature.

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

Sunday 26th June

• Paul Thomas Anderson - Born 1970, turns 46 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Chris O'Donnell - Born 1970, turns 46 - Actor | Producer | Director
• Sean Hayes - Born 1970, turns 46 - Actor | Producer | Singer
• Jason Schwartzmann - Born 1980, turns 36 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Composer | Singer | Songwriter
• Robert Davi - Born 1951, turns 65 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director

Monday 27th June

• J.J.Abrams - Born 1966, turns 50 - Producer | Director | Writer | Actor | Composer | Songwriter
• Tobey Maguire - Born 1975, turns 41 - Actor | Producer
• Sam Claflin - Born 1986, turns 30 - Actor

Tuesday 28th June

• John Cusack - Born 1966, turns 50 - Actor | Writer | Producer
• Bruce Davison - Born 1946, turns 70 - Actor | Director
• Mel Brooks - Born 1926, turns 90 - Actor | Producer | Director | Writer | Singer | Songwriter
• Kathy Bates - Born 1948, turns 68 - Actress | Director | Singer 

Wednesday 29th June

• Gary Busey - Born 1944, turns 72 - Actor | Singer | Songwriter  

Thursday 30th June

• Vincent D'Onofrio - Born 1959, turns 57 - Actor | Producer | Director | Writer
• Rupert Graves - Born 1963, turns 53 - Actor | Producer  

Friday 1st July

• David Prowse - Born 1935, turns 81 - Actor
• Trevor Eve - Born 1951, turns 65 - Actor | Producer
• Dan Akyroyd - Born 1952, turns 64 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Singer 
• Genevieve Bujold - Born 1942, turns 74 - Actress
• Debbie Harry - Born 1945, turns 71 - Actress | Producer | Composer | Singer | Songwriter
• Pamela Anderson - Born 1967, turns 49 - Actress | Producer
• Lea Seydoux - Born 1985, turns 31 - Actress  

Saturday 2nd July

• Margot Robbie - Born 1990, turns 26 - Actress | Producer
• Lindsay Lohan - Born 1986, turns 30 - Actress | Producer | Singer
• Larry David - Born 1947, turns 69 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director | Singer

Samuel George Claflin was born in Ipswich, Suffolk, England to mother Sue - a classroom assistant, and father Mark, a finance officer. He has two older brothers, Benjamin and David, and one younger, Joseph - also in the acting profession. He grew up in Norwich, Norfolk and had more than a keen interest in football as a young lad - so much so that he was considering playing professionally until a broken ankle shattered that dream. He attended Costessey High School, where he made a decision to pursue acting after making a successful appearance in the school play, and having been encouraged to do so by his parents and drama teacher. In 2003 he studied performing arts at Norwich City College before attending the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, graduating in 2009.

In 2010, Claflin gained his small screen debut in 'The Pillars of the Earth' based on the Ken Follet novel of the same name. This eight part mini-series starred the likes of Donald Sutherland, Eddie Redmayne, Ian McShane, Rufus Sewell, Matthew Macfadyen and Hayley Attwell, cost US$40M to make, took a year to make and was Co-Produced by Tony & Ridley Scott amongst others. That same year he appeared in the made for television movie 'The Lost Future' with Sean Bean, and a four hour series 'Any Human Heart' with Jim Broadbent, Tom Hollander, Kim Catrall and Hayley Attwell.

The following year, he appeared in the television film 'United' playing Duncan Edwards - the English football player for Matt Busby's Manchester United team of the mid-'50's who died tragically aged 21 in the Munich Air Disaster of February 1958 with seven of his team mates.

After this Hollywood came knocking with his role in 2011 in the fourth instalment in the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' franchise 'On Stranger Tides' in the role of Philip Swift - a missionary captured by Blackbeard who falls in love with Syrena - a beautiful mermaid.

In 2012 he appeared in the six part BBC television series 'White Heat', and his first appearance as Prince William, the childhood friend of Snow White in 'Snow White and the Huntsman' with Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron - a role he would reprise in the sequel released earlier this year with 'The Huntsman : Winters War'. That same year Claflin starred in 'The Quiet Ones' - a supernatural horror film which was released in 2014. Although it received only average reviews, it did make US$18M off its meagre US$200K budget outlay - so commercially a solid enough return.

2013 saw the release of 'The Hunger Games : Catching Fire' with his strong supporting role as Finnick Odair - a role he would reprise in the two concluding films of the franchise - 2014's 'The Hunger Games : Mockingly Part 1', and 'Part 2' in 2015. 'The Riot Club' came next also in 2014 with the backdrop of a fictitious elite all male exclusive dining club at Oxford University that prides itself on hedonism, and a firmly held belief that money can buy anything. Claflin's performance in the film was critically praised. 

Later that year he appeared as the male lead of Alex Stewart, opposite Lily Collins as Rosie Dunn in 'Love, Rosie' based on the novel 'Where Rainbows End' by Cecelia Ahern. The film took less that US$5M and was not so well received. Most recently, Claflin has starred in 'Me Before You' - released earlier this month with Emilia Clarke in the lead role opposite. This romantic drama film sees Claflin's character William Traynor paralysed from the neck down and wheelchair bound. The film has so far grossed US$85M.

Next up is 'We Happy Few' - a RomCom based in a 1940's WWII torn Britain and starring Bill Nighy, Richard E.Grant, Eddie Marsan and Gemma Arterton, and Directed by Lone Scherfig, who also Directed Claflin in 'Riot Club'. The film is in post-production for release later in 2016.  'My Cousin Rachel' is currently filming for 2017 with Rachel Weisz and Iain Glen and based on a Daphne Du Maurier novel, with 'Friday' recently announced. 

All up Claflin has nineteen Acting credits to his name. He has eight award nominations and one award win. In July 2013 he married British Actress, Laura Haddock who is currently filming the next 'Transformers' offering 'The Last Knight' for Director Michael Bay with Mark Wahlberg and Anthony Hopkins. The couple live in London and have a young son together, born in December last year.

Sam Claflin - keeping it grounded, keeping it real, keeping it true; is out to prove himself; is determined not to be typecast; has a self confessed 'thing' about Chris Hemsworth; and clearly is on the rise, and more and more in demand. Happy 30th Birthday to you Sam from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-