What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 6th September 2018.

In August the world bid a fond farewell to 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 . . . . Neil Simon, Aretha Franklin and Barbara Harris.

* Marvin Neil Simon - was born on July 4th 1927 and died on 26th August 2018, aged 91. He was a prolific American Playwright, Screenwriter and Author. He wrote in excess of thirty plays and nearly the same number of movie Screenplays which were mostly adaptations of his own plays. He received more combined Oscar and Tony nominations than any other Writer and all up had eight award wins and eighteen nominations for his film and television work alone including four Academy Award nods, four Primetime Emmy nominations, two BAFTA nominations, two Golden Globe nods and a win, and a further six nominations and four wins bestowed by the Writers Guild of America. His movie Screenplays included 'The Odd Couple', 'The Out-of-Towners', 'Plaza Suite', 'The Heartbreak Kid', 'The Sunshine Boys', 'Murder by Death', 'The Goodbye Girl', 'California Suite', 'Brighton Beach Memoirs', 'Biloxi Blues', 'Lost in Yonkers' and 'The Odd Couple II'. Additionally, he wrote eight made for TV movies based on his own plays, and was a regular writing contributor to many television shows throughout the 1950's including 'Caesar's Hour' and 'The Phil Silvers Show'. In 1983 he was the only living Playwright to have a theatre named after him - The Neil Simon Theatre on Broadway, in 1991 he was awarded The Pulitzer Prize for Drama and in 2006 The Mark Twain Prize for American Humour. He was born in the Bronx, New York City, married five times and died in Manhattan, New York City.

* Barbara Densmoor Harris - was born on July 25th 1935 and died August 21st 2018, aged 83. She began her stage acting career treading the boards while still an aspiring teenager in Chicago. Harris graduated to television in 1961 appearing in a single episode of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' and from there she appeared in select television and film roles throughout the '60's, '70's, '80's and '90's. Her first feature film role came in 1965 with 'A Thousand Clowns', followed up appearances in more noteworthy films including the Neil Simon penned 'Plaza Suite' alongside Walter Matthau, 'The War Between Men and Women' in 1972 with Jack Lemon, Robert Altman's famed 'Nashville' in 1975 starring an ensemble cast, Alfred Hitchcock's 'Family Plot' in 1976 with Bruce Dern and 'Freaky Friday' that same year with a young Jodie Foster, 'The Seduction of Joe Tynan' in 1979 with Alan Alda and Meryl Streep, 'Peggy Sue Got Married' in 1986 with  Nicolas Cage and Jim Carrey, 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' in 1988 with Michael Caine and Steve Martin and her last film role in 1997 'Grosse Pointe Blank' with John Cusack and Minnie Driver. All up Harris had just 28 Acting credits but was highly acclaimed winning a Tony Award for her Leading Actress Performance in a Musical on the 1966 Broadway Production of 'The Apple Tree'. She was also nominated for an Academy Award for her supporting role in 'Who is Harry Kellerman, and why is he saying those terrible things about me?' in 1971, and a further four Golden Globe nods for her film work. Thereafter she retired from acting and began teaching which she found more interesting! She was born in Evanston, Illinois and died in Scottsdale, Arizona.

* Aretha Louise Franklin - was born on March 25th 1942 and died on August 16th 2018, aged 76. Dubbed the 'Queen of Soul' at the end of the '60's when she had achieved fame and recognition for her singing and songwriting prowess, she first started singing as a child in a gospel choir at a Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan where her father was the Minister. In 1960, aged 18, she signed up with Columbia Records as a solo artist but had only modest success, however, signing to Atlantic Records in 1966 she enjoyed far greater success. She remained with Atlantic Records until 1980 when she signed to Arista Records with whom she remained until 2007. Franklin recorded 112 charted singles on Billboard, including 77 Hot 100 entries, seventeen top ten singles, one hundred R&B entries, and twenty number-one R&B singles, becoming the most charted female artist in history. She won eighteen Grammy Awards having been nominated for 44, including the first eight awards given for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance from 1968 through to 1975, and she is one of the best-selling musical artists of all time, having sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Her catalogue includes perhaps her signature song 'R-E-S-P-E-C-T', and, amongst an extensive collection, 'Chain of Fools', 'Think', '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman', 'I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)', 'I Say a Little Prayer' 'Who's Zoomin' Who', and 'I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)' which was recorded with George Michael. Aside from a stellar and widely acclaimed singing and songwriting career, Franklin also appeared in a small number of feature films and documentaries. Perhaps her best movie turn came as Mrs. Murphy in the 1980 John Landis Directed 'The Blues Brothers' with Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. She would go on to reprise her role in the 1998 sequel 'Blues Brothers 2000'. Her songs, her albums, her awards and her lifetime of achievements accumulated over seven decades are way too many to do any justice to here. She was born in Memphis, Tennessee and died in Detroit, Michigan where her career in music began.

Turning then to this weeks current theatrical releases, coming to an Odeon near you we have seven new films. We start with the fifth film in this successful horror franchise and the spin-off from the second film that takes us back to the '50's and two papal envoys sent to a Monastery far away to investigate the mysterious suicide of a young nun - be prepared to have the bejeezus scared out of you. We then have a change of pace with a comedy drama offering based on another big screen adaptation from this popular British novelist about an ageing rocker, and unlikely romance and the partner caught in the middle who just happens to be the biggest fan of the rockstar of yesteryear. Next we turn to a gun for hire vigilante who only takes on very specific cases and always get results, but is plagued by visions of his troubled past that might just be his undoing. These are followed by an Aussie comedy set in a remote country town where a former AFL (Australian Football League) legend has gone into 'retirement' only to be brought out of it by a confluence of circumstances and the newly arrived displaced talent from far away lands. We then wrap up the week with a trio of documentaries, the first of which is about three identical triplets separated at birth as part of a clandestine experiment who accidentally rediscover each other almost twenty years later. Then we have a look inside the life and times of an Australian motorcycle racing legend and former world champion, before concluding the week with a look inside the life and relatively short lived times of a British fashion icon whose influence is still felt today, eight years since his untimely death.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the seven 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 week ahead.

'THE NUN' (Rated MA15+) - the recently released teaser trailer for this film has caused quite a stir with some members of the online audience almost shatting themselves out of sheer fright, that YouTube actually pulled the trailer, allegedly. And so this American gothic supernatural horror film is the fifth film in 'The Conjuring' franchise and a spin-off from 'The Conjuring 2'. The series launched in 2013 with 'The Conjuring' and was Directed by Aussie James Wan, who repeated his efforts in 2016 with 'The Conjuring 2'. 'Annabelle' came in between in 2014 and is a prequel to 'The Conjuring' and in mid-2017 'Annabelle : Creation' was released. Those first four films in the franchise cost a combined US$82M and grossed worldwide US$1.203B, so it's no wonder that James Wan is Co-Producer and Co-Writer on the majority of films so far, and those in the works too for future release.

This instalment is Directed by Corin Hardy in only his second feature length film after his 2015 horror offering 'The Hallow', and tells the story of a young nun at the cloistered Carta Monastery in Romania who mysteriously takes her own life. A priest with a haunted past and a novice on the eve of her final vows are sent by the Vatican to investigate further. It is 1952, and together, they uncover the order's unholy secret. Risking not only their lives but their faith and their very souls, they confront a malevolent force in the form of a demonic nun. Damian Bichir stars as Father Burke, Taissa Farmiga (younger sister to Vera) as Sister Irene and Bonnie Aarons as the Demonic Nun.

'JULIET, NAKED' (Rated M) - this comedy drama offering Directed by Jesse Peretz is based on the 2009 Nick Hornby novel of the same name. Hornby has had other novels adapted for the big screen - 'High Fidelity', 'Fever Pitch' and 'About A Boy' and now this one gets the cinematic treatment. The film Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival back in January this year, and was released Stateside in mid-August. It centers on the story of Annie (Rose Byrne), and her unlikely romance with singer-songwriter Tucker Crowe (Ethan Hawke), who is also the subject of her boyfriend Duncan (Chris O'Dowd) long-standing musical obsession. When an acoustic demo of Tucker’s hit record from 25 years ago comes to light, its release leads to a life-changing encounter with the elusive and ageing rocker himself. The film has garnered generally positive press.

'YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE' (Rated MA15+) - here Lynne Ramsay Directs, Co-Produces and wrote the Screenplay based on the 2013 novel of the same name by Jonathan Ames. The Scottish Lynne Ramsay's previous works include 'Morvern Caller', 'We Need To Talk About Kevin' and 'Swimmer'. This film first screened at Cannes back in May 2017 where Ramsey won the Best Screenplay Award and its lead Actor, Joaquin Phoenix won the Best Actor Award for his portrayal of Joe, a gun for hire who rescues trafficked girls using often brutal methods against the perpetrators. Joe cares for his ailing mother in the New York City home he grew up in, and has graphic flashbacks to his childhood, abuse he and his mother faced from his violent father, his brutal past in the military and FBI, and has suicidal thoughts. When a teenage girl goes missing he accepts the assignment to locate her and bring her back to her New York State Senator father. But along the way he uncovers corruption, the abuse of power and a bloody trail of corpses. Also starring Ekaterina Samsonov, John Doman and Judith Roberts, the film received a seven minute standing ovation when it screened at Cannes, was released in the UK back in early March and the US in early April and has so far taken US$7M at the Box Office and has garnered widespread acclaim.

'THE MERGER' (Rated M) - back in the day, Troy Carrington (played by Damian Callinan who also wrote the screenplay here) and Directed by Mark Grentell, was a legend of Australian Rules Football. But since those heady days, two decades have past by, and now living an almost recluse like life in the small country town where he grew up, Bodgy Creek, he has turned his back on football forever. Until now, that is! When young local lad Neil (Raffety Grierson) whom Troy forges an unlikely friendship with following the recent death of his father and Angie (Kate Mulvany), Neil's Mum, enters his life and asks him to come to the rescue of the well regarded but nonetheless struggling local AFL (Australian Football League) team, The Bodgy Creek Roosters, Troy knows that he must step up, man up and own up to the inner demons that have kept him away from his once beloved sport for twenty years or so. Putting on the years and seriously lacking any real talent, Troy comes to realise that his teams salvation may be right in his own backyard in the shape of the a bunch of recently arrived refugees. Also starring Josh McConville, John Howard, Angus McLaren and Fayssal Bazzi, this feel good comedy about the Australian game, life in a country town and the spirit of community overcoming adversity has received generally positive Press.

'THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS' (Rated PG) - this American documentary film Directed by Tim Wardle, Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival back in January this year where it took out the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Storytelling. The story in question here surrounds three brothers born to a single mother in 1961. At the direction of a Jewish adoption agency the infant triplets were intentionally placed with families of different economic levels — one blue-collar, one middle-class, and one upper-class — which had each adopted a baby girl from the same agency two years previously. The separations were done as part of a scientific 'nature versus nurture' twin study to track the development of genetically identical siblings raised in differing circumstances. The brothers were raised by their respective adoptive families as David Kellman, Bobby Shafran, and Eddy Galland. They discovered one another by chance in 1980 aged nineteen, and subsequently became very close, but all three struggled with depression throughout their lives. The documentary explores how the brothers came to discover one another and then sought to understand the circumstances behind their separation. The film has generated widespread praise from Critics and audiences alike and has so far taken US$11M at the Box Office since its late June release in the US.

'WAYNE' (Rated M) - this documentary is Directed and Co-Written by Jeremy Sims, and tells the story of motorcycle racing legend Wayne Gardner. From growing up in Wollongong, New South Wales in the 1960's, Wayne Gardner secured his first bike for five dollars. He began his motorcycle racing career in 1977 at the age of 18 and by 1987 he was the Motorcycle Racing World Champion. Gardner enjoyed a career in racing that had never been experienced by an Australian before, and helped define the high-octane sport both at home and abroad. Described as a free-spirited, introspective, honest and cheeky account of Gardner's life in which he shares details of his professional and personal life freely, as do those who know or had known him – family, friends, sponsors, team mates and even rivals. Combined with an abundance of archival footage, this film offers an insight into a defining piece of Australian sporting history.

'MCQUEEN' (Rated MA15+) - in our third Documentary release this week, here we have Directors Ian Bonhote and Peter Ettedgui recounting the life of British fashion designer Lee Alexander McQueen, who started his career in his teens before gaining notice as designer for Givenchy and launching his own label, which continues to this day. It's an emotional telling of his remarkable journey from working-class boy in London's East End to one of the world's most celebrated – and controversial – designers, until his suicide in 2010. His story is recounted by the friends, family and collaborators in whom he inspired such fierce loyalty, and features never before seen home videos of McQueen discussing just about everything from the concepts of his fashion shows to dodging social security inspectors. Nothing is off limits in this tell all of a fashion icon that has been highly acclaimed.

With seven new release films 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-

Birthday's to share this week : 26th February - 4th March 2017.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

James Wan does on 26th February (although some publications claim 27th) - check out my tribute to this Birthday Lad turning 40, 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 February

• James Wan - Born 1977, turns 40 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Teresa Palmer - Born 1986, turns 31 - Actress | Producer | Writer 

Monday 27th February

• Kate Mara - Born 1983, turns 34 - Actress
• Timothy Spall - Born 1957, turns 60 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Singer  

Tuesday 28th February

• John Turturro - Born 1957, turns 60 - Actor | Producer | Director | Writer  

Wednesday 1st March

• Roger Daltry - Born 1944, turns 73 - Singer | Songwriter | Actor | Producer
• Dirk Benedict - Born 1945, turns 72 - Actor | Director | Writer
• Ron Howard - Born 1954, turns 63 - Director | Producer | Writer | Actor
• Zack Snyder - Born 1966, turns 51 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Javier Bardem - Born 1969, turns 48 - Actor | Producer  
• Lupita Nyong'o - Born 1983, turns 34 - Actress

Thursday 2nd March

• Rebel Wilson - Born 1980, turns 37 - Actress | Producer | Writer
• Bryce Dallas Howard - Born 1981, turns 36 - Actress | Writer | Director
• Jon Bon Jovi - Born 1962, turns 55 - Singer | Songwriter | Actor
• Daniel Craig - Born 1968, turns 49 - Actor | Producer  

Friday 3rd March

• George Miller - Born 1945, turns 72 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Miranda Richardson - Born 1958, turns 59 - Actress
• Jessica Biel - Born 1982, turns 35 - Actress | Producer  

Saturday 4th March

• Patsy Kensit - Born 1968, turns 49 - Actress  
• Adrian Lyne - Born 1941, turns 76 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Paul W.S. Anderson - Born 1965, turns 52 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Len Wiseman - Born 1973, turns 44 - Director | Producer | Writer

James Wan was born in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia and is of Malaysian Chinese descent. He relocated to Perth in Western Australia at age seven and ultimately became an Australian citizen. He attended the Lake Tuggeranong College in the Australian Capital Territory for Years 11 and 12 students (aged 16 - 18 years), moved back to Perth and then relocated himself to Melbourne, Victoria where he attended the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. By this time his mind was made up that he wanted to be a film maker (a decision he had in fact come to at age eleven), and while studying he had already begun making short films and music videos. It was whilst at RMIT that he met fellow would-be film maker Leigh Whannel, with whom he would collaborate on a number of his feature length movie projects over the ensuing years.

Wan made his first feature length film in 2000 for which he also wrote the Screenplay - 'Stygian' which won the young Director the 'Best Guerrilla Film' Award at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival. Following this Wan and Whannel had begun writing up a script for a horror film, and upon completion of the script they wanted to film an excerpt which they could then tout around the movie studios in the hope that a production company would pick up their story and run with it. That ten minute short film was titled 'Saw' and it was 2003. In 2004, having been picked up by a Lionsgate 'Saw' was released on an unsuspecting world and was an overwhelming success. Starring Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Tobin Bell and Leigh Whannel to minimise production costs, the film was shot rapidly at a cost of just US$1.2M. The film returned US$104M and spawned a franchise that has become the highest grossing horror franchise of all time that has seen all seven films gross worldwide US$874M off the back of a combined budget of US$64M. Wan served as Executive Producer on 'Saw II, III, IV, V, VI' and 'Saw 3D : The Final Chapter' released every year from 2005 through to 2010, and he also wrote the story for 'Saw III'. Wan is also Executive Producer on 'Saw : Legacy' currently in post-production for an October release this year and as Directed by the Spierig brothers.

2007 saw Wan Direct two films. The first was supernatural psychological horror 'Dead Silence' Written by Wan and Whannel and starring Ryan Kwanten and Donnie Wahlberg. The film received generally negative Reviews and just about recovered its US$20M budget outlay. This was followed up by action drama 'Death Sentence' - described by Wan as a 'raw and gritty, '70's styled revenge thriller' that starred Kevin Bacon as the protagonist with Garrett Hedlund, John Goodman, Kelly Preston and Leigh Whannel. This film also received generally unfavourable Reviews and recovered just US$17M of its US$20M production budget.

After serving as Executive Director on a string of 'Saw' sequels, Wan Directed the supernatural horror film 'Insidious' in 2010 that was written by Leigh Whannel, and starred Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Barbara Hershey and Whannel. That film cost US$1.5M to make and returned US$97M ensuring its success as a franchise with 'Insidious : Chapter 2' being released in 2013. Again Directed by Wan that saw the cast from the first film return, on a budget of US$5M generating US$162M. 'Insidious : Chapter 3' was again Written by Whannel and Produced this time by Wan with Whannel on Directing duty for the first time. This film that served as a prequel to the previous two, was made for US$10M and returned US$113M. 'Insidious : Chapter 4' is currently in post-production for a release later this year and is Directed by Adam Robitel with Wan taking a Producer credit and Whannel Screenwriter and acting credits on the film.

Next up was supernatural horror film based on real events 'The Conjuring'. Recounting the story of the Perron family who experience increasingly disturbing events in their Rhode Island farmhouse in 1971 and paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren who come to the assistance of the distressed Perron family. Starring Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson the film was a commercial and critical success taking US$318M from its US$20M budget, making it one of the highest grossing horror films of all time. 'The Conjuring 2' was released in 2016 as a sequel to that first film that saw Wan act as Director, Co-Producer and Co-Writer in this follow up set in 1977 as the Warren paranormal investigators (Farmiga and Wilson reprising) travel to London to investigate the case that became known as the 'Enfield Poltergeist'. That film returned US$321M from its US$40M budget costs.

In the meantime in 2014, there had been a spin-off prequel to the popular 'The Conjuring' film inspired by the doll named 'Annabelle' that had been recounted by Ed and Lorraine Warren during their investigations. Wan took a Producer role on 'Annabelle' that received less critical acclaim but nonetheless was a commercial success raising US$260M in Box Office receipts against a US$6.5M outlay. A follow up film is in post-production for an August release this year that focuses on the dollmaker and his wife and stars Anthony LaPaglia and Miranda Otto, that is again Produced by Wan.

Taking a step aside from supernatural horror thrillers Wan Directed fast cars action drama film 'Furious 7' in 2015 starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, Kurt Russell, Djimon Hounsou and Michelle Rodriguez. The film was a massive worldwide hit taking US$1.52B from its US$176M budget and standing currently as the sixth highest grossing film of all time, and the most successful in the franchise to date. 

Meanwhile Wan also had time to Produce supernatural horror 'Demonic' with Maria Bello in 2015, and in 2016 'Lights Out' with Teresa Palmer. He also Directed one episode of the rebooted television series 'MacGyver' and has served as Producer on sixteen episodes to date.

Next up for Wan is 'The Nun' which is a spin off film from the 'Annabelle' series which is a spin off film from 'The Conjuring' series and is currently in pre-production for a mid-2018 release with Wan Producing and Writing. Also in pre-production with filming due to commence soon is 'Aquaman' for the DC Extended Universe with Wan on Director duty and taking a Writing credit too. The film will star Jason Mamoa in the lead role with Nicole Kidman, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, and Temuera Morrison all attached, and is due for release in October 2018. 'Mortal Kombat' has been announced for a reboot recently and Wan is set to Produce this remake of the 1995 initial video game adaptation offering.

All up Wan has seventeen Producer credits to his name, fourteen as Writer and thirteen as Director.  He also has ten award wins and nine other nominations under this belt. In 2011 he released his own graphic novel too written with Michael Nelson, 'Malignant Man' which 20th Century Fox acquired the film rights for in 2014. Wan is adapting his source material for the big screen, the adaptation of which he will Produce, with Brad Peyton signing on to Direct.

James Wan - wrote himself into the history books and redefined the genre with several hugely commercially and critically successful horror franchises, and an epic seventh film in a street racing heist fuelled action franchise, and, is about to launch a new stand alone ocean based Superhero as part of the DCEU. When he's not Directing, he's Producing or he's Writing and he's even been known to tackle all three at once! Clearly very much in demand and proving he can jump from his trademark scare the bejeezus out of us supernatural horror offerings to big budget epic fare, and back again. A very Happy 40th Birthday to you James, from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-