Birthday's to share this week : 30th August - 5th September 2015.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Noah Taylor does on 4th September - check out the tribute to this Birthday Boy turning 46 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 30th August

•  Cameron Diaz - Born 1972, turns 43 - Actress | Producer
•  Michael Chiklis - Born 1963, turns 52 - Actor | Producer | Director

Monday 31st August

• Richard Gere - Born 1949, turns 66 - Actor | Producer
• Chris Tucker - Born 1972, turns 43 - Actor | Writer
• Marc Webb - Born 1974, turns 41 - Director | Producer | Editor
• Jonathan LaPaglia - Born 1969, turns 46 - Actor | Producer
• Jack Thompson - Born 1940, turns 75 - Actor | Producer

Tuesday 1st September

• Craig McLachlan - Born 1965, turns 50 - Actor | Producer | Singer
• Lily Tomlin - Born 1939, turns 76 - Actress | Producer | Writer | Singer

Wednesday 2nd September

• Salma Hayek - Born 1966, turns 49 - Actress | Producer | Writer
• Keanu Reeves - Born 1964, turns 51 - Actor | Producer | Director
• Mark Harmon - Born 1951, turns 64 - Actor | Producer | Director

Thursday 3rd September

• Garrett Hedlund - Born 1984, turns 31 - Actor
• Charlie Sheen - Born 1965, turns 50 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Noah Baumbach - Born 1969, turns 46 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Jean-Pierre Jeunet - Born 1953, turns 62 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Pauline Collins - Born 1940, turns 75 - Actress

Friday 4th September

• Noah Taylor - Born 1969, turns 46 - Actor
• Wes Bentley - Born 1978, turns 37 - Actor | Producer
• Damon Wyans - Born 1960, turns 55 - Actor | Producer | Director | Writer

Saturday 5th September

• George Lazenby - Born 1939, turns 76 - Actor
• Paddy Considine - Born 1974, turns 41 - Actor | Director | Writer
• Werner Herzog - Born 1942, turns 73 - Director | Producer | Writer | Actor
• Michael Keaton - Born 1951, turns 64 - Actor | Producer
• Raquel Welch - Born 1940, turns 75 - Actress | Producer
• Carice van Houten - Born 1976, turns 39 - Actress | Producer
• Rose McGowan - Born 1973, turns 42 - Actress | Director

Noah George Taylor was born in London, England, to Australian parents - mother Maggie Miller, a book editor and journalist, and Paul Taylor a copywriter and journalist also. At age five the family returned to Australia where he grew up in Melbourne. His parents divorced when he was fourteen, and at sixteen he left both home and school with little intention on pursuing a career in acting. At the suggestion of a friend and for want of something to do, he gave acting a go at St. Martin's Youth Theatre in Melbourne's South Yarra. Here he came to the attention of Director John Duigan who gave him a role in 1987's 'The Year My Voice Broke' and then in its 1991 follow-up 'Flirting' with a young up & coming Nicole Kidman.

For his performances in these two films he picked up a couple of awards, and being typecast as the gawky, geekish, gloomy unaware young adult he was cast as the young David Helfgott in Scott Hicks highly acclaimed 1996 'Shine' with Geoffrey Rush playing the older pianist. For his role here too he picked up further awards.









Before 'Shine' however, there were a number of other appearances including television shows the likes of which were three episodes of the mini-series 'Bangkok Hilton', two episodes of 'A Country Practise', and then 'Boys from the Bush', 'Inspector Morse', and 'G.P.'. Films included 'Lover Boy' in 1989, 'Dead to the World' in 1991, 'Secrets' and 'The Nostradamus Kid' in 1992, and 'Dad and Dave : On Our Selection' in 1995.

The late 90's saw 'Frontier', 'True Love and Chaos' with Ben Mendelsohn, Hugo Weaving and Miranda Otto; 'Woundings' with Guy Pearce, Emily Lloyd, and Ray Winstone'; 'Life in the Fast Lane' with Tea Leoni and Patrick Dempsey; 'Simon Magus' with Rutger Hauer, Ian Holm and Toby Jones; and closing out the decade 'Mauvaise pass' with Ben Whishaw, Keith Allen and Darrel Auteuil.

As 2000 notched over so came more notable fare including Cameron Crowe's 'Almost Famous' with its all star line up of Philip Seymour Hoffman, Kate Hudson, Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, and Zooey Deschanel. After this was a turn with Angeline Jolie in 'Lara Croft : Tomb Raider' in 2001 and its follow up in 2003 'The Cradle of Life'. There was also 'He Died with a Felafel in his Hand'; 'Vanilla Sky' with Tom Cruise, Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz and Directed by Cameron Crowe once again, and then 'Max' with John Cusack, in which Taylor starred as the young art student Adolf Hitler.

Since then there has been further diversity in his acting choices with some big budget offerings, more independent fare and quirky Directors that presented him with Wes Anderson's 'The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou' and an all star cast once more; Tim Burton's remake of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', 'Submarine' for Richard Ayoade and starring Paddy Considine; 'The Proposition' Directed by John Hillcoat; Terrence Mallick's 'The New World' with Ben Mendelsohn again and Christian Bale and Colin Farrell; and then 'The New Daughter' with Kevin Costner and next 'Red, White and Blue'.

The last five years have brought highly acclaimed and much loved 'Red Dog', 'Lawless', 'The Double' for Richard Ayoade again, 'Anna' and one of my favourite films of 2014 - 'Predestination' with Ethan Hawke and Sarah Snook. There was also 'Edge of Tomorrow' with Tom Cruise once more, and in between time there have been episodes of television series 'Rake', 'The Borgias', 'Game of Thrones', 'Peaky Blinders', 'Powers' and 'Then There Were None' with 'The Menkoff Method' due for imminent release and 'Free Fire' filming for a 2016 release and starring Armie Hammer, Sharlto Copley, Cillian Murphy and Directed by Ben Wheatley.

All up Taylor has 63 Acting credits, with seven award wins and a further nine nominations. In his acting down time when he's not in front of the camera he likes to paint, draw and play music being skilled and accomplished with the viola, French horn, guitar and piano. He sings and plays in his own bands and lists Lou Reed and Johnny Cash as his inspiration. In late 2012 he married Aussie fashion designer Dionne Harris and the two live in Brighton, East Sussex, England. Taylor has a daughter born in 2007, Martha, from a former relationship.

Noah Taylor - often mistaken for a younger Nick Cave, often plays strong and pivotal supporting roles, has garnered more fame and acclaim in recent years and overseas than he has Down Under, but continues to add gravitas, be in demand and add originality and believability to his roles. Happy Birthday to you Noah, from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week - Thursday 27th August 2015.

A few weeks ago I reported on a certain well subscribed movie magazine available here in Australia and other parts of the world, that had released its 'Top 300 Greatest Movies of all Time' and what a list it was too. More recently that same magazine (which will still remain nameless) has issued its 'Top 100 Greatest Characters of all Time' which I took great delight in musing over. Of those characters I have seen 95 of them upon the big screen and seen 186 of the films those characters have appeared in, bearing in mind that some of those characters appear in multiple films of the same franchise ('Star Wars', 'The Hobbit', 'LOTR', 'Batman', 'Mission:Impossible' etc) and there are several characters listed from those same films (Han Solo/Yoda, Bilbo Baggins/Gandalf, The Terminator/Sarah Connor etc.) All that said there are also some notable exclusions that are conspicuous by their absence - Max Rockatansky, Jason Bourne, John Rambo, Freddy Kruger, Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees to name but a few that have enjoyed huge Box Office success, a place in popular culture, and have been going strong for years! As voted by the readership I guess you have to draw the line somewhere and just how many can you squeeze into 'The Top 100' . . . well, one hundred I guess!

Turning attention then to this week we have seven new films gracing your big screen multiplexes in the week ahead that offer mostly adult fare from just about every genre. First up there is a horror chiller thriller from a multi-talented and multi-tasking Aussie guy who just keeps surprising us all; then a rock & roll redemption offering that gives another A-Lister the chance to belt out a tune on her favourite axe; a much acclaimed Aussie love story that ended in tragedy but lives on in page, stage and now screen; a reboot of the screwball comedies of the 60's & 70's by a guy who was in & around the screwball comedies of the 60's & 70's; a comedy horror thriller that made an Aussie icon out of an outback manic serial killer; a doco from New York about a disconnected New York family experiencing New York for the first time in their teenage lives; and finally an aspiring DJ spinning the decks looking for the big time.

When you have returned from you movie of choice and open up this, your favourite movie Blog, drop a Comment, an observation and your own critique in the Comments section below this or any other Post, or alternatively leave a message via e-mail - it will be good to hear your views and opinions. Enjoy your film.

THE GIFT (Rated M) - He's a talented New South Welshman, and Aussie Joel Edgerton has Written, Produced, Directed and Stars in his latest offering 'The Gift' coming to our screens in the week ahead. Released about a month ago Stateside and made for just US$5M it has so far grossed US$34M and is already garnering much critical praise for Edgerton's writing and his Directorial prowess - and this is his debut at the latter.

The story surrounds Simon (Jason Bateman) and his wife Robyn (Rebecca Hall) starting a new life with new jobs, hew home, new neighbourhood and all the newness that goes with it. While out shopping one day for home furnishings they bump into Gordo (Joel Edgerton) an old school mate from way back in the day who is just a little creepy and is clearly harbouring some angst. A series of unintentional encounters with Gordo and the arrival of several mystery gifts at Simon & Robyn's doorstep prove troubling and unsettling all leading to the reveal of a big secret between Gordo and Simon that has remained hidden for 20 or so years. This leads Robyn to question Simon about past events, his association with Gordo, and what does she really know about her husband, and what exactly is he keeping from her. With events spiralling out of control and their relationship becoming more & more strained as a result of Gordo's unwelcome intervention, where will this all end, and how?

RICKI AND THE FLASH (Rated PG) - this comedy drama has some impressive credits behind it - Jonathan Demme in the Directors chair, Diablo Cody on Writing duties, and Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline and Rick Springfield on Acting detail. Here Meryl Streep is Ricki Rendazzo an ageing wannabe rock star who abandoned her family with aspirations to make it big in Rock & Roll. Needless to say she never did and now plays a regular stint in her own small time band in a small town bar. She gets a chance to reconcile and redeem herself with her family and her ex-husband Pete (Kevin Kline) and their grown children, but after all this time can those wounds be healed, and can she turn her back on her band, what she loves, and her guitarist boyfriend Greg (Rick Springfield). Thinking Meryl Streep as an ageing Rock Star I can't help thinking Tom Cruise as Stacee Jacks in 'Rock of Ages'! One for Meryl Streep die hards methinks - although this is not the first time she has sung out on the big screen.

HOLDING THE MAN (Rated MA15+) - this film is based on the 1995 published memoir of the same name that was subsequently made into a very successful stage play in 2006 and now in 2015 has had the big screen treatment courtesy of Neil Armfield as Director. This film tells the true story of Australian Actor, Writer and Activist Timothy Conigrave (Ryan Corr) and his love over a fifteen year span for Australian Rules Football player John Caleo (Craig Scott). The two met at Melbourne's Xavier College in the mid-70's and the film follows the book exploring how their love for each other flourished despite their separation, disapproval, intimidation and in time their death from HIV - Caleo in early 1992 and Conigrave in late 1994. Also starring Guy Pearce, Anthony LaPaglia, Kerry Fox and Sarah Snook this is sure to pull at your heart strings and bring on the water works - pack your Kleenex!

SHE'S FUNNY THAT WAY (Rated M) - American Director, Writer, Producer, Actor, and Critic Peter Bogdanovich is still going strong at 76 and this week releases his attempt to resurrect the screwball comedies that many of us grew up with in the '60's & '70's. Here he has amassed Imogen Poots as Isabella Beatty an escort turned Broadway actress who gets it on with Theatre Director Owen Wilson as Arnold Albertson despite the fact that his wife Kathryn Hahn as Delta Simmons is starring in his new play. She meanwhile is getting it on with playwright Josh (Will Forte) who is also dating her therapist Jane Claremont (Jennifer Anniston) whose mother Vivian (Joanna Lumley) is in rehab in Tuscany and Actor Seth Gilbert (Rhys Iffans) is secretly in love with Delta - his co-star in the new play. Complicated, confused - you should be, and it's gonna get worse before it unravels at the end  - see what you make of it!

STALKHER (MA15+) - It's hardly surprising that John Jarrett would sign up to a move called 'StalkHer' given his pedigree with 'Wolf Creek', but here he is not slicing & dicing, slashing and crashing his way through unsuspecting victims as Mick Taylor, but instead here he is Jack working in the same hospital as Emily where she is a nurse and the subject of his obsession. He secretly stalks her but things come to a head when he decides to forcibly break into her home and take what he wants by force. But, little does he know that Emily is more. much more, than he bargained for and as the tables are turned and the hunter becomes the hunted. What then does the night hold in store, and who will survive? This comedic horror thriller is Directed by John Jarrett and Kaarin Fairfax who also star as Jack and Emily respectively.

THE WOLFPACK (Rated M) - This is a true-life Documentary with a quirky difference Directed and Produced by Crystal Moselle who happened by chance upon a group of six odd looking brothers and their one sister while walking down First Avenue, in Manhattan. What could possibly be strange about walking down the street in New York I hear you ask - well, this motley looking band of brothers and a sister certainly grabbed her attention dressed as the Reservoir Dogs, and so she befriended them and then made a movie about their closeted lives. Growing up and locked up inside their Lower East Side apartment in Manhattan and home schooled for fourteen years the siblings learned everything they knew about the outside world through watching films. The Angulo family were confined to their four bedroom dwelling on the 16th floor of their apartment block, and owning the only key the father, Oscar, prohibited the children and their mother from venturing outside except on very special occasions that were closely monitored. In January 2010, 15 year old Makunda, ventured outside and took a walk on the wild side against her fathers wishes, after which they all decided it was time to go exploring. Intriguing, thought provoking and award winning, this won the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury US Documentary Prize when it aired in January this year.

WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS (Rated MA15+) - Directed by Max Joseph, this film stars Zac Efron as Cole Carter - a 23 year old aspiring Hollywood DJ in the electronic dance music scene looking to hit the big time and move into music production. while partying hard by night, mixing the tunes by day, and working on that one tune that is gonna be a global dance sensation! Luck comes aknocking in the form of James Reed (Wes Bentley) a DJ already reasonably well established and so Reed takes Cole under his wing and becomes his mentor. Needless to say the path to success does not always run smoothly and as Cole gets the hots for Reed's girlfriend Sophie (Emily Ratajkowski) putting at risk everything he has so far worked for, his new found friendship and the success he so desperately craves.

Big choice then this week with some comedy, drama, music, horror, thrills, chills and doco offerings to tease you at the end of Winter. Check out a film, enjoy the experience and share your thoughts (even if you didn't!).

See you at the Odeon!

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

SOUTHPAW - Saturday 22nd August 2015.

'SOUTHPAW' which I saw last night, is a film that owes a lot to Sylvester Stallone - the Writer and Star of the 1976 classic boxing film 'Rocky' that won three Academy Awards, was made for just US1.1M and grossed over US$225M and spawned five sequels with another indirect instalment due in November this year - 'Creed'. All of that said there are many similarities between these two films that makes it hard not to draw comparisons, but, this is a respectable film with a solid enough story and its pugilistic star Jake Gyllenhaal as World Light Heavyweight Champion Billy Hope is a standout for a number of reasons.

In case you didn't know BTW, a 'Southpaw' is a left handed Boxer, and in this case we refer to here one very talented, beefed up, toned up, muscled up, six pack brandishing Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role who lost 10kgs of weight for his last offering (the excellent 'Nightcrawler') to packing on 16kgs of muscle for this film, and it shows! Directed by Antoine Fuqua this film was made for US$25M and has already raked in over US$65M since its 24th July release Stateside.

Unlike Rocky Balboa's story of a down at heel boxing bum whose grit & determination see him rise up in a rags to riches tale, this is a riches to rags telling of a no hope boxing bum kid who has already risen up and is now at the top of his game and enjoys all the trappings of success. He has a huge house in New York, a fleet of cars at his disposal, his child Leila (Oona Laurence) is at private school and his pretty wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) organises his life in almost every respect. Plus, he has an entourage of trainers, assistants, a manager Jordan Mains (Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson) an accountant, housemaids and so on. Life is good and he's just defended his title and won! What could possibly go wrong?

Well, you could get into a brawl at a charity event at which you have just spoken, be confronted by a challenger for your title who also disrespects your wife in public, and then she gets accidentally shot, bleeds out and dies in your arms while dozens of onlookers stand around gawping and helpless! Exit stage left Maureen, thanks for coming and rest in peace while Billy's life spirals out of control, he drinks, takes drugs, contemplates suicide, looses custody of his precious Leila, the house gets repossessed, the cars sold and everything he owns is gone!

To regain custody of his daughter he must prove to the courts that he is capable of providing for her in a responsible mature manner which recently has been beyond him. We see him as his life implodes and he struggles to come to terms with the sudden death of his wife, his new responsibilities, his rapidly dwindling wealth, he's out on the street and everyone has abandoned him as a no hoper has-been now.

He joins a back street gym to keep fit and get a cleaning job. That gym is owned and operated by former boxer Titus 'Tick' Wills (Forest Whitaker) - sounds like familiar territory when Rocky teamed up with Mickey Goldmill (Burgess Meredith) - and gradually over time the two win a mutual respect for each other. Tick agrees to (re)train Billy back to fighting strength and agility for a chance at redemption against the challenger Miguel 'Magic' Escobar (Miguel Gomez) who taunted him that ill fated night of Maureen's shooting. What follows is a back to basics low-tech training regime the like of which we saw in 'Rocky' too with Tick, like Mickey, proclaiming that it has to be done his way, or its the highway!

Amidst all of this Billy is still trying to convince the authorities that he is fit to take back charge of his daughter, but they remain unconvinced so she remains in the stewardship of Child Services, steadily distancing herself from him. All comes good in the end though as Billy accepts what he must do in order to win back his daughter and reclaim his place in boxing history, as well as his integrity having fallen so publicly from grace. With six weeks only to the big showdown at Caesar's Palace the pressure is on from a personal and professional level.

The final fight scene sees Billy reunited with Leila and she watches on from the comfort of a suite in the arena while Billy and Escobar go head to head in the ring, with Billy very much the underdog (as was Rocky when he went head to head against Apollo Creed). Round after round the two pugilists pummel each other with the fight not expecting to go beyond three of four rounds (cue another 'Rocky' marker) but of course it does, all the way up to a bloody embattled twelve when with a killer southpaw punch Escobar is sent flying horizontally backwards amidst arcs of glorious blood and sweat slo-mo. In the final analysis Billy is declared the winner by a split decision (in 'Rocky', Creed was declared the winner by a split decision too which set up 'Rocky II' nicely for the rematch of the century), and Billy and Leila live happily ever after, we assume, and once again all is good in the world.

I don't mind a pugilistic film offering at all and have seen many, and when it stars Jake Gyllenhaal what other reason to you need to see a film? His transformation into the role physically is impressive, and his lost fractured and struggling character is a testament to his range. The story may be familiar, offering little that is original or new, but it is the deft hand of the Director, there are strong performances from its lead especially and solid believable dialogue that carry this film forward, and ensures it punches above its weight. But, unlike Rocky it didn't keep me on the edge of my seat in the all important boxing ring sequences that for me make this a lesser offering . . . but only just!



-Steve, at Odeon Online-

'INCEPTION' - archive from 4th August 2010.

I saw 'INCEPTION' on Monday night this week, and wow, what a film! Directed, Produced and Written by Chris Nolan this film has a huge ensemble cast; strong performances from that cast; an original, intelligent, thought provoking story; stunning visuals; and action aplenty. As we know subsequent to its release this film received huge critical and commercial success, raking in US$826M in Box Office receipts and a further US$68M in DVD and Blu-ray sales off a US$160M budget. It was also nominated for eight Academy Awards of which it walked way with four golden statues - for Best Cinematography, Visual Effects, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing and along the way it picked up another staggering 158 award wins and 172 nominations. Along with his 'Batman' franchise success this film really established Nolan at the top of his game and ensured he could practically write his own name on almost any movie that came along afterwards.

The film centres around Dom Cobb (Leonard DiCaprio, on fine form) a skilled thief but not of the traditional kind. His particular set of skills surround extracting valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the sleeping dream state when our minds are at their most vulnerable. Because of this skill-set Cobb has become much in demand in the emerging world of corporate espionage, but this has come at a big personal price - having cost him everything he ever cared for, held dear and loved, and now he is a fugitive on the run. Now however, he has a chance to redeem himself.

Working with Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) also skilled in extraction, they are engaged by Saito (Ken Watanabe) to perform an 'inception' - which involves implanting an idea in someones subconscious rather than extracting it. Saito wants to dismantle an energy corporation that is being overseen by competitor Maurice Fischer (Pete Postlethwaite) who is on his death bed strapped up to various life support machines, so the idea needs to be implanted in the mind of his son & successor Robert (Cillian Murphy). The pay off for this job is that Saito will use his power and his connections to clear Cobb's name of a murder charge allowing him access to his children.

From here, Cobb & Arthur ready a Team that consist of Eames (Tom Hardy), as conman and identity forger; Yusuf (Dileep Rao), a chemist who mixes up a powerful sedative for a stable 'dream within a dream' state; Ariadne (Ellen Page), an architecture student who designs the labyrinth of the dream landscapes, recruited with the help of Professor Stephen Miles (Michael Caine). There is also Tom Berrenger as godfather to Robert and Executive Board Member of Fischer's company; Marion Cotillard as Mal Cobb - Dom's deceased wife who appears in various dreams during Cobb's process of extraction/inception; and Lukas Haas as Nash - one of Cobb's architects who betrays him, and is replaced later on by Ariadne.

As the film develops the Team enter several dream states that involve multi-tiered dreams and dreams within dreams as we go from rain soaked Los Angeles, into a hotel in the second level, and then into a snow capped mountain fortress in the third level all intertwined and with the Team split amongst the various levels and dealing with subconscious challenges, obstacles and potentially life threatening situations along the way. There is also another level where Cobb's wife Mal is believed to be in a state of limbo in a world they built together based on their shared experiences as man & wife, and which Cobb must access in order to free her even though she is dead in real life.

If you are confused by this complex plot then you can join the other 80% of those who saw this film initially, but don't let that get in the way of a good story and a cracking film. You really do need to pay attention to what is going on throughout the film in order to keep track of what is reality and what is a dream, and even the controversial thought provoking ending will leave you wondering and debating the question long after the credits have rolled. I loved this film, and still do, even after repeated viewings, and if you missed it on the big screen back in mid-2010 then shame on you, but, all is not lost and you can catch it on DVD, Blu-ray and download, and, you won't be disappointed.

A spectacle of a film in every sense that sits in my favourite top ranked films of all time for sure that offers solid, intelligent, well crafted adult entertainment at its best. A must-see!

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. : Wednesday 19th August 2015.

'THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.' which I saw earlier this week had its roots as a television series which ran originally from September 1964 until January 1968 across 105 episodes and launched the careers of Robert Vaughn and David McCallum as American Agent, Napoleon Solo and Ukranian Agent, Illya Kuryakin, respectively. Hugely successful with spin off comic books, novels, TV Annuals, merchandise, soundtracks and feature length episodes this was another espionage drama born in the 60's in a similar frame as Bond and 'Mission : Impossible' that was ripe for big screen treatment. And so Guy Ritchie is the man for the job tasked to recreate the 60's in his US$75M Directed offering that has for many years lingered in development hell as Directors of note (including Matthew Vaughn and Steven Soderbergh), Writers of repute (including Quentin Tarantino) and big name actors (including Cruise, Clooney, McGregor, Reynolds, Bale, Tatum, Gosling, Damon, Fassbender, Cooper, DiCaprio and Crowe) all came and went. As well as Directing, Ritchie also aided in devising the story, wrote the Screenplay and Produced too.

The story takes us right back to the beginning before British CIA Agent Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill) and Russian KGB Agent Ilya Kuryakin (Armie Hammer) reluctantly join forces in the 1963 Cold War Era to thwart an evil foe intent on starting a nuclear attack. The film opens with Solo having to extract Gaby Teller (Alicia Vikander) from East Berlin in a car chase through the back streets of the divided and heavily armed city chased on foot and in car by Kuryakin. Teller's father is a WWII Nazi Scientist turned American collaborator who is being held by wealthy shipping company owners Alexander and Victoria Vinciguerra (Lucas Calvani and Elizabeth Debicki respectively) to build their own nuclear device.

Having evaded Kuryakin so far and extracted the girl, Solo is confronted with his KGB nemesis once more in a public toilet block where a fight breaks out with the Russian gaining the upper hand this time before being interrupted by each of their respective handlers. At this point the two are instructed that they must join forces to prevent the nuclear weapon from being finalised, and in turn secretly secure the design schemes for their own governments.

As the story moves to Rome, so meetings are engineered with the Vinciguerra's with the trio of Solo, Kuryakin and Teller all acting undercover and incognito to win favour and gain access to their plans. The two Agents infiltrate a shipping yard owned by the Vinciguerra's and after finding traces of Uranium they trip the alarms, alert the guards which results in a foot chase and then a boat chase as they seek to get clear and away.

Following this Solo and Kuryakin are brought together by Alexander Waverly (Hugh Grant) a high ranking MI6 Officer who reveals to the pair that Teller is in fact an Undercover Agent too working for him. The three successfully manage to infiltrate the Vinciguerra's private island compound where a little bit of torture, killing, maiming and chasing goes on before Alexander is killed and Victoria makes off by boat with the finished nuclear warhead. Needless to say Victoria doesn't get too far before her attempts to escape with her payload are thwarted at the end of a second device that is able to lock onto the first being carried on the boat. Farewell Victoria to a watery grave!

Despite saving the world from nuclear undoing, and the action & adventure that the two have been through, Kuryakin remains untrusting of Solo, until the latter makes a gesture that shows the former he has some integrity, honesty and responsibility. As the three Agents drink to their success on the rooftop of the Hotel looking across Rome, Waverly advises them that their respective countries have reassigned them to a new international organisation under his command - code name U.N.C.L.E. (United Network Command for Law and Enforcement) and they're off to Istanbul. Cue the credits!

The film features many of the Ritchie touchstones including the use of split screen to retain various areas of focus at once; his use of humour to provide some levity and a strong enough recreation of the era. For a 1963 set film the representation of that time is convincing enough, it looks & feels stylish, but the story is fairly average fare only, the action is nothing to write home about, the dialogue a little clunky and strained, and I felt at times that the pace laboured along leaving me wanting more. Ritchie has done some great work with 'Lock, Stock', 'Snatch' and his two more recent 'Sherlock Holmes' outings, but we know too he can give us average fare as seen previously with 'RocknRolla' and 'Revolver' and I would place this latest offering in that bracket too.

You don't have to see this on the big screen and can wait for the DVD or BluRay release to save yourself $20. So far at the time of writing, the film has recouped about half its investment.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

'THE EXPENDABLES' - archive from 18th August 2010.

'THE EXPENDABLES' which I saw earlier in the week has been long awaited, eagerly anticipated and much hyped since it was made known that Sylvester Stallone was amassing an ensemble cast the like of which is seldom seen on the big screen together anymore, and, is paying tribute to the classic action movies of the 80's that many of the assembled cast starred in and made their names in back in the day! The Screenplay was written by Stallone, he stars as the head honcho of said 'Expendables' and he takes on Directing duties too. With a budget of US$82M this film grossed US$275M and opened up at number one at the Box Office in the USA, UK, China & India, and as we know has so far spawned two sequels and a total combined Box Office haul of US$791M, with 'Expendables 4' announced.

Stallone's Triple 'R' playbook of Rocky, Rambo and now Ross (Barney Ross his elite mercenary leader for hire and king pin of 'The Expendables') all have one thing in common - they enjoy a fight and generally come out on top! And so it is with his merry band of highly skilled, accomplished, and deadly mercenary sidekicks that takes the best of the action hero genre; big ticket actors of yesteryear who still have their mojo's intact; and adds a good dose of blades, guns, grenades and gadgets with a sprinkle of humour and wraps it up with tongue firmly planted in cheek as its nods heroically and enthusiastically at the movies I grew up with!

In this case those heroes are Jason Statham (Lee Christmas - knives), Jet Li (Yin Yang - martial arts), Dolph Lundgren (Gunner Jensen - sniper), Terry Crews (Hale Caesar - heavy weapons), Randy Couture (Toll Road - demolition) with Mickey Rourke (Tool - tattooist), Steve Austin as Randy Paine, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Trench Mauser, Bruce Willis as Mr. Church, and Eric Roberts as bad guy James Munroe.

Ross and his crew are engaged by the mysterious Mr. Church to overthrow a Dictator on a small island state (Vilena) in the Gulf of Mexico. On arrival The Expendables learn that The Dictator (General Gaza) is being kept in power to shield the profiteering exploits of an ex-CIA Officer James Munroe, who is holding hostage the daughter of the General as bargaining collateral and security. As more is discovered about the link between Munroe and Garza and why Mr. Church is so interested in this small island and what Munroe is up to, so the action ramps up, shit gets blown up, the body count goes up and it all wraps up nicely in the end.

This is good honest to goodness mindless entertainment that is a welcome throw back to the action heroes, the action films and the action nonsense of the 80's. Don't expect any more than that, but you can expect to be wildly entertained with a good dose of blood & guts, humour, excitement and adrenaline pumping action. Furthermore, to see Stallone, Willis & Schwarzenegger on the big screen in the same frame chewing up the dialogue in spades is worth the price of your ticket alone, and truly a rare moment in cinema history.

If you have yet to see 'The Expendables' and grew up like me on a diet of action movie fare with these heroes of the big screen,  rent or download the three and watch them back to back for a slice of nostalgia & some gritty no holds barred action! Great stuff!

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

Birthday's to share this week : 23rd - 29th August 2015.

Do you celebrate your Birthday this week?

Armie Hammer does on 28th August - check out the tribute to this Birthday Boy turning 29, 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 23rd August

• Scott Caan - Born 1976, turns 39 - Actor | Writer | Director
• Charley Borman - Born 1966, turns 49 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Television Personality
• Roger Avary - Born 1965, turns 50 - Producer | Writer | Director

Monday 24th August

• Rupert Grint - Born 1988, turns 27 - Actor
• Steve Guttenberg - Born 1958, turns 57 - Actor | Producer
• Jared Harris - Born 1961, turns 54 - Actor | Director
• Stephen Fry - Born 1957, turns 58 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Television Personality
• James D'Arcy - Born 1975, turns 40 - Actor
• Marlee Matlin - Born 1965, turns 50 - Actress | Producer

Tuesday 25th August

• Blake Lively - Born 1987, turns 28 - Actress
• Sean Connery - Born 1930, turns 85 - Actor | Producer
• Alexander Skarsgard - Born 1976, turns 39 - Actor
• Tim Burton - Born 1958, turns 57 - Director | Producer | Writer | Animator
• John Badham - Born 1939, turns 76 - Director | Producer | Actor
• Tom Skerritt - Born 1933, turns 82 - Actor

Wednesday 26th August

• Chris Pine - Born 1980, turns 35 - Actor | Producer | Writer
• Macauley Culkin - Born 1980, turns 35 - Actor
• Melissa McCarthy - Born 1970, turns 45 - Actress | Producer | Writer

Thursday 27th August

• Tuesday Weld - Born 1943, turns 72 - Actress
• Barbara Bach - Born 1947, turns 68 - Actress
• Aaron Paul - Born 1979, turns 36 - Actor | Producer
• Peter Stormare - Born 1953, turns 62 - Actor | Producer

Friday 28th August

• Armie Hammer - Born 1986, turns 29 - Actor
• David Fincher - Born 1962, turns 53 - Director | Producer
• David Soul - Born 1943, turns 72 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Director
• Jack Black - Born 1969, turns 46 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Composer | Singer | Songwriter
• Billy Boyd - Born 1968, turns 47 - Actor
• Luis Guzman - Born 1956, turns 59 - Actor | Producer

Saturday 29th August

• Elliott Gould - 1938, turns 77 - Actor | Producer
• Joel Schumacher - Born 1939, turns 76 - Director | Producer | Writer
• William Friedkin - Born 1935, turns 80 - Director | Producer | Writer
• Lenny Henry - Born 1958, turns 57 - Actor | Television Personality
• Rebecca De Mornay - Born 1959, turns 56 - Actress

Armand Douglas 'Armie' Hammer was born in Los Angeles, California to mother Dru Ann Mobley, a bank loan officer, and father Michael Armand Hammer who owns a number of different business interests including a publishing company and a film/television production company. He has a younger brother, Viktor. His family is of mixed stock which he describes as 'half-Jewish' with ancestry that extends back to the Russian Tsarist regime and a Cherokee Indian Chief.

He lived in Highland Park, Dallas for a number of years early on before relocating with the family to the Cayman Islands from age seven. Five years later the family moved back to L.A. where he attended the Los Angeles Baptist High School in the San Fernando Valley. During his eleventh grade he dropped out to pursue a career in acting.

Hammer made his first appearances in a number of television shows including 'Arrested Development' in 2005, 'Veronica Mars' in 2006, 'Desperate Housewives' in 2007, and then 'Reaper' and 'Gossip Girl' in 2009. His big screen debut came in 2006 in 'Flicka' with Ryan Kwanten and Maria Bello, with horror film 'Blackout' in 2008. 'Billy : The Early Years' came next in 2008 with Hammer starring as the young evangelist Billy Graham which garnered him a 'Faith and Values Award' for his 'Most Inspiring Performance' from a Christian standpoint.

In 2009 he had a small part in the straight to video 'Spring Breakdown' alongside Amy Poehler, Parker Posey, Sophie Monk and Amber Tamblyn. This was followed up with '2081' as the lead role of Harrison Bergeron in this dystopian Sci-Fi equal rights story. During this period he was courted by George Miller to star as Batman/Bruce Wayne in 'Justice League : Mortal', but Miller left the project, the film was abandoned indefinitely, but resurrected in mid-2015, but whether either Miller or Hammer are involved remains as yet undisclosed.

In 2010 he starred as the Winklevoos twins in David Fincher's 'The Social Network' with Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake. 2011 saw the Clint Eastwood Directed 'J.Edgar' with Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead role with Judi Dench and Naomi Watts with Hammer acting out the role of Clyde Jolson - the protege and confidante of Hoover himself. 'Mirror Mirror' came next in 2012 with Julia Roberts, Nathan Lane and Sean Bean and based on the Snow White fairy tale.



2013 saw perhaps his biggest role to date alongside Johnny Depp in the Gore Verbinski Directed 'The Lone Ranger', which cost US$225M to make and took just US$261M in receipts, so hardly a Box Office sensation, and critical opinion was divided to say the least, but less so about the performances and more so about the clunky dialogue, the length of the film and the protracted action sequences. 'Entourage' came next earlier this year, with 'The Man from U.N.C.L.E.' only just released and starring as Russian Agent Ilya Kuryakin in this Guy Ritchie big screen adaptation of the popular 60's television series of the same name.

Next up are 'Final Portrait' and 'Nocturnal Animals' both in pre-production, 'Free Fire' is currently filming, 'Mine' and 'The Birth of a Nation' are in post-production with 'Serpent Girl' recently announced. All up Hammer has 29 acting credits to his name with six awards wins under his belt and another ten nominations so far.

In mid-2010 Hammer married actress, model and television personality Elizabeth Chambers, and in December 2014 they celebrated the birth of their baby daughter, Harper.

Armie Hammer - guitar player, cigar aficionado (he has a desire to open a store), tall, blond, handsome, deep booming voice and clearly on the up & up - Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-