What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 27th February 2020.

With the recent Academy Awards closing out the awards season for another year or so, as reported last week, there remains one final ceremony that occurred just the day before The Oscars, and nestled between the BAFTA Awards, that is worthy of mention in bringing the curtain down on the 2019/20 movie season. And so the 35th Film Independent Spirit Awards were held on Saturday 8th February 2020 at the Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, California and hosted by American Actress, and Producer Aubrey Plaza for the second time. Founded in 1984, these awards are dedicated to independent filmmakers. The ceremony is produced by Film Independent, a not for profit arts organisation that also produces the Los Angeles Film Festival and whose mission is to champion creative independence in visual storytelling and support a community of artists who embody diversity, innovation and uniqueness of vision.

This years winners of an Independent Spirit Award are as given below :-
* Best Feature
Awarded to 'THE FAREWELL', beating out 'A Hidden Life', 'Clemency', 'Marriage Story' and 'Uncut Gems'.
* Best International Feature
Awarded to 'PARASITE', beating out 'The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao', 'Les Miserables', 'Portrait of a Lady on Fire', 'Retalbo' and 'The Souvenir'.
* Best Director
Awarded to JOSH & BENNY SAFDIE for 'UNCUT GEMS', beating out Robert Eggers for 'The Lighthouse', Alma Har'el for 'Honey Boy', Julius Onah for 'Luce' and Lorene Scafaria for 'Hustlers'.
* Best Male Lead
Awarded to ADAM SANDLER for 'UNCUT GEMS', beating out Chris Galust for 'Give Me Liberty', Kelvin Harrison Jr. for 'Luce', Robert Pattinson for 'The Lighthouse' and Matthias Schoenaerts for 'The Mustang'.
* Best Female Lead
Awarded to RENE ZELLWEGER for 'JUDY', beating out Karen Allen for 'Colewell', Hong Chau for 'Driveways', Elisabeth Moss for 'Her Smell', Mary Kay Place for 'Diane' and Alfre Woodard for 'Clemency'.
* Best Supporting Male
Awarded to WILLEM DAFOE for 'THE LIGHTHOUSE', beating out Noah Jupe for 'Honey Boy', Shia LaBeouf for 'Honey Boy', Jonathan Majors for 'The Last Black Man in San Francisco' and Wendell Pierce for 'Burning Cane'.
* Best Supporting Female
Awarded to ZHAO SHU-ZHEN for 'THE FAREWELL', beating out Jennifer Lopez for 'Hustlers', Taylor Russell for 'Waves', Lauren Spencer for 'Give Me Liberty' and Octavia Spencer for 'Luce'.
* Best Screenplay
Awarded to NOAH BAUMBACH for 'MARRIAGE STORY', beating out 'To Dust', 'Uncut Gems', 'Clemency' and High Flying Bird'.
* Best First Screenplay
Awarded to FREDRICA BAILEY and STEFON BRISTOL for 'SEE YOU YESTERDAY', beating out 'Driveways', 'Blow the Man Down', 'Greener Grass' and 'The Vast of the Night'.
* Best First Feature
Awarded to OLIVIA WILDE for 'BOOKSMART', beating out 'See You Yesterday', 'The Climb', 'The Mustang', 'Diane' and 'The Last Black Man in San Francisco'.
* Best Documentary Feature
Awarded to 'AMERICAN FACTORY', beating out 'Apollo 11', 'For Sama', 'Honeyland' and 'Island of the Hungry Ghosts'.
* Best Cinematography
Awarded to JARIN BLASCHKE for 'THE LIGHTHOUSE', beating out 'Hustlers', 'Honey Boy', 'The Third Wife' and 'Midsommar'.
* Best Editing
Awarded to BENNY SAFDIE & RONALD BRONSTEIN for 'UNCUT GEMS', beating out 'The Third Wife', 'The Lighthouse', 'Sword of Trust' and 'Give Me Liberty'.

For the full low down on all the winners, the grinners, the also rans, and the comings and goings from this years awards ceremony, you can visit the official website at : https://www.filmindependent.org

And so this week we have six latest release new movies to tempt you out to your local Odeon in the coming week. We launch with a remake of a classic 1930's horror film based on a classic novel of the same name that sees this updated story concerning the benefactor of a wealthy estate seemingly being stalked by an unseen presence threatening the lives of her nearest and dearest while slowly turning her insane. Next up we have a 1950's set murder mystery noir from only a second time Director but an acclaimed Actor as he assembles an all star cast to find his mentors killer while running the gauntlet with the NYC's underworld. We then turn to a true story of an unsung hero of the Vietnam War who paid the ultimate price for his bravery in the face of intense battle, and after some thirty years one man seeks against the odds to have that soldier honoured. This is followed by a story of a young boy growing up in the film and TV industry and his decade long journey to reconnect with his father while rising to the dizzy heights of teenage fame only to see it all come crashing down in his early 20's. We then turn back the clock to the roaring '20's and we find an intrepid female sleuth, making the move from the small screen to the big screen, seeking to uncover the truth behind the disappearance of a young girls Bedouin tribe while getting caught up in various other mysteries along the way too. And, closing out the week we have an Australian family animated feature sure to please the littlies concerning a mischievous young possum, who makes a wish which backfires somewhat with potentially disastrous consequences, and who must undertake a perilous journey to undo the damage caused.

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

'THE INVISIBLE MAN' (Rated MA15+) - this American and Australian Co-Produced supernatural horror film is Directed, written for the screen and based on a story by the Australian Screenwriter, Producer, Actor and film maker Leigh Whannel and is a modern updated retelling of the classic H.G.Wells story and the 1933 film version both of the same name. Filmed here in Sydney, Australia, this film has been in development since 2007 and in 2016 the project was announced to have been resurrected as part of Universal Studios shared cinematic universe consisting of their classic monster characters, but when 'The Mummy' was released in 2017 to poor press and less than favourable Box Office takings the studio halted all of its projects sitting in development. Subsequently the studio revised its plans, and this film was back on track. Costing US$7M to make, the film is released Stateside this week too. In November 2019, it was announced that a spin-off film centered around the female counterpart to Invisible Man was in development. Elizabeth Banks will star in, Direct, and Produce an adaptation of 'The Invisible Woman', based on her own original pitch it seems.

And so trapped in a violent, controlling relationship with a wealthy and brilliant scientist, Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) escapes in the dead of night and goes into hiding, aided by her sister Alice (Harriet Dyer), their childhood friend James (Aldis Hodge) and his teenage daughter Sydney (Storm Reid). But when Cecilia’s abusive ex-partner Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) commits suicide and leaves her a generous portion of his vast fortune, Cecilia begins to suspect that his death was faked. As a series of strange coincidences turns deadly, threatening the lives of those she holds most dear, Cecilia’s sanity slowly begins to unravel as she desperately tries to prove that she is being hunted by someone nobody can see.

'MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN' (Rated M) - is a 2019 American neo-noir crime film written for the screen, Co-Produced, Directed and starring Edward Norton in only his second film making outing since 2000's 'Keeping the Faith'. Based on the 1999 novel of the same name by Jonathan Lethem, this film has been a passion project of Norton's ever since he read Lethem's novel in 1999. Although the book is set in contemporary times, Norton felt the plot and dialogue lent themselves more to a noir setting, so moving it to the 1950's. Set in New York City in 1957, Lionel Essrog (Edward Norton) is a lonely private detective who doesn't let Tourette's syndrome stand in the way of his job. Gifted with a few clues and an obsessive mind, Lionel sets out to solve the murder of Frank Minna (Bruce Willis) his mentor and only friend. Scouring the jazz clubs and slums of Brooklyn and Harlem, Essrog soon uncovers a web of secrets while contending with thugs, corruption and the most dangerous man in the city. Also starring Alec Baldwin, Willem Dafoe, Bobby Cannavale, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Cherry Jones and Michael K. Williams, the film saw its World Premier screening at Telluride in late August last year, went on release in the US in early November, cost US$26M to make and has so far recouped US$19M, amidst mixed Reviews.

'THE LAST FULL MEASURE' (Rated CTC) - here this American Vietnam war drama film is Directed and written for the screen by Todd Robinson and the film title is taken from a quote by Abraham Lincoln at the time of his Gettysburg Address where he honoured the fallen by saying they 'gave the last full measure of devotion'. This film tells the true story of Vietnam War hero William H. Pitsenbarger (Jeremy Irvine), a U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen medic who personally saved over sixty men. During a rescue mission on 11th April 1966, he was offered the chance to escape on the last helicopter out of a combat zone heavily under fire, but he stayed behind to save and defend the lives of his fellow soldiers of the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division, before making the ultimate sacrifice in the bloodiest battle of the war. Thirty-two years later, respected Pentagon staffer Scott Huffman (Sebastien Stan) is tasked with investigating a Congressional Medal of Honor request for Pitsenbarger made by his best friend and partner on the mission Tully (William Hurt) and his parents Frank and Alice (Christopher Plummer and Diane Ladd respectively). Huffman seeks out the testimony of Army veterans who witnessed Pitsenbarger's extraordinary bravery including Takoda (Samuel L. Jackson), Burr (Peter Fonda) and Mott (Ed Harris). But as Huffman learns more about Pitsenbarger's valiant acts, he uncovers a high-level conspiracy behind the decades-long denial of the medal, prompting him to put his own career on the line to seek justice for the fallen airman. Also starring LisaGay Hamilton, Amy Madigan, Linus Roache, Bradley Whitford and John Savage, the film was released in the US in late January, cost US$20M to produce, has so far recovered US$3M and has received mixed or average Reviews.

'HONEY BOY' (Rated MA15+) - Directed by Israeli American music video and film Director Alma Har'el in her feature film debut and based on a Screenplay written by Shia LaBeouf in turn based on his childhood and his relationship with his father which he wrote as a form of therapy while undergoing rehab. The film saw it's World Premier screening as Sundance back in January 2019, got its US release in early November, cost US$3.5M to make, has so far grossed US$7M and has been garnered positive acclaim. Here we have a young actor's stormy childhood and early adult years as he struggles to reconcile with his father through cinema and dreams over a ten year period. Fictionalising his childhood ascent to stardom, and subsequent adult crash-landing into rehab and recovery, Noah Jupe and Lucas Hedges are the 12 year old and 22 year old Otis Lort respectively, navigating different stages in a frenetic career. LaBeouf takes on the daring and therapeutic challenge of playing a version of his own father, James Lort, an ex-rodeo clown and criminal. Artist and musician FKA twigs makes her feature acting debut, playing neighbour and kindred spirit Shy Girl to the younger Otis in their garden-court motel home.

'MISS FISHER AND THE CRYPT OF TEARS' (Rated M) - is an Australian mystery adventure film Directed by Australian TV Director Tony Tilse and based on the 'Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries' television series which ran for three seasons over 34 episodes from 2012 through 2015, and the series of Phryne Fisher novels written by Kerry Greenwood. This stand-alone action-adventure feature film picks up the story from the end of the third series. And so after freeing a young Bedouin girl, Shirin Abbas (Izabella Yena) from her unjust imprisonment in Jerusalem, Phryne Fisher (Essie Davis) begins to unravel a decade-old mystery concerning priceless emeralds, ancient curses and the truth behind the suspicious disappearance of Shirin's forgotten tribe. Various members of the well to do British aristocracy whose lives were impacted by the events of World War I in Mandated Palestine get caught up in the mystery too. Also starring Nathan Page, Miriam Margolyes, Ashleigh Cummings, Jacqueline McKenzie and John Waters.

'THE WISHMAS TREE' (Rated PG) - Directed by Richard Cusso, this family friendly Australian animated film centres around a young possum called Kerry (voiced by Miranda Tapsell) whose misguided wish for a white Wishmas not only freezes her entire hometown of Sanctuary City, but also threatens the lives of everyone who lives there. Before the magical Wishmas Tree dies, Kerry must undertake a perilous journey into the WILD, so battling self-doubt, ghostly predators and ultimately, extinction itself, to reverse the damage she has caused and save her city. Also starring the voice talents of Ross Noble, Kate Murphy, Richard Cusso and Ryan Renshaw.

With six 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-