What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 28th May 2026.

The 66th Krakow Film Festival (KFF) this year is held from Sunday 31st May through until Sunday 7th June in the Polish city of Krakow. Founded in 1961 when it was called the Polish Short Film Festival, the Krakow Film Festival is one of the oldest events in the world dedicated to documentary films, short animations and short feature films. The core of the festival consists of four equal competitions - documentary, DocFilmMusic, short film and Polish one. During the eight days of the festival, viewers have the opportunity to watch about two hundred films from around the world. They are presented in competitions and numerous special sections. The festival is accompanied by exhibitions, concerts, outdoor screenings and meetings with filmmakers, as well as KFF Industry – an event aimed at the film industry . . . . . so reads the official website. 

In this years International Documentary Film Competition, there are thirteen titles from across the globe - works that refuse to look away from the burning questions of our time whilst boldly pushing beyond the boundaries of classical documentary filmmaking. The Krakow Film Festival invites its audiences to reflect on the future of cinema, encounter extraordinary personalities, and to journey to the furthest corners of the world. Competing for this year’s top honours are films of formal daring and emotional intensity - unafraid of intimacy, and wholly capable of casting a critical eye over reality. 

Those thirteen films are as given in brief, below :-

* 'Around Paradise' - from Germany and Written and Directed by Yulia Lokshina. A group of well-off Europeans are trying to flee as far as possible from vaccines, taxes, Islam, the spectre of a third world war and a climatic catastrophe. They are searching for freedom in poor regions of southern Paraguay, where they set up a self-sufficient enclave.

* 'Holofiction' - from Germany and Austria and Written, Co-Produced, Directed and Edited by Michal Kosakowski. Few historical events have been portrayed on screen as often as the Holocaust. And few have become so entrenched in cliches, stereotypes and conventions. We are treated to a daring video essay compiled from clips of over 3,000 feature films made in the period from the late 1930's right up to the present day. The images, edited thematically, come together to form a single coherent work, engaging (without words!) with fictional representations of the Holocaust.

* 'If Pigeons Turned to Gold' - from the Czech Republic and Slovakia and Written, Directed, Co-Photographed and Edited by Pepa Lubojacki. Filmed over a seven year period, the film follows the lives of four family members, whose shared past has grown into a fragmented, contrasting present.

* 'Magic Hour' - from Poland and Written and Directed by Marcin Borchardt. The film tells a story of a brilliant clan of Polish cinematographers focusing on Piotr Sobocinski, whose Hollywood career and untimely death reveal the dark side of success in the film industry.
* 'Redlight to Limelight' - from India, Finland and Latvia and Written and Directed by Bipuljit Basu. CAM-ON is an amateur film group made of sexual workers from Calcutta and their children. In the real setting of slums, they are working on their first feature film based on their own, often painful, experiences.

* 'Silent Flood' - from Ukraine and Germany and Directed, Co-Photographed and Co-Edited by Dmytro Sukholytkyy-Sobchuk. On the banks of the Dniester in Western Ukraine lives an isolated community that ignores socioeconomic development. The Russian invasion of Ukraine disrupts their idyllic daily life and becomes a challenge to their pacifist views.

* 'Synthetic Sincerity' - from the UK and Co-Written, Produced, Directed, Photographed and Edited by Marc Isaacs. How to make a face generated by artificial intelligence to be more human? For example, you can train AI on the characters of documentary films. The Director agreed that his work be used. The result is a witty hybrid of documentary and fiction exposing the blurring of many boundaries in the AI era.

* 'The Arctic Circle of Lust' - from Finland, Germany and Sweden and Written and Directed by Markku Heikkinen. In the Far North, emotions and passions can reach fever pitch. A middle-age farming couple find out about it for themselves when the man discovers he is not attracted only to women, and she gives him the go-ahead.

* 'The Fabulous Time Machine' - from Brazil and Co-Written, Directed and Co-Edited by Eliza Capai. Although they live in one of the poorest regions of Brazil, they almost burst the screen with girlish energy. The protagonists invite us to a very colourful world on the cusp of carefree fun and coming of age, which usually brings a definitive end to innocence.

* 'The Tale of Silyan' - from North Macedonia and the USA and Co-Produced and Directed by Tamara Kotevska. What could an old Macedonian legend about a boy turned into a stork possibly have in common with farmers’ protests on the fringes of modern-day Europe?

* 'The Winning Generation' - from the Netherlands and Co-Written and Directed by Marco de Stefanis. For twelve years the camera had followed a young Armenian activist who, over time, became a politician and is fighting for the sovereignty of his country, which remains under constant threat from Moscow.

* 'Tickling the Devil' - from Poland and Co-Written, Produced, Directed and Co-Photographed by Piotr Malecki. Christopher Morris took part in twenty-eight wars. Armed with a photographic camera, he documented bloody conflicts across the world. Today, he tries to lead a peaceful family life, but the demons of war continue to haunt him, and turbulent American reality calls out to him at every turn.

* 'Tristan Forever' - from Switzerland and Co-Written, Directed, Photographed and Co-Edited by Tobias Nolle. The eponymous Island is considered the most isolated of all inhabited places on Earth. It is here where a Parisian physician returns after thirty years with a plan to stay forever this time.

For the full details of the other competitive strands - the Short Film Competition (36 films), the National Competition (41 films) and the DocFilmMusic Competition (eight films), and the other sections being showcased, plus a whole lot of other good stuff, you can visit the official website at : http://www.krakowfilmfestival.pl/en/66th-kff/

Turning the focus back to this weeks four hot new release movies coming to your local big screen Odeon, we kick off with a musical comedy drama offering about a past-his-prime wedding singer, who meets a fading boy-band star during a gig, and the two bond over music and a late-night jam session, in this feel-good story about music, self-respect, friendship, and the price of ambition. Next up we have a biographical drama film in which, after the sudden death of her father, a woman turns to the ancient art of falconry, training a wild goshawk named Mabel to navigate her profound loss. Then we turn to a Sci-Fi horror story where, after a therapist's patient disappears into a dimension beyond reality, she must venture into the unknown to save him. And closing out the week we have a Hong Kong film telling the story of how after being raped, a Pastor's daughter committed suicide, and years later, when the rapist is released from prison, he joins the Pastor's church!

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the four latest release new films as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release or 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.

'POWER BALLAD' (Rated M) - is an American and Irish musical comedy drama film Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by John Carney, whose Directorial debut in his own right, 'On the Edge' was released in 2001, and he would follow this up with other movies taking in 'Once' in 2007, 'Begin Again' in 2013, 'Sing Street' in 2016 and 'Flora and Son' in 2023. This film saw its World Premiere screening at the Dublin International Film Festival in early March this year, is released in the US, the UK, Ireland and here is Australia this week, and has garnered generally favourable critical reviews.

Rick Power (Paul Rudd), wedding singer, meets washed up former boy band singer, Danny Wilson (Nick Jonas), at a wedding one night and bonds with him over a jam session. After the jam session, Danny steals one of Rick's songs, and it becomes a number one hit that brings Danny back into popularity, leading to Rick seeking out revenge and the recognition he believes he is owed - even if it means risking everything he cares about. Also starring Havana Rose Liu, Jack Reynor, Peter McDonald (who also Co-Wrote the screenplay with John Carney) and Sophie Vavasseur.

'H IS FOR HAWK' (Rated M) - this UK and US Co-Produced biographical drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Philippa Lowthorpe in her third feature film outing following 'Swallows and Amazons' in 2016 and 'Misbehaviour' in 2020. This film is based on the 2014 memoir of the same name by naturalist Helen MacDonald. The film chronicles Helen Macdonald’s (Claire Foy) experience of grief following the sudden death of their father Alisdair Macdonald (Brendan Gleeson) and their decision to train a goshawk named Mabel, as a means of coping with that loss. The narrative interweaves two strands - Macdonald’s personal bereavement and the practical and psychological challenges of falconry. Also starring Denise Gough, Sam Spruell, and Lindsay Duncan. It saw its Premiere showcasing at the Telluride Film Festival in late August last year and was released in the UK and the USA towards the end of January this year, has garnered generally positive critical reviews and has so far grossed US$3M.

'BACKROOMS' (Rated M) - is an American Sci-Fi horror film Directed by Kane Parsons, in his feature film making debut, and is based on his own web series published in January 2022 as the short film 'The Backrooms (Found Footage)' which he posted to his YouTube channel, and which went viral and expanded into twenty-four more short films culminating in a web series that has had 77 million views as of May 2026. Here then, Clark (Chiwetel Ejiofor) a depressed and misanthropic furniture store owner feeling stuck in the simplicity of his life, seeking help from his therapist Dr. Mary Kline (Renate Reinsve), one night discovers a doorway in his store that transports him into the haunting and seemingly never ending backrooms. Also starring Mark Duplass, Finn Bennett and Lukita Maxwell. The film cost less than US$10M to produce and is released in the US this week too. 

'VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH' (Rated MA15+) - this Hong Kong crime drama film is Co-Directed by Sen Lam and Antonio Tam and Written by Antonio Lam. Here, Pastor Leung (Anthony Wong) who preaches God's forgiveness, finds himself in a dire situation when Chi Lok (George Au), a young man who raped and caused the death of his daughter years ago, is released from prison and unexpectedly joins his church. Can the pastor forgive him despite his instinct for vengeance? The film was released in early June 2025 in its native Hong Kong, having seen its Premiere screening at the Tokyo International Film Festival in late October 2024, and only now does it get a limited showing in Australia, having so far grossed US$645K and garnering mixed or average reviews.

With four new release movie offerings 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 at your local Odeon in the coming week.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-