BELFAST : Wednesday 9th February 2022.

I saw the M Rated 'BELFAST' last week at my local independent movie theatre, and this British coming of age comedy drama film is Written, Directed and Co-Produced by Kenneth Branagh whose previous film making credits include his 1989 debut feature 'Henry V' then 'Peter's Friends' in 1992, 'Mary Shelley's Frankenstein' in 1994, 'Sleuth' in 2007, 'Thor' in 2011, 'Murder on the Orient Express' in 2017, 'All Is True' in 2018, with 'Death on the Nile' released just last week. This film saw its World Premiere screening at the Telluride Film Festival in early September last year and also won the People's Choice Award at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival. The film was released in the US in mid-November 2021 and in the UK and Ireland on 21 January. It has received positive reviews from critics and has, so far, grossed over US$26M at the global Box Office, and has picked up thirty-eight award wins and another 230 nominations from around the awards and festivals circuit (many of those nods are still awaiting a final outcome at the time of writing).

The film charts the life of a working class Northern Irish Protestant family from the perspective of nine year old Buddy (Jude Hill), during the rise of the Troubles in Northern Ireland in Belfast, where Buddy and his family live. Father Pa (Jamie Dornan) works overseas in England on a construction project, while the family—Ma (Caitriona Balfe), elder brother Will (Lewis McAskie), and paternal grandparents Granny (Judi Dench) and Pop (Ciaran Hinds) live in Belfast. 

Opening up on 15th August 1969, a mob of angry Protestant loyalists randomly and without warning attack the homes and businesses of Catholics along the street where Buddy lives, smashing windows in, breaking down doors and torching a car. The local folk set up a barricade at the end of the street to prevent their re-entry, and Pa returns from England (as he does every other weekend) to check on the safety and security of his family. Buddy and Will attend church one Sunday without their parents on this occasion, and the minister delivers a fire and brimstone speech about choosing the right fork in the road - one which leads to the sanctity of heaven and the other to all damnation in hell. Buddy continues to reflect on the words of the minister throughout the film. At school, Buddy begins to develop feelings towards high-achieving Catholic classmate Catherine (Olive Tennant), and in time they become friends, so much so that in conversation with Pop, Buddy alludes to one day marrying her. 

In the meantime, local low level crim and Protestant loyalist Billy Clanton (Colin Morgan) approaches Pa demanding his involvement in 'the cause' but when Pa refuses, he turns aggressive and starts harassing Buddy saying that he expects his Pa to do the right thing. The family also is struggling to pay off their accumulated debts to the tax office. Pa produces brochures about emigrating to Sydney or Vancouver as the chance for the family to start afresh, however, as far as Ma is concerned this is not an option, as she is dead set against leaving her home, her friends and her family. But, on the other hand, she can no longer deny the option of leaving Belfast as the conflict deepens. Pa returns home after his fortnight in England and tells Ma that he has been offered a promotion in England to work on a five year long construction project that comes with a housing deal from his employers. His employers want an answer from him by Christmas. They try to discuss the matter with their boys, but Buddy has a melt down at the thought of leaving Belfast.

Buddy, local teenage girl Moira (Lara McDonnell) and another young lad attempt to steal chocolate bars from a sweet shop, but the plan goes south and Buddy narrowly escapes the clutches of the shop owner carrying a single bar of Turkish Delight. Moira chastises Buddy for making off with the sweet confection when there were Crunchie's and Flake's to be had instead. When later questioned by the Police, Buddy does not reveal his accomplices. Afterwards, suitably impressed by Buddy's resilience, Moira recruits him into her local gang, who participate in a looting of a mini-supermarket. A reluctant Buddy is forced into stealing something and grabs a box of laundry detergent before returning home and telling Ma of his activities. Ma berates him and immediately drags both Buddy and Moira back to the ongoing looting in order to return their stolen items. Billy Clanton then appears and shouts at them that they take things and don't put them back and promptly takes them hostage to leverage his own escape. Pa, Will and the British Army arrive at the scene to bring an end the riot. This results in a standoff with Billy who attempts a shootout until Pa and Will manage to disarm him. Billy is then arrested and swears retribution.

The Christmas deadline for Ma and Pa's decision to move to England comes and goes - and they further delay until Easter. In the meantime Pop has died. Realising that they are no longer safe in Belfast, the family decide to relocate to England. Before leaving, Buddy bids farewell to Catherine. He laments to Pa whether he could have pursued a future with her despite the fact she was a Catholic. Pa responds that it doesn't make a difference what culture, creed or beliefs someone has, they will always be welcome in their home. As Granny watches, the family boards a bus headed for the airport, saying to herself 'go, go now, and don't look back'. Granny is left alone after the death of her husband and the departure of her children and grandchildren, as she closes the door behind her and rests her head on the window, sobbing. 

'Belfast' is a film for the ages, and anyone who grew up in Britain during these turbulent times will be able to relate to Branagh's tender, whimsical, thought provoking semi-autobiographical offering, centred firmly in his young childhood formative years. The casting is top notch, and Jude Hill as the central character of Buddy is a standout, with equally impressive performances from Dornan, Balfe, Dench and Hinds who all deliver grounded, believable and relatable roles. Whilst the troubles of Northern Ireland are secondary to the plot here and there are no political machinations behind them, this is a film of family connectedness, community solidarity, fun and laughter, love and emotion, music and cinema as seen through the eyes of a nine year old who is struggling to come to terms with a changing world being ripped apart by violence. And within it, Branagh has crafted a crowd pleasing, awards worthy addition to his already impressive resume. 

'Belfast' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps. 

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 3rd February 2022.

The 11th annual AACTA (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts) International Awards were announced on 26th January. Held annually in Los Angeles, the AACTA International Awards honour the best achievements in screen excellence, regardless of geography, across seven film categories, these being Best Film, Best Direction in Film, Best Screenplay in Film, Best Lead Actor in Film, Best Lead Actress in Film, Best Supporting Actor in Film and Best Supporting Actress in Film. The Awards honour our international screen peers and celebrate fellow Australians working in screen internationally, and the Awards are determined by AACTA’s International Chapter who vote across the seven categories. The International Chapter is made up of 190 Australian screen professionals with distinguished international credentials.

And so this years recipients of the AACTA International Award and the also rans, are as given below, in the seven film categories :-

* Best Film : awarded to 'THE POWER OF THE DOG', beating out 'Being the Ricardos', 'Belfast', 'Dune', 'Licorice Pizza' and 'Nitram'. 

* Best Direction : presented to Denis Villeneuve for 'DUNE', beating out Paul Thomas Anderson for 'Licorice Pizza', Kenneth Branagh for 'Belfast', Jane Campion for 'The Power of the Dog', and Justin Kurzel for 'Nitram'. 

* Best Actor : presented to Benedict Cumberbatch for 'THE POWER OF THE DOG', beating out Andrew Garfield for 'Tick, Tick . . . Boom!', Caleb Landry Jones for 'Nitram', Will Smith for 'King Richard' and Denzel Washington for 'The Tragedy of Macbeth'. 

* Best Actress : awarded to Nicole Kidman for 'BEING THE RICARDOS', beating out Penelope Cruz for 'Parallel Mothers', Lady Gaga for 'House of Gucci', Jennifer Hudson for 'Respect' and Kristen Stewart for 'Spencer'.

* Best Supporting Actor : presented to Kodi Smit-McPhee for 'THE POWER OF THE DOG', beating out Bradley Cooper for 'Licorice Pizza', Jamie Dornan for 'Belfast', Ciaran Hinds for 'Belfast', and Al Pacino for 'House of Gucci'.

* Best Supporting Actress : awarded to Judi Dench for 'BELFAST', beating out Caitriona Balfe for 'Belfast', Cate Blanchett for 'Don't Look Up', Kirsten Dunst for 'The Power of the Dog' and Sally Hawkins for 'Spencer'. 

* Best Screenplay : awarded to Aaron Sorkin for 'BEING THE RICARDOS', beating out Paul Thomas Anderson for 'Licorice Pizza', Kenneth Branagh for 'Belfast', Jane Campion for 'The Power of the Dog' and Shaun Grant for 'Nitram'.

For the full details of all the AACTA International Awards including the four TV series winners and nominees, you can visit the official website at : https://www.aacta.org/

Turning the attention then back to this week five current new release movies, we start with a semi-autobiographical film which chronicles the life of a working class family and their young son's childhood during the tumult of the late 1960's in the Northern Irish capital. Next up with have a Sci-Fi actioner that has the world standing on the brink of annihilation when a mysterious force knocks the Moon from its orbit and sends it hurtling on a collision course with Earth. This is followed by a comedy drama about a brash newly independent college student who returns home for the Summer holidays, but when secrets about her parents come to light during a dinner party, it soon pushes her to a daring and ultimately hilarious confrontation. Then we have a story set in Western Sydney about a newborn baby who is kidnapped from hospital by a desperate grandmother, with her flight setting off a chain of events that bring together eight distinct interconnected scenarios; before closing out the week with a celebration of the joy of a perfectly executed shot to the groin as Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and the rest of the gang return for another round of hilarious, wildly absurd and often dangerous displays of stunts and comedy. 

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

'BELFAST' (Rated M) - is a British coming of age comedy drama film Written, Directed and Co-Produced by Kenneth Branagh whose previous film making credits include his 1989 debut feature 'Henry V' then 'Peter's Friends' in 1992, 'Mary Shelley's Frankenstein' in 1994, 'Sleuth' in 2007, 'Thor' in 2011, 'Murder on the Orient Express' in 2017, 'All Is True' in 2018, with 'Death on the Nile' due for a release next month. This film saw its World Premiere screening at the Telluride Film Festival in early September last year and also won the People's Choice Award at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival. The film was released in the US in mid-November 2021 and in the UK and Ireland on 21 January. It has received positive reviews from critics and has, so far, grossed over US$10M at the global Box Office, and has picked up thirty-four award wins and another 202 nominations from around the awards and festivals circuit (many of those nods are still awaiting a final outcome at the time of writing).

Here, a nine-year-old boy Buddy (Jude Hill) must chart a path towards adulthood through a world that has suddenly turned upside down as a result of The Troubles experienced in Belfast, Northern Ireland in the late 1960's. His stable and loving community and everything he thought he understood about life is changed forever but joy, laughter, music and the formative magic of the movies remain. The film chronicles the life of a working class Northern Irish Protestant family from the perspective of Buddy, while father Pa (Jamie Dornan) works overseas in England, while the family—Ma (Caitriona Balfe), elder brother Will (Lewis McAskie), and paternal grandparents Granny (Judi Dench) and Pop (Ciaran Hinds) live in Belfast.

'MOONFALL' (Rated M) - is an American Sci-Fi action film Directed, Co-Written and Co-produced by the master of disaster himself Roland Emmerich, whose previous film making offerings include 'Universal Soldier', 'Stargate', 'Independence Day', 'Godzilla', 'The Day After Tomorrow', '2012', 'White House Down', 'Independence Day : Resurgence' and 'Midway' most recently in 2019. Here then, a mysterious force knocks the Moon from its orbit around Earth and sends it hurtling on a collision course with life as we know it. With mere weeks before impact and the world on the brink of annihilation, NASA executive and former astronaut Jo Fowler (Halle Berry) is convinced she has the key to saving us all, but only one astronaut from her past, Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson) and a conspiracy theorist K.C. Houseman (John Bradley) believe her. These unlikely heroes will mount an impossible last-ditch mission into space, leaving behind everyone they love, only to find out that our Moon is not what we think it is. Also starring Donald Sutherland and Michael Pena. The film cost US$140M to produce making it one of the most costly independent feature films ever made. It is released Stateside this week too. 

'INDIA SWEETS AND SPICES' (Rated M) - this American comedy drama film is Directed and Written by Geeta Malik in only her second feature length film making capacity following 2011's 'Troublemaker', although she has helmed several short films including 2013's 'Shameless'. When college freshman Alia Kapur (Sophia Ali) returns home for the summer holidays, she discovers secrets and lies in her mother Sheila (Manisha Koirala) and father Ranjit (Adil Hussain) past that make her question everything she thought she knew about her family. The film was released in the US in mid-November last year and is based on Geeta Malik's own script 'Dinner With Friends' that won the 2016 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in screen-writing.

'HERE OUT WEST' (Rated M) - this Australian drama film is Directed by Leah Purcell, Fadia Abboud, Julie Kalceff, Lucy Gaffy and Ana Kokkinos. Here, Nancy (Genevieve Lemon) visits her daughter, who has just given birth in hospital, accompanied by her eight-year-old Lebanese neighbour Amirah. The grandchild is to be taken away by the authorities, and in an impetuous decision, Nancy steals the baby and, with Amirah in tow, flees the hospital. Over the course of a dramatic day, Nancy's flight sets off a chain of events that brings together complete strangers. Stories from eight talented Western Sydney writers intertwine poignantly through themes of family and place in a groundbreaking film that reframes the Australian experience. 'Here Out West' was the Opening Night film at last years Sydney Film Festival.

'JACKASS FOREVER' (Rated MA15+) - is an American reality comedy film Directed, Co-Written and Co-Produced by Jeff Tremaine and based on the original TV series 'Jackass' by Tremaine, Spike Jonze and Johnny Knoxville. It is the sequel to 2010's 'Jackass 3D', it is the fourth main instalment and the fifth overall instalment in the 'Jackass' film series, with those first four films grossing worldwide US$488M off the back of a combined budget of US$52M. As with the previous instalments and episodes the film features a cast of regulars including Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Wee Man, Chris Pontius, Dave England, Danger Ehren and Preston Lacy carrying out stunts and pranks on each other or the public, that are often outlandish and dangerous, and not something to be tried at home. The film also stars guest appearances from the likes of Eric Andre, Machine Gun Kelly, Tony Hawk and Tory Belleci. 

With five 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-