JURASSIC WORLD : DOMINION - Tuesday 14th June 2022.

I saw the M Rated 'JURASSIC WORLD : DOMINION' at my local multiplex this week and this American Sci-Fi action film is Directed and Co-Written for the screen and based on a story developed by Colin Tervorrow and based on characters created by Michael Chrichton. It is the sequel to 2018's 'Jurassic World : Fallen Kingdom', the sixth instalment in the 'Jurassic Park' franchise, the final film in the Jurassic World trilogy, and the conclusion to the storyline started in the original 'Jurassic Park' trilogy released in 1993, 1997 and 2001. This film saw its World Premier in Mexico City on 23rd May and went on worldwide release from last week. The film cost US$185M to produce, has so far grossed US$450M and has generated largely negative critical Reviews.

Set some four years after Isla Nublar had been destroyed and the events that subsequently unfolded at the Lockwood Estate, dinosaurs now live, and hunt, alongside humans the world over. Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), the former Operations Manager at Jurassic World, works for the Dinosaur Protection Group. She and Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) have been living in a remote cabin in the Sierra Nevada mountains where they are secretly raising and caring for the now fourteen year old Maisie Lockwood (Isabella Sermon), Benjamin Lockwood's cloned granddaughter. Owen's previously trained Velociraptor, Blue, one day arrives at the cabin with an offspring that was reproduced asexually, and whom Maisie names Beta.

Meanwhile, Biosyn Genetics which have grown to be a globally domineering and highly profitable company conducts medical research on dinosaurs, seeking cures for all manner of human ailments. Unknown to Claire and Owen, Biosyn is very keen on studying Maisie's DNA and have been searching for her for the last four years. When Maisie, frustrated with living in seclusion with no other human interaction other than Claire and Owen, sneaks away to a nearby town, Biosyn operatives, led by Rainn Delacourt (Scott Haze) kidnap her and also Beta. Owen and Claire immediately give chase to rescue them. 

Elsewhere, swarms of formerly extinct giant locusts have inexplicably appeared across huge swathes of the southern United States laying waste to valuable crops and so threatening the world's food supply. Paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) upon examining a captured live specimen discovers they avoid eating crops grown with Biosyn seed, leading her to suspect that Biosyn created them. Believing the locust's DNA dates to the Cretaceous period, Ellie approaches former partner and paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill), who is on a dig in Utah, and who agrees to help her infiltrate and investigate Biosyn.

With help from Franklin Webb (Justice Smith), a contact within the CIA and former dinosaur rights activist who has previously worked with Claire, Claire and Owen track Maisie and Beta to Malta where they visit a black market trading in live dinosaur specimens. When undercover agents raid the market led by Barry Sembene (Omar Sy) dinosaurs are unintentionally released, creating havoc with Delacourt subsequently eaten alive together with various others caught in the fracas. Soyona Santos (Dichen Lachman), a Biosyn employee and dinosaur smuggler, having been captured by Sembene, informs Claire and Owen that Maisie and Beta are being transported to Biosyn's headquarters and dinosaur valley in Italy's Dolomites mountain range. They meet Kayla Watts (DeWanda Wise), a sympathetic cargo pilot with access to the valley, who agrees to fly Owen and Claire there.

Chaos theorist Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum), who now works for Biosyn as a contractor, invites Alan and Ellie to the headquarters to help him uncover Biosyn CEO Lewis Dodgson's (Campbell Scott) illegal activities. Ian's ally, Communications Director and apparent right hand man to Dodgson, Ramsay Cole (Mamoudou Athie) assists. As it turns out geneticist Dr. Henry Wu (B D Wong) genetically engineered the locusts to only consume rival companies' crops so that Biosyn will dominate the global agricultural market. The locust plague has subsequently spread worldwide. Wu meets Maisie and explains she is not a clone. Instead, her mother, Charlotte Lockwood (Elva Trill, seen through archive video footage only), Benjamin Lockwood's daughter and Wu's former colleague, used her own DNA to create Maisie asexually as her child. Charlotte died from a genetic disease shortly after Maisie was born, but she had altered Maisie's DNA so making her immune. Wu believes that Maisie's and Beta's DNA are the keys to creating a pathogen that can halt the escalating locust outbreak. 

Upon reaching Biosyn airspace, a group of giant pterosaurs attack Kayla's cargo plane, ripping a gaping hole in the body of the aircraft and taking out its two engines. Claire ejects while Owen and Kayla survive crash landing on a frozen water reservoir. Following their separate encounters with various dinosaurs, and not of the good kind, the three manage to regroup. Inside the Biosyn facility, Ian and Ramsey allow Ellie and Alan access to a restricted lab where the giant locusts are being bred. They steal a locust DNA sample and come across Maisie, who has escaped and released Beta in the process. After seeing them on security footage some twelve minutes later, Dodgson torches the locust laboratory to destroy all evidence but in the process swarms of burning locusts burst through a ventilation shaft and out into the surrounding woodland, inadvertently starting a forest fire. Dodgson also terminates Ian's employment for exposing his operation. 

Alan, Ellie, and Maisie escape with Ramsay's assistance through a defunct subterranean amber mine, but not before having various close encounters with several dinosaurs  of their own. After finding Ian, they meet up with Owen, Claire, and Kayla. Meanwhile, Dodgson attempts to leave with dinosaur embryos via a hyperloop underground train, but when the power fails, he becomes trapped and subsequently killed by a group of three Dilophosaurus. Electronic devices retrieve the dinosaurs to the Biosyn headquarters to protect them from the fire. Owen, assisted by Maisie and Alan, captures Beta. 

In the meantime Kayla has run off to a helicopter to get the group the hell outta Dodge when a Giganotosaurus terrorises the group until the Therizinosaurus and the Tyrannosaurus rex kill it. The group escapes with Kayla at the controls of the helicopter, taking Wu, who claims to be able to eradicate the locusts, with them. Ellie and Alan renew their romantic relationship prior to joining Ian and Ramsay in testifying against Biosyn. Sometime later Wu releases a locust carrying the pathogen he discovered while studying Maisie and Beta, ultimately destroying the locusts within one season. Owen, Claire, and Maisie return home to their cabin in the Sierra Nevada and reunite Beta with Blue. Around the world, dinosaurs adapt to co-exist with modern bird, sea and wildlife while the United Nations declares Biosyn Valley a dinosaur sanctuary. 

I went in to see 'Jurassic World : Dominion' with fairly low expectations and came out fairly surprised that the Critics had been so harsh on this final instalment of the second trilogy. Sure, it rehashes everything that has gone before including the ultimate destruction of every dino enclosure from Isla Nublar right through to the Lockwood Estate; and when it comes down to it the story has come full circle from harnessing dino DNA from mozzies through to creating dino sized crop busting locusts by manipulating their DNA. The action sequences and the spectacle of dinosaurs living amongst us is impressively handled, but this film is more about combating a plague of locusts than it is about marauding dinosaurs chomping and stomping up the scenery and any mere mortal who dare get in their way. Reuniting Neill, Dern and Goldblum from the original trilogy doesn't really add any weight to the storyline other than to connect the dots back to the 'Jurassic Park' series. And so in these respects 'Jurassic World : Dominion' is predictable and by the numbers, devoid of any emotion, and a storyline that for the most part we have seen before. It is entertaining enough, and at a run time of two and a half hours it moves along at a good enough pace, but I think it's time that this franchise goes the way of the dinosaurs, and is finally declared extinct!

'Jurassic World : Dominion' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five claps.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 9th June 2022.

The 69th Sydney Film Festival kicked off on Wednesday 8th June and runs through until Sunday 19th June, screening over two hundred films across fifteen screens spread across the city and showcasing the greatest, strangest and most exciting works that the world of cinema has to offer. This year there are twelve films in Official Competition and the Sydney Film Prize is awarded to the most 'audacious, cutting-edge and courageous' film in the Official Competition line-up. The competition is endorsed by FIAPF, the regulating body for international film festivals, and is judged by a jury of filmmakers and industry professionals. The AU$60K cash prize is presented at SFF’s Closing Night ceremony. In addition, a further AU$76K is awarded to other categories that are the Australian Documentary Award, two awards for Australian Short Films, the Australian Animated Short Film, The Craft Award for demonstrated excellence by a craft practitioner in an Australian short film, the Australian First Nations Film Creatives, the Sydney UNESCO City of Film Award and the Sustainable Futures Award. 

Those films in Official Competition are as detailed below :-

* 'Alcarras' - from Spain and Italy and Written and Directed by Carla Simon. Set in Alcarras, Catalonia, the plot consists of a family rural drama concerning the disappearance of agricultural activities, revolving around the intention to install solar panels in an agricultural plot hitherto occupied by a peach orchard, bringing the members of the Sole family to a stand off. Australian Premier. Drama. Winner of the Golden Bear Award at this years Berlin International Film Festival.

* 'Before, Now & Then' - from Indonesia and Written and Directed by Kamila Andini. Set in West Java, Nana (Happy Salma) finds refuge in a second marriage after losing her family to war in the 1940's. Then, she befriends her second husband's mistress, Ino (Laura Basuki), together seeking for the meaning of freedom. Australian Premier. Drama.

* 'Blaze' - from Australia and Co-Written and Directed by Del Kathryn Barton in her feature film debut. After accidentally witnessing a violent crime, a young girl is left catatonic with shock, and struggles to make sense of what she saw, ultimately finding renewal in the inestimable world of her own imagination. Australian Premier. Drama. Starring Simon Baker and Julia Savage.

* 'The Box' - from Mexico and the USA and Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Lorenzo Vigas. A Mexican teenager sets out to collect his fathers remains, only to be sucked into the underbelly of the manufacturing industry. Australian Premier. Drama.

* 'Burning Days' - from Turkey and Written and Directed by Emin Alper. Emre (Sealhattin Pasali), a young prosecutor, newly appointed to the small town of Balkaya finds himself being pulled into a political conflict during his first murder investigation. Australian Premier. Drama.

* 'Close' - from Belgium and Co-Written and Directed by Lukas Dhont. Leo and Remi (Eden Dambrine and Gustav de Waele respectively) two thirteen-year-old boys, have their close friendship suddenly thrown into disarray as the prospect of adolescence looms. Australian Premier. Drama. Winner of the Grand Prix at this years Cannes Film Festival.

* 'Fire of Love' - from the USA and Canada and Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Sara Dosa. Follows the lives and careers of daring French Volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft who ultimately died in a volcanic explosion on Mount Unzen, in Japan, on June 3, 1991. Australian Premier. Documentary.

* 'Godland' - from Denmark and Written and Directed by Hlynur Palmason. In the late 19th Century, a young Danish priest travels to a remote part of Iceland to build a church and photograph its people. But the deeper he goes into the unforgiving landscape, the more he strays from his purpose, his mission and morality. Australian Premier. Drama. 

* 'The Quiet Girl' - from Ireland, and Written for the screen and Directed by Colm Bairead. Set in rural Ireland in 1981 a quiet, neglected girl is sent away from her dysfunctional family to live with foster parents for the Summer. She blossoms in their care, but in this house where there are meant to be no secrets, she discovers one. Australian Premier. Drama. 

* 'Utama' - from Bolivia, France and Uruguay and Written and Directed by Alejandro Loayza Grisi in his feature film debut. In the Bolivian highlands, an elderly Quechua couple has been living the same daily life for years. During an uncommonly long drought, Virginio (Jose Calcina) and his wife Sisa (Luisa Quispe) face a dilemma: resist, or be defeated by the environment and time itself. Australian Premier. Drama. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance 2022.

* 'Return to Seoul' - from France, Belgium and Germany and Written and Directed by Davy Chou. A twenty-five-year-old French woman returns to Korea, the country she was born in before being adopted by a French couple, for the very first time. She decides to track down her biological parents, but her journey takes on a surprising turn. Australian Premier. Drama.

* 'You Won't Be Alone' - from Australia and the USA and Written and Directed by Goran Stolevski in his feature film debut. In an isolated mountain village in 19th Century Macedonia, a young girl is kidnapped and then transformed into a witch with the ability to shape shift on her 16th birthday by an ancient spirit. Starring Noomi Rapace. Australian Premier. Drama, horror. 

For the full update on all the Sydney Film Festival information, the other programme strands, and the events taking place over the twelve days, you can visit the official website at : https://www.sff.org.au/

This week to tease you out to your local Odeon on a chilly Winter evening, we have three new movies, kicking off with a highly anticipated Sci-Fi actioner that sees the future of mankind hanging in the balance as humans and dinosaurs coexist following the destruction of Isla Nublar four years previously. Next we have a biographical drama offering about a legendary 20th Century war poet who's life-long quest for personal salvation through his experiences with family, war, his writing, and destructive relationships goes unresolved, never realising it can only come from within. And we close out the week with an Iranian film about a man who gets embroiled in a series of unfortunate events that risk his reputation and relationships when he gets arrested for delaying the repayment of a debt.

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

'JURASSIC WORLD : DOMINION' (Rated M) - is an American Sci-Fi action film Directed and Co-Written for the screen and based on a story developed by Colin Tervorrow. It is the sequel to 2018's 'Jurassic World : Fallen Kingdom', the sixth instalment in the 'Jurassic Park' franchise, the final film in the Jurassic World trilogy, and the conclusion to the storyline started in the original 'Jurassic Park' trilogy released in 1993, 1997 and 2001. This film saw its World Premier in Mexico City on 23rd May and goes on worldwide release from this week onward. The film cost US$165M to produce and early reaction to the film has been positive. 

Set some four years after Isla Nublar had been destroyed, dinosaurs now live, and hunt, alongside humans the world over. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history's most fearsome creatures. Also starring an ensemble cast that sees Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum reprise their roles from the first three 'Jurassic Park' films, together with Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard from the latter three instalments, with DeWanda Wise, BD Wong, Omar Sy and Scott Haze. 

'BENEDICTION' (Rated M) - this biographical drama film is Written and Directed by Terence Davies whose previous film making credits include 'Distant Voices, Still Lives' in 1988, 'The House of Mirth' in 2000, 'The Deep Blue Sea' in 2011 and 'A Quiet Passion' in 2016. This film saw its World Premier screening at last years Toronto International Film Festival in September before going on general release in the UK towards the end of May and in the US last week. Here then, decorated for bravery during WWI, British soldier Siegfried Sassoon (Jack Lowden with Pater Capaldi playing the older Sassoon) returns from service and becomes a vocal critic of the government's continuation of the war for which he was sent to a psychiatric clinic. Adored by the aristocracy and the stars of London's literary and stage world, Sassoon's experiences inspire him to write poetry about the horrors of battle, while having affairs with several men while being closeted, and developing a crisis in faith when he converted to Catholicism. Also starring Simon Russell Beale, Jeremy Irvine, Gemma Jones, Calam Lynch, Geraldine James and Anton Lester.

'A HERO' (Rated PG) -  is an Iranian drama film Written and Directed by Asghar Farhadi whose prior Directorial credits take in the likes of his debut feature film 'Dancing in the Dust' in 2003, 'A Separation' in 2011, 'The Salesman' in 2016 and 'Everybody Knows' in 2018. The film saw its World Premier screening at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival where it was in competition for the Palme d'Or, ultimately taking out the Grand Prix. Rahim (Amir Jadidi) is in prison because of a debt he was unable to repay. During a two-day leave period, he tries to convince his creditor to withdraw his complaint against the payment of part of the sum outstanding, but things don't go as quite as planned. The film has garnered universal critical acclaim and has so far collected twelve award wins and another thirty-seven nominations from around the awards and festivals circuit.

With three 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 week ahead.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

JURASSIC WORLD : FALLEN KINGDOM - Wednesday 27th June 2018.

'JURASSIC WORLD : FALLEN KINGDOM' which I saw this week is another much hyped highly anticipated sequel coming to our big screens in the form of this follow up offering to 2015's hugely successful 'Jurassic World' and the fifth instalment in the 'Jurassic Park' series. This film is intended to be the second in a planned trilogy of films, with the third due for release in June 2021, with Colin Trevorrow set to return to Directing duty. 'Jurassic World' made US$1.67B at the Global Box Office off the back of a US$150M Budget and making it the fifth highest grossing film of all time and the most financially successful in the franchise so far. Colin Trevorrow Co-Wrote and Directed the 2015 film, and this time he returns as Co-Writer and Executive Producer alongside Steven Spielberg, giving away the Directorial duties to J.A. Bayona whose previous Directing credits include 'The Orphanage', 'The Impossible' and 'A Monster Calls'. The principle cast reprise their roles, and the film was released in the US last week too. Off the back of a US$170M Budget, the film has so far grossed US$809M, and has received mixed Critical Reviews although Chris Pratt's performance, the Direction, the visuals and some of the darker moments have been worthy of praise.

Set three years after the destruction of the Jurassic World theme park on Isla Nublar off Central America's Pacific Coast, the escaped dinosaur's have roamed freely, until now when their very existence is threatened by an impending volcanic eruption that is likely within the very near future to destroy their island sanctuary. As the film opens we see an underwater two man submarine manoeuvring in close proximity to the skeletal remains of the Indominus rex resting at the bottom of the former Jurassic World lagoon. They send out an circular saw on the end of an extended mechanical arm and remove a section of bone, and send it instantly to the surface to be retrieved by a helicopter crew, in the obligatory pouring rain.

Meanwhile in Washington, a Senate Committee debates with Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) whether the dinosaurs on Isla Nublar should be saved or allowed to perish in the pending volcanic eruption, which is likely to consume the whole island. Malcolm believes it should be the latter course of action to correct John Hammond's error of judgement in cloning the dinosaurs over twenty years ago. In the intervening period the former Operations Manager of Jurassic World, Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) has established the Dinosaur Protection Group in an attempt to save the dinosaurs from extinction. The Senate ultimately decides against the dinosaurs, which prompts John Hammond's former partner Benjamin Lockwood (James Cromwell) to contact Dearing. Shortly afterwards, Dearing meets with Lockwood and his business associate Eli Mills (Rafe Spall) at his upstate Californian country mansion.

Lockwood is an ill man, confined to a wheelchair, has 24/7 aid at home, care of Iris (Geraldine Chaplin), and has entrusted Mills with pushing Lockwood’s fortune into the future and making it survive after he dies. Mills and Lockwood announce to Dearing that they have plans to relocate as many dinosaurs off Isla Nublar to a new island sanctuary where they will be safe, can roam free and where no tourists will be allowed to tread. Mills however, raised a concern about locating 'Blue' the last surviving Velociraptor. However, Dearing knows exactly the man for the job - one Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) the former Velociraptor trainer and handler from Jurassic World, and with whom she shared an emotional bond back then, but which has since cooled off considerably.

The rescue team comprising Dearing, Grady, Dr. Zia Rodriguez (Daniella Pineda) - a paleoveterinarian, and Franklin Webb (Justice Smith) - an IT systems analyst and hacker, arrive on Isla Nublar and are greeted by Ken Wheatly (Ted Levine) a seasoned mercenary who heads up the dinosaur rescue mission on the island (for a significant fee!). Grady, Rodriguez, Wheatly and the merry band of gun totting mercenaries head off in search of Blue, using the parks tracking system which has been rebooted by Webb. Owen, alone, tracks down Blue, and as the two are about to become reacquainted, a mercenary fires and shoots Blue, leading Wheatley to shoot Grady with a tranquilliser dart. Blue is boxed up and Rodriguez is tasked with saving its life. Grady is left on the ground where he fell.

Grady comes around just as molten red glowing lava steadily creeps up on him devouring the forest where he lay. Grady, with half the island dinosaur population, burst out of the forest as the volcano erupts spewing out billowing smoke, ash, lava and molten boulders all around them. He reunites with Dearing and Webb who have narrowly escaped an attack by a Baryonyx, and end up falling over a steep cliff into the ocean below to escape the destructive eruption. The three survive and are washed up on the shoreline, to see helicopters flying over head carrying their precious cargo of captured dinosaurs to be loaded on a waiting freight ship. The three board an abandoned truck and drive it onto the departing ship, to witness behind them the volcano destroy the island in a ball of fire, gas and smoke.

At the Lockwood mansion, his young granddaughter Maisie (Isabella Sermon) overhears a conversation in which Mills is discussing with auctioneer Gunnar Eversol (Toby Jones) his plans to secretly host an auction at the estate to sell off the collected dinosaurs each to the highest bidder, irrespective of what the bidders intentions are. In addition, Mills also raises introducing the Indoraptor, a genetically-engineered new breed of dinosaur created by former geneticist of both Jurassic World and Jurassic Park, Dr. Henry Wu (B.D. Wong) by using the DNA of the Indominus rex and a Velociraptor to ultimately weaponise it. Maisie tells Lockwood of Mills' plans, and in turn Lockwood confronts Mills saying that he is none too pleased and that he should call the Police to alert them. At that Mills smothers Lockwood with a cushion and kills him.

The dinosaurs are moved into the mansion, in individual cages in readiness for displaying in the auction room and the gathered multimillionaires from around the world. Rodriguez is back at the mansion, under duress overseeing the recovery of Blue. She is freed by Webb, who also releases Blue from its cage. Grady and Dearing are held in a cage while the auction gets underway. They manage to escape with the help of a head butting dinosaur in the neighbouring cage.

The pair find Maisie who lead them to a window overlooking the auction room, just as bidding on the Indoraptor ramps up to US$28M. With the help of his new head butting dinosaur friend, Grady disrupts the auction proceedings sending it in to chaos with bodies flying asunder. After the fracas has died down Wheatly enters the auction room and fires two tranquillisers into the Indoraptor. He then gingerly enters the cage, with the aim of extracting a trophy tooth to add to his growing collection of dinosaur molars. However, the Indoraptor is no ordinary dinosaur - it has intelligence and wits and comes around from its mock unconscious state and promptly rips off Wheatly's arm, before tearing him to shreds. It then exits thorough the opened cage door having munched on Eversol, and promptly attacks and kills various others.

The Indoraptor goes on the rampage tearing up the inside of the mansion while seeking out Grady, Dearing and youngster Maisie. Maisie runs off trying to divert the Indoraptor's attention, and promptly retreats to the sanctity of her bedroom, and hides under the bed covers, hoping the killer dinosaur won't spot her ruse.

Needless to say she under estimates the intellect of this beast who comes after her. Blue meanwhile, having been released by Rodriguez, tracks down the Indoraptor inside Maisie's bedroom and a fight breaks out, during which time Maisie and Grady escape through the bedroom window out onto a ledge. The duelling dinosaurs crash out onto the roof of the mansion, in the pouring rain once again sending them flailing in opposite directions. The Indoraptor is more sure footed and is hot on the heels of Grady and Maisie who have no where left to run, until Dearing appears followed by Blue. On the glass roof directly above Lockhart's dinosaur museum Blue and the Indoraptor fight it out, until the roof gives way and in falls the Indoraptor, impaling itself on the skeletal remains of a Triceratops skull.

Back inside the mansion when the dust has settled, Rodriguez alerts Grady and Dearing that a hydrogen cyanide tank has been ruptured and is leaking toxic gas, as a result of an earlier explosion when the proverbial brown stuff hit the fan when the Indoraptor was running amok. Furthermore the extraction system was down, meaning that all the caged dinosaurs would soon perish. Dearing has her hand hovering over an emergency override button that will open the huge doors and allow the dinosaurs to escape to freedom, but upon Grady's advice she can't bring herself to press the door release button, for fear of what dinosaurs walking amongst us in America's back yard would do to civilisation as we know it. The alternative is to let all the dinosaurs perish, and return Earth to normalcy without letting it slip back to the Jurassic age.

So instead, not wishing to allow the dinosaurs to become extinct once again, Maisie hits that button, the doors open, and out into the cool night air escape the dinosaurs. Mills does a bolt with the remains of the Indominus rex bone sample and is promptly trampled underfoot by a stampede of dinosaurs and is then ripped in two and devoured by a passing T-Rex and Carnotaurus. Grady and Dearing leave the estate with Maisie, after bidding farewell to Blue, who runs off into the surrounding forest under cover of night time with the other dinosaurs to roam far and wide and turn up in the most unexpected places.

In a further US Senate hearing, Dr. Malcolm advises that humans and dinosaurs now have no alternative but to learn to co-exist. Watch out for the post-credits sequence, which really adds nothing that you hadn't already worked out, but adds a teaser of sorts to the next instalment.

I enjoyed 'Jurassic World : Fallen Kingdom' but not as much as the first instalment in this rebooted series of the franchise. For me, this offering really adds little new to the storyline that we haven't already seen before. Here Isla Nublar is destroyed in hails of fire and brimstone, and in 'Jurassic Park II and III' the action takes place largely on a neighbouring island of Isla Sorna after the annihilation of the original theme park. Also, we've seen T-Rex rampaging through downtown USA in San Diego towards the final set piece of 'Jurassic Park II', and here we are again, with the dino menace let loose in upstate California. That said, this is an enjoyable, fun, fairly mindless yet  well crafted enough follow up that demonstrates Bayona's skill at the visual art, eking enough of a coherent story to captivate the interest for two hours of run time and continuing the story arc even if a tad over zealously. At times suspenseful, at times humorous and even a little Gothic, and occasionally gory, but where else can this go now, other than seeing how dinosaurs interact with their human co-habitors, and I guess we know its going to end badly for one species. Well audiences have chipped in over US$800M so far making this film the third highest grossing film of 2018 to date, so it can't be all bad. Catch this dino creature feature on the big screen while you can.

'Jurassic World : Fallen Kingdom' merits three claps of the clapperboard from a possible five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 21st June 2018.

On Sunday evening 17th June, the 65th Sydney Film Festival drew to a close with its screening of American drama comedy 'Hearts Beat Loud' as Directed and Co-Written for the screen by Brett Haley and starring Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Toni Collette and Ted Danson. The film tells the story of an old school Brooklyn record store owner and his daughter, who become overnight sensations on the Internet when a song they recorded together goes viral. The film Premiered at Sundance in January this year, went on release in the US earlier this month, and saw its Australian Premier at the Sydney Film Festival.

In other breaking SFF news, the winner of the AU$60,000 Sydney Film Prize, announced at the festival's closing ceremony, is the same-sex drama 'The Heiresses' ('Las Herederas') the first feature film by Paraguayan filmmaker Marcelo Martinessi. Set in Asuncion, Paraguay's capital city, this story centres around down on their luck and their fortunes socialite Chela (Ana Brun) as she adjusts to a new, more impoverished reality after her life partner of thirty years Chiquita (Margarita Irun) is imprisoned for fraud. After falling into work almost by accident, as a taxi driver for her elderly and wealthy neighbours, Chela meets Angy (Ana Ivanova), a younger woman who awakens her desire and her sense of adventure to live her life to the full. Martinessi is reported as saying 'I grew up in a world shaped by women: mother, sisters, grandmothers, aunts, ladies in the neighbourhood. I wanted my first feature to get into that female universe'.

The 2018 Sydney Film Prize was awarded by a five-person jury chaired by Australian artist and filmmaker Lynette Wallworth, and featuring fellow Australian Actor Ewen Leslie, Filipino Producer and Writer Bianca Balbuena, South African film composer and songwriter Chris Letcher, and Tokyo Film Festival program director Yoshi Yatabe. This Prize is awarded each year to the most 'audacious, cutting-edge and courageous film' in Sydney Film Festival's official competition. For the complete wrap-up you can go to : https://www.sff.org.au/

Turning attention to the week ahead, there are five new films coming to your local Odeon. We launch with the fifth instalment in this hugely popular and successful modern day dinosaur franchise that saw a reboot three years ago that smashed Box Office records and propelled that film into the Top Five of all time - will this second film in a planned trilogy have equal success? Only you can make that happen! We then move to a comedy about a gay male couple whose life is turned upside down by the unexpected arrival of a young grandson. Next up is an Aussie dark comedy about two brothers wanting to rid themselves of their stepdad in a well planned murder plot that doesn't go off quite as well in the execution. We then turn to a hiking adventure offering with an octogenarian widow setting herself the challenge to climb a Scottish mountain in memory of her father. And then we conclude with an acclaimed Israeli film about the futility and boredom of war from the standpoint of four soldiers manning a desolate and remote desert outpost.

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

'JURASSIC WORLD : FALLEN KINGDOM' (Rated M) - and so another much hyped highly anticipated sequel marks its return to the big screen in the form of this follow up offering to 2015's hugely successful 'Jurassic World' and the fifth instalment in the 'Jurassic Park' series. This film is intended to be the second in a planned trilogy of films, with the third due for release in June 2021. 'Jurassic World' made US$1.67B at the Global Box Office off the back of a US$150M Budget and making it the fifth highest grossing film of all time and the most financially successful in the franchise so far. Colin Trevorrow Co-Wrote and Directed the 2015 film, and this time he returns as Co-Writer and Executive Producer alongside Steven Spielberg, giving away the Directorial duties to J.A. Bayona whose previous Directing credits include 'The Orphanage', 'The Impossible' and 'A Monster Calls'. The principle cast reprise their roles, and the film is released in the US this week too.

Set three years after the destruction of the Jurassic World theme park on Isla Nublar off Central America's Pacific Coast, the escaped dinosaur's have roamed freely, until now when their very existence is threatened by an impending volcanic eruption that may destroy their island sanctuary. Former Jurassic World Operations Manager Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) forms a dinosaur rescue organisation - The Dinosaur Protection Group and teams up with Sir Benjamin Lockwood (James Cromwell), the former partner of John Hammond, to bring the creatures to an estate  sanctuary in America, joined by Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) a former dinosaur trainer at Jurassic World and the love interest of Claire Dearing. Having successfully rescued many dinosaurs before the island erupts in a ball of fire and brimstone, Claire and Owen are on the receiving end of betrayal when they discover that the dinosaurs are being auctioned off at Lockwood's Estate. But a more immediate threat looms large when a dangerous and intelligent hybrid dinosaur escapes and begins to reign down death and destruction on the Estate and potentially the much wider community. Also starring Rafe Spall, Toby Jones, Ted Levine, B.D. Wong, Geraldine Chaplin and Jeff Goldblum.

'IDEAL HOME' (Rated M) - here we have an American comedy drama offering Written and Directed by Andrew Fleming who has helmed numerous film and television series episodes over the years including features 'The Craft', 'Dick', 'The In-Laws', 'Nancy Drew' and 'Barefoot' amongst others. The film saw its World Premier screening as Sydney's Mardi Gras Film Festival back in February this year, is released this week in Australia and next week Stateside. The film tells of gay couple Paul (Paul Rudd) and Erasmus Brumble (Steve Coogan) whose life is turned upside down and inside out when unexpectedly a ten year old lad comes a knocking on their door claiming to be the grandson of Erasmus. But neither Erasmus as a TV Chef, nor Paul as his TV show Director, are quite prepared to give up the lifestyle they have become accustomed to in order to become full-time parents. But maybe this little lad has a thing or two that he can teach the oldies about the value of family and the need to belong. Jack Gore stars as Bill Brumble, the estranged Grandson of Erasmus, with Alison Pill and Jake McDorman.

'BROTHERS' NEST' (Rated MA15+) - this Australian black comedy offering is Directed, Co-Produced and stars Clayton Jacobson, the brother of Aussie film star and television personality Shane Jacobson, who also stars in this film. The two brothers last collaborated on the highly acclaimed 2006 Australian comedy 'Kenny' which propelled Shane Jacobson into the limelight, from which he has not been absent since. Here, two brothers Terry and Jeff (played by the two brothers Shane and Clayton respectively) have hatched a plan with meticulous detail to dispense with their stepfather Roger (Kym Gyngell). One cold Victorian morning the pair arrive at their family home with plans to make the murder look as though it was a suicide. Their motive, to get their mother (Lynette Curran) to change her Will in their favour. However, what they don't plan on is the repercussions of spending a whole day together under the same roof when the brothers personalities clash with varying views of the world, old grudges come to the surface and their troubled past is reignited. Also starring Sarah Snook.

'EDIE' (Rated M) - this film Premiered at the June 2017 Edinburgh International Film Festival, and has since gone on a very limited release winding up Down Under only now. Directed by Scottish Writer, Director and occasional Actor, Simon Hunter who's previous feature length credits are the 1999 horror thriller 'Lighthouse' and 2008's Sci-Fi actioner 'Mutant Chronicles' here he has a very different change of pace with this offering. The film tells the story of 83 year old Edith Moore aka Edie (played by 85 year old Sheila Hancock) who as the film opens has just bid farewell to her difficult and controlling husband George (Donald Pelmear) who we learn was incapacitated by a stroke three decades or so before. Edie's daughter Nancy (Wendy Morgan) wants to check her mother into a care facility, but octogenarian Edie has different plans given her new found independence. In her possibly last hurrah, Edie decides to climb Scotland's Mount Suilven having remembered her fathers wish to scale the fabled peak all those decades ago, but due to her husbands ill health, she was never able to accomplish, until now. She boards a train bound for the Highlands, armed with an old stove and an even older pair of gum boots and so her adventure begins. En route she meets the owner of a local camping shop Jonny (Kevin Guthrie) who  agrees to lend her assistance on her journey, from which they both have new experiences and learnings. The film has received generally positive Reviews.

'FOXTROT' (Rated MA15+) - this Hebrew language Israeli film has been widely acclaimed having picked up sixteen award wins and another fourteen nominations from around the festival circuit including three wins, one of which was the Silver Lion at last years Venice Film Festival. It was also entered into the Academy Awards this year as a Best Foreign Language Film contender but was never nominated. Written and Directed by Israeli Samuel Maoz the film opens up with Michael and Dafna Feldmann (Lior Ashkenazi and Sarah Adler respectively), an affluent Tel Aviv couple, learning that their son, Jonathan, a soldier in the Israeli Defence Force, has died in the line of duty.  The military authorities refuse to inform the distraught parents where and how Jonathan died, or if his body had been recovered. Several hours later, they are told in a matter-of-fact kind of way that there has been a mix-up, and that it was coincidentally some other Jonathan Feldman that had been killed. We then backtrack to follow Jonathan's experiences during his military service as one of four soldiers manning a desolate checkpoint under primitive conditions, with more camel traffic than human traffic to pass the time of day, until late one night, the soldiers kill four young Arabs travelling together after they mistake a beer can that fell out of their car for an explosive device.

With five new release films out 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. Meanwhile, I'll see you sometime somewhere in the week ahead at your local Odeon.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

JURASSIC WORLD : Wednesday 17th June 2015.

'JURASSIC WORLD' - the fourth film in the popular 'Jurassic' franchise has arrived with a record breaking new story twenty-two years after Steven Spielberg first bought us 'Jurassic Park' in 1993 that in itself grossed in excess of US$1B after the release of the 2013 20th Anniversary 3D Edition. In 1997 'Jurassic Park : The Lost World' followed, again Directed by Spielberg and in 2001 'Jurassic Park III' came along this time with Joe Johnston on Director duty. Those first three films made US$2,02B from combined budgets of US$229M. For fourteen years the idea and various scripts came and went languishing in development hell, until Colin Trevorrow came on board in 2013 with the resulting fourth instalment which I saw earlier this week.

This film is set twenty-two years after the disastrous events of 'Jurassic Park' took place with a now fully functioning dino theme park 'Jurassic World' open for business on the island of Isla Nublar off the Central American coast - the location of the first film too. As the film opens brothers Zach & Gray Mitchell (Nick Robinson & Ty Simpkins respectively) are being packed off for a VIP trip to Jurassic World where Aunt Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) oversees the entire operation. Arriving via plane, ship & monorail on Isla Nublar the gates open on the new luxury theme park to hordes of eager tourists and sightseers keen to experience the biggest, scariest, baddest beasts of yesteryear roaming around wild and free (albeit captive on the island). When they arrive Claire is too busy to give them any attention and sends them off with VIP passes to go enjoy themselves. See ya later!

The park is operated by InGen and today the owner of said park, one of the world's richest men, Simon Masrani (Irrfan Khan) of the Masrani Corporation is visiting to check out his latest, and yet to be revealed, exhibit. Back in the lab Masrani converses with Chief Geneticist Dr. Henry Wu (B.D.Wong) returning from the series opening film but since promoted (big time). With the need to showcase new, big, exciting attractions to satisfy the tourists, secure additional sponsorship dollars and encourage more & more visitation Wu has engineered 'Indominus rex' from several predatory dinosaur genes as well as those from other modern animals (although Wu keeps the gene cocktail a closely guarded secret). Before Masrani shows off his latest greatest dinosaur creation he calls for Owen Grady (Chris Pratt) - the parks Velociraptor trainer, to check out Indominus and its purpose built enclosure for readiness, and presumably safety.

Meanwhile InGen's Head of Security Vic Hoskins (Vincent D'Onofrio) has a view that Grady's trained Velociraptor's could be trained for military purposes so creating an army of intelligent, agile, killing dinosaurs that could thwart any foe. After some Velociraptor shenanigans that show us what Grady has achieved with his four 'trained' reptiles, we move to the Indominus enclosure where Grady and Dearing are assessing its preparedness for opening. This is the first time that Grady sets eyes upon the engineered dinosaur, and quickly learns that this is one intelligent badass MoFo not to be toyed with. Needless to say that inspection doesn't go well and Indominus escapes leaving a trail of death and destruction quickly in its wake, and setting the scene for mayhem and misfortune aplenty.

Across the island 22,000 visitors on the day are enjoying interacting with dinosaurs large & small, friendly and vicious, carnivores and herbivores all. Oblivious about the fate that awaits, Dearing swings into action to close off the section of the island where Indominus is now roaming and doing its thang! We are talking about an intelligent agile animal here though with various abilities built into its engineered make-up, as well as its sheer scale, brute force and its basic need to eat. With various heavily armed security patrols sent out to capture and contain Indominus their fate too is not pretty and short-lived. The Mitchell brothers meanwhile check out the island in a gyrosphere sweeping across the grassland dodging non-dangerous dinosaurs and enjoying the spectacle. Until of course they venture across Indominus!

By now the island is in lock down and all tourists make there way back to the central hub to take shelter and prepare for evacuation . . . all 22,000 of them! As the dino-crap hits the fan Masrani (a chopper pilot in the making) takes off with two machine gun totting soldiers to track down Indominus from the air and end its trail of destruction. If only it were that simple! The rampaging animal smashes through into the pterosaur aviary unleashing a flock of vicious swooping winged killers, that as they escape take out Masrani's helicopter and head for the islands central hub and a tasty lunch . . . of the human kind.

With Masrani gone Hoskins assumes command of the island and the situation convincing Grady to use his four trained Velociraptors to hunt down and kill Indominus. Clearing out the lab of precious embryos Hoskins gets Wu off the island quickly with a bunch of safely secured samples (nicely setting up the sequel), and finishes off helping pack up more, when they are confronted by Grady, Dearing and the Mitchell brothers amidst all the carnage. Hoskins admits to them that Jurassic World is merely a vehicle with which to cultivate and engineer a super-army of genetically modified dinosaurs, at which point he is promptly munched upon by a Velociraptor.

This then sets the show down between Indominus, the Velociraptors and a T-Rex released deliberately to thwart the larger beast. More mayhem and destruction ensues across the central hub as night time descends on the park leaving Grady, Dearing and the Mitchells to dodge wrecked building debris and flying dinosaur bodies as the final fight to the death unfolds before us writ large, loud & proud on screen.

When the dust settles, the visiting public are evacuated back to Costa Rica and the island stands calm, peaceful and empty - except for the one victorious dinosaur and all those others that escaped and now roam free, and free of any human intervention.

This is a very respectable fourth film in the franchise and is well handled by Director Colin Trevorrow. The story is solid enough, it moves along at a good pace, the action set pieces are very well handled, the creature effects are first rate and the nods to the original film are a nostalgic touch. You should see this on the big screen, and given that this instalment has generated already US$760M as of 20th June and smashed a whole bunch of records, you can bet that another film will follow and that Chris Pratt will also star, having signed up for more Jurassic World outings.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-