What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 4th June 2026.

The 73rd edition of the Sydney Film Festival this year runs from Wednesday 3rd June through until Sunday 14th June, in the Australian city of Sydney, in New South Wales. This years festival has a line-up of 248 films from 81 countries, with nineteen titles arriving directly from the Cannes Film Festival held at the State Theatre, the Sydney Opera House and cinemas across the city. The competitive film festival, founded in 1954, draws international and local attention, with films including features, documentaries, short films, retrospectives, films for families and animations. Patrons of the festival include Gillian Armstrong, Cate Blanchett, Jane Campion, Nicole Kidman, Baz Luhrmann, George Miller, and Sam Neill. 

This years Opening Night film presentation is 'Silenced', and this biographical documentary is Co-Written and Directed by Selina Miles and based on the book 'How Many More Women?' by Jennifer Robinson and Keio Yoshida. The film tells the story of how after the #MeToo movement broke the cultural silence on gender violence, international human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson fights against the weaponisation of defamation laws to silence survivors and journalists, and tracing the cases of Amber Heard, Brittany Higgins, and Catalina Ruiz-Navarro amongst others. The Closing Night film is 'Paper Tiger' Written and Directed by James Gray. This crime drama film centres around two brothers (Adam Driver and Miles Teller) who pursue the American Dream but get entangled in a dangerous Russian mafia scheme that terrorises their family, testing their bond as betrayal becomes possible. Also starring Scarlett Johansson as the wife of Miles Teller's character.

A small number of prizes existed from the mid-1980's, and prior to 2007, the Sydney Film Festival was classified by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF) as a Non-Competitive Feature Film Festival. In late 2007, the Festival announced it had received funding from the New South Wales Government to host an official international competition, which rewarded 'new directions in film'. The FIAFP has since classified the Sydney Film Festival as a Competitive Specialised Feature Film Festival, with the total prize pool this year worth in the region of AU$200K. 

Sydney Film Prize (awarded to the most 'audacious, cutting-edge, and courageous' film in the Official Competition, endorsed by FIAPF) carries an AU$60K cash prize to the winning filmmaker. Those thirteen titles competing for this years Sydney Film Prize are as given in brief below :-

* Parallel Tales' - from France, USA, Italy and Belgium, this drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Asghar Farhadi. The film follows Sylvie (Isabelle Huppert), a famous author seeking inspiration on the neighbours across the street, who hires the mysterious Adam (Adam Bessa) as assistant, but he quickly turns her life upside down. Also starring Vincent Cassel, Virginie Efira, Pierre Niney and Catherine Deneuve.

* 'Minotaur' - from France, Latvia and Germany and this political thriller drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev and is based on the 1969 French film 'The Unfaithful Wife' by Claude Chabrol. Set in 2022 in the backdrop of the Russo-Ukrainian war, broken business executive Gleb (Dmitriy Mazurov) discovers his wife Galina (Iris Lebedeva) has been unfaithful.

* 'Sheep in the Box' - from Japan and Written, Directed and Edited by Hirokazu Kore-eda. It stars Haruka Ayase and Daigo Yamamoto as a couple who welcomes an infant humanoid robot (Kuwaki Rimu), following the passing of their son.

* 'Gentle Monster' - from Austria, Germany and France and Written and Directed by Marie Kreutzer. A renowned pianist relocates with her family from Munich to the countryside, where she uncovers a life-shattering truth that forces her to confront the complexities of love, trust, and deception. Starring Lea Seydoux, Jella Haase, Laurence Rupp, and Catherine Deneuve.

* 'Fatherland' - from Poland, Italy, Germany and France, this biographical film is Co-Written, Directed and Co-Edited by Pawel Pawlikowski. Starring Sandra Huller and Hanns Zischler as Erika Mann and exiled German novelist Thomas Mann, respectively, as they embark on a road trip from Frankfurt, West Germany, to Weimar, East Germany, during the Cold War in 1949. 

* 'The Dreamed Adventure' - from Germany, France, Bulgaria and Austria this drama film is Written and Directed by Valeska Griesbach. On the border between Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, a woman agrees to help an old acquaintance with an illegal mission.

* 'Ben'Imana' - from Rwanda, Gabon, France, Norway and the Ivory Coast, this drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Marie Clementine Dusabejambo. Set in Rwanda in 2012, the film follows Veneranda, a survivor of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, who is involved in community-led justice and reconciliation. As she faces mounting pressures in her work, a personal crisis within her family forces her to confront the limits of her beliefs.
* 'Fjord' - from Romania, Norway, Denmark, Finland, France and Sweden, this drama film is Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Cristian Mungiu. The film stars Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve as a Romanian-Norwegian couple who face scrutiny after moving to the wife's remote Norwegian hometown.

* 'Shame and Money' - from Germany, Kosovo, Slovenia, Albania, North Macedonia and Belgium and Co-Written and Directed by Visar Morina. A proud family man struggles to provide as financial pressures mount. Though his mother and brother-in-law offer help, accepting support wounds his dignity. As stability slips away, he faces tough choices about pride versus survival.

* 'Dao' - from France, Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, this drama film is Written, Directed and Co-Edited by Alain Gomis. Structured between two ceremonies - a wedding in France and a commemorative ritual in Guinea-Bissau - the film traces a cyclical movement through everyday gestures, encounters, and transitions, blending lived reality with ritual and memory.

* 'No Good Men' - from Germany, France, Norway, Denmark and Afghanistan, this autobiographical drama film is Written, Directed and stars Shahrbanoo Sadat as Naru, the thirty year old and only female camerawoman at a Kabul TV station, who is convinced there are no good men in Afghanistan, until she meets a fifty year old married reporter. 

* 'The Invite' - from the USA and this comedy film is Directed and stars Olivia Wilde, and is an English language remake of the Spanish film 'The People Upstairs' by Cesc Gay. A married couple experiencing a rough patch in their relationship finds themselves invited by their neighbours to engage in their weekly orgies. Also starring Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz and Edward Norton. 

* 'Leviticus' - from Australia, this romantic supernatural horror film is Written and Directed by Adrian Chiarella. Two teenage boys must escape a violent entity that takes the form of the person they desire most - each other. Starring Joe Bird, Stacy Clausen, Mai Wasikowska, Ewen Leslie and Nicholas Hope. 

For the other competitive sections being showcased - The Documentary Australia Award, the First Nations Award, and the Sustainable Future Award, together with the other sections screened including Special Presentations, International Documentaries, Features, The Tropical Trail and Freak Me Out, plus a whole bunch of other good stuff, you can visit the official website at : http://www.sff.org.au

Turning the attention then back to this weeks five new movies coming to a big screen Odeon near you, we begin with a sword and sorcery offering that is a remake of a dud from 1987, that here sees a young man on Earth who discovers a fabulous secret legacy as the Prince of an alien planet, and must recover a magic sword and return home to protect his kingdom. Then we have a black comedy about a once-celebrated artist's now adult children who enlist a forger to access his unfinished canvases in a deceptive bid to secure an inheritance. This is followed by an adventure drama film centring on two old friends who are walking 600 kilometres through the Scottish highlands, to reconnect with each other, nature and parts of themselves they lost. Next up is a German drama that sees four girls from different time periods who experience their youth on a German farm, as their lives become intertwined until time seems to dissolve. And closing out the week we have an American parody film that is the sixth entry in this franchise in which, some twenty-six years after outrunning a suspiciously familiar masked killer, the Core Four find themselves targeted by another mad slasher.

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.

'MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE' (Rated M) - is an American Sci-Fi sword and sorcery film Directed by Travis Knight who made his Directorial debut with the stop-motion animated fantasy film 'Kubo and the Two Strings' in 2016, and he would follow this up with his live action debut with 'Bumblebee' in 2018. After this film he has another stop-motion animated dark fantasy offering in 'Wildwood' due for release later this year. This film is based on the 'Masters of the Universe' media franchise by Mattel, and had its World Premiere screening in Hollywood in mid-May and is released in the USA and here in Australia this week, having cost in the region of US$185M to produce. This is the second live-action film adaptation after the 1987 film which was hailed a critical and commercial failure grossing just US$17M worldwide from a production budget of US$22M, but has since become regarded as a cult film. 

After being separated for fifteen years, the Sword of Power leads Prince Adam Glenn (Nicholas Galitzine) back to Eternia where he discovers his home has been destroyed and is now under the rule of powerful warlord and sorcerer, Skeletor (Jared Leto). In order to reclaim his family legacy and save the world, Adam must join forces with his closest allies, Teela (Camila Mendes) and Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba), and embrace who he is truly meant to be - He-Man, the most powerful man in the universe. Also starring Alison Brie, James Purefoy, Morena Baccarin, Kristen Wiig, Charlotte Riley and Johannes Haukur Johannesson.

'THE CHRISTOPHERS' (Rated MA15+) - this US and UK Co-Produced black comedy film is photographed, Directed and Edited by Steven Soderbergh (with the former under his pseudonym Peter Andrews and the latter under Mary Ann Bernard). Steven Soderbergh's prior feature film credits take in his debut with 'Sex, Lies and Videotape' in 1989 which he would follow up with the likes of 'Out of Sight' in 1998, 'Erin Brockovich' and 'Traffic' both in 2000, 'Ocean's Eleven', 'Ocean's Twelve' and 'Ocean's Thirteen' in 2001, 2004 and 2007 respectively, 'Contagion' in 2011, 'Magic Mike' in 2012, 'Logan Lucky' in 2017, 'Unsane' in 2018, 'No Sudden Move' in 2021, 'Magic Mike's Last Dance' in 2023 and 'Black Bag' in 2025. Here then, Julian Sklar (Ian McKellen) was once a star of London’s 1960’s and 70’s pop art explosion, but he hasn’t painted in decades and has been broke for years. His two estranged children Barnaby Sklar (James Corden) and Sallie Sklar (Jessica Gunning), desperate for an inheritance, hire Lori Butler (Michaela Coel), an art restorer and former forger, to pose as a prospective assistant in order to access eight unfinished canvases Julian has buried deep in storage. Her plan is to complete them, then return them to storage, where they are to be 'discovered' upon Julian’s death, in order for Barnaby and Sallie to claim a small fortune from their sale. The film saw its World Premiere screening at the Toronto International Film Festival in early September last year, was released in the US in mid-April, and the UK in mid-May having generated largely positive critical press, and so far grossing US$2M.

'THE NORTH' (Rated M) - is a Dutch film that is Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Bart Schrijver who made his feature film debut Directing a segment of 'In Cube' in 2015 and would follow this up in his own right in 2022 with 'Human Nature'. Here, some ten years after they were best friends and roommates, Chris (Bart Harder) aged 35 and Lluis (Carles Pulido) aged 34 set out on a 600km hike through the Scottish Highlands. Following the West Highland way and The Cape Wrath Trail, they spend thirty days together in nature - hoping to rekindle their once-powerful friendship. But while Chris remains preoccupied with work and life back at home, Lluis is determined to finish the trail to prove he can do it. The solitude and silence of the highlands forces them to confront harsh truths about themselves, their friendship, and what it truly means to stand still and listen. The film was released in its native Holland at the end of July last year and more recently in the UK and Ireland at the end of April, having generated largely positive critical acclaim.

'SOUND OF FALLING' (Rated MA15+) - is a German drama film Co-Written and Directed by Mascha Schilinski. The film saw its World Premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in mid-May 2025, where it won the Jury Prize. It follows four generations of girls - Alma (Hanna Heckt), Erika (Lea Drinda), Angelika (Lena Urzendowsky) and Lenka (Laeni Geiseler) connected by a remote farm in the Altmark region of Germany. It is structured non-linearly, shifting between the four different time periods - the 1910's, 1940's, 1980's and 2020's where those four women, separated by decades but united by trauma, uncover the truth behinds its weathered walls where gestures, conversations, and situations recur over time. The film was released in Germany in late August last year, has garnered universal critical acclaim and has so far grossed US$5M.

'SCARY MOVIE' (Rated MA15+) - this American parody film is Directed by Michael Tiddes whose previous feature film making credits take in 'A Haunted House' in 2013, 'A Haunted House 2' in 2014, 'Fifty Shades of Black' in 2016, 'Naked' in 2017 and 'Sextuplets' in 2019. This film is Co-Written and Co-Produced by Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Keenen Ivory Wayans, Craig Wayans, and Rick Alvarez, and is the sixth instalment in the 'Scary Movie' film series, following 2013's 'Scary Movie 5'. The first five films in the series grossed US$897M off the back of combined production budgets of US$172M. Here then, treading on familiar territory, twenty-six years after outrunning a suspiciously familiar masked killer, Shorty Meeks (Marlon Wayans), Ray Wilkins (Shawn Wayans), Cindy Campbell (Anna Faris) and Brenda Meeks (Regina Hall) find themselves targeted by another mad slasher serial killer, monsters and supernatural creatures. Hilarity ensues! The film is released this week too Stateside.

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-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 20th December 2018.

As another year draws to a close, it's time to reflect on the past year of achievements and to wish my global readership all the sincerest Best Wishes for a very Merry Christmas. This year I have Reviewed 48 movies and Previewed 222, and while at it provided a synopsis of some of the more notable film festivals from around the cinematic world and awards ceremonies of repute. I have also paid tribute to numerous personalities of the big screen and the small screen who passed away during the last twelve months, but all of whom leave behind a lasting screen legacy. And, for what it's worth, I've also from time to time let my imagination run away with my ramblings on film genre specific views and opinions.

Thanks for your readership over the last twelve months - it is appreciated, and as long as my global audience continues to show an interest in Odeon Online, I'll keep writing with my Reviews, Previews, news and views with what's hot and what's not in the world of the moving picture. On the eve of Christmas therefore, all that remains for me to say is once again, have yourself a very Merry Christmas, may the force be with you, your God by your side, and a movie that sparks your interest to visit your local Odeon for a few hours of escapism. Have fun, stay safe, and see as many films as you can.

This week we have four new films to tease you out to your local Odeon in the week before Christmas, two of which are of a historical costume drama type, one is of a Sci-Fi alternative world and the other is set in the here and now. First up then we launch with an acclaimed Grecian Director who takes us down a path of the English aristocracy in the early 18th Century and various members of the Royal household jockeying to be the favoured one by the fragile ruling Queen of the time. Next up we turn to an historical biographical drama recounting the story of how this acclaimed French writer rose to fame in the late 19th Century by going against the establishment. We then turn to an origin story and a prequel of a hugely successful film and toy franchise that takes us back to the '80's as this yellow VW is a whole lot more than it seems to be, and he's not the only one! We then wrap up with a martial arts telling that is a spin off of a popular three film Chinese franchise so far that sees our failed protagonist face off against a formidable business kingpin to win back his respect and confidence.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the four 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 FAVOURITE' (Rated MA15+) - Yorgos Lanthimos, the Greek film, video, and theatre Director, Producer and Screenwriter here brings us this historical comedy drama offering that saw its World Premier screening at the Venice Film Festival back in late August where it won the Grand Jury Prize, and the Volpi Cup for Best Actress going to Olivia Coleman. The film went on general release in the US in late November, is released in the UK on 1st January 2019, has so far recovered US$7M of its US$15M production Budget, and has garnered widespread Critical acclaim. Lanthimos has enjoyed success more recently with 'The Lobster' in 2015 and 'The Killing of a Sacred Deer' in 2017. The film has been nominated for five Golden Globe Awards including Best Motion Picture, plus 21 award wins from around the circuit, and a further 32 nominations.

Set during the early 18th century, England is at war with the French but in spite of this frivolous past times are thriving on both sides of the English Channel. A frail Queen Anne (Olivia Coleman) occupies the throne, and her close friend Lady Sarah Churchill, the Duchess of Marlborough (Rachel Weisz) rules over the country as her surrogate while tending to Anne's ill health and volatile temperament. When a new assistant to the household, Abigail Hill (Emma Stone), arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah. Sarah takes Abigail under her wing, and Abigail foreshadows an ideal opportunity to return to her aristocratic roots having previously fallen upon hard times as a result of her fathers misplaced business dealings. Also starring Nicholas Hoult, Joe Alwyn and Mark Gatiss.

'COLETTE' (Rated M) - this biographical drama film is Directed by Wash Westmoreland, and is based on the life of the French novelist, journalist, actress and mime artist Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette. She lived from 1873 until 1954 and died at the age of 81, having been nominated for Nobel Prize in Literature in 1948. She was perhaps best known for her 1944 novella 'Gigi' which was made into a French film in 1949, and a Hollywood Production in 1958 starring Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier and Eva Gabor. That film won the Academy Award for Best Picture the following year. This film tells the story of author Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (Keira Knightley) who after moving to Paris, agrees to ghostwrite a semi-autobiographical novel for her husband Henry Gauthier-Villars (Dominic West). Its success quickly motivates her to stand up for creative ownership and overcome the societal constraints of the early 20th century. The film has its World Premier screening at the Sundance Film Festival back in January this year, went on general release in the US back in September, goes on release in the UK in early January 2019, has so far taken US$7M and has received generally positive Reviews so far.

'BUMBLEBEE' (Rated M) - it seems like the 'Transformers' movie franchise behemoth just keeps on keepin' on, so much so that this Sci-Fi actioner prequel takes us back to the humble beginnings of when that VW Beetle transformed into a Bumblebee, or was it the other way around? This time Michael Bay takes his place as Producer, having Directed all five of the original live action 'Transformers' films to date and gives way to Travis Knight on his live action Directing debut for this instalment. Set twenty years before the events of the first film and on the run in 1987, Bumblebee the Autobot seeks refuge in a junkyard in a small beach community in California. Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld), is about to turn eighteen and endeavouring to find her calling in the world, stumbles across the battle-scarred and broken Bumblebee. When Charlie revives him, she quickly learns that this is no ordinary yellow Volkswagen, and further the new pairing soon find themselves being hunted down by a Government Agency known as Sector 7, headed up by one Agent Burns (John Cena). Pretty soon, Charlie comes to the realisation that her Bumblebee is not the only Transformer, and that there are others who may not be quite as friendly. Also starring John Ortiz and the voices of the Decepticons include Angela Bassett, Justin Theroux and Martin Short. The film cost US$102M to bring to the big screen and is released in the US this week too.

'MASTER Z : IP MAN LEGACY' (Rated M) - here this Chinese language martial arts action film is Directed by Yuen Woo-ping, the Hong Kong martial arts Choreographer and film Director, renowned as one of the most successful and influential figures in the world of Hong Kong action cinema. In this spin off from the popular 'Ip Man' film franchise, this film charts the journey of Cheung Tin Chi (Max Zhang) who following a defeat at the hands of Ip Man takes shelter within himself, licks his wounds and becomes a depressed recluse. While Tin Chi tries to stay out of trouble, he gets himself into a fight with a local American business kingpin Owen Davidson (Dave Bautista), the big boss behind a bustling city bar precinct. Tin Chi fights hard using his teachings and his experience in Wing Chun (a martial art concept-based traditional Southern Chinese Kung-fu style and a form of self-defence, which utilises both striking and grappling in close-range combat) and earns back the respect he had lost. Also starring Michelle Yeoh and Tony Jaa.

With four 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-