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UK’s Odeon Cinemas Expands Family Offer

In a bid to bolster its draw for families, the UK’s Odeon Cinemas is expanding the scope of its “adults pay kids prices” deal. The scheme will see admits for one adult and one child from as little as £10 for an Odeon Cinema and £15 for an Odeon Luxe throughout 2024. The AMC-owned chain says it’s making the investment into its family offerings as data has shown that affordability and convenience are the biggest concerns for families when considering activities, particularly over the summer holidays. With the opening weekend of Inside Out 2 marking Odeon’s busiest since National Cinema Day last September, turnstiles have been on fire. The UK gross for IO2 through Sunday stands at $40.2M while such titles with family appeal on deck include Despicable Me 4 on July 12 and Harold and the Purple Crayon on August 2. Later in the year,...

"The Impossible" is a 2012 disaster film based on the true story of the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. The movie follows the Bennett family's fight to reunite after being separated by the disaster while showcasing other survivors searching for their loved ones, including a character named Karl. Karl, played by Sönke Möhring, helps Henry Bennett find his family, and their friendship develops as they search for their loved ones, but the movie never reveals what happened to Karl's wife and daughter.

The Impossible tells the true story of the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami on December 26, 2004, and Karl Schweber, played by Sönke Möhring, is one of the characters depicted trying to find his family after the disaster separated them in the film. The 2012 movie primarily revolved around the Bennett family, who were based on Enrique Álvarez, María Belón, and their children Lucas, Simón, and Tomás, and their fight to reunite following the earthquake and tsunami.

Easily one of the best movies of its kind, J.A. Bayona’s minute-by-minute tale of survival poses an immediate challenge to audiences: could I survive that? The genuinely terrifying true story of one family lost in the middle of a devastating disaster is even more relevant now, with similar disasters seemingly happening daily. The near-flawless direction concentrates on the direct experience of a mother and son, who in just a couple of days learn the meaning of human concern and kindness. It’s a Spanish production (in English); Naomi Watts received an Oscar nomination and Ewan McGregor and young Tom Holland give strong performances. We reach back ten years for this review.

The Impossible

Blu-ray

Summit Entertainment

2012 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 114 min. / Lo imposible / Street Date April 23, 2013 / Available from Amazon / 19.99

Starring: Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland, Samuel Joslin, Oaklee Pendergast, Marta Etura, Sönke Möhring, Geraldine Chaplin, Ploy Jindachote, Jomjaoi Sae-Limh,...

Eccho Rights, the Stockholm-based rights-management and sales company, has come on board political drama-thriller “Invisible Heroes” in the run-up to Natpe.

Inspired by true events, “Invisible Heroes” follows the remarkable exploits of a rookie Finnish diplomat, Tapani Brotherus, who risked everything he had to secretly help secure asylum in Europe for more than 2,000 Chilean citizens whose lives were under threat following General Pinochet’s military coup in 1973. The international diplomacy drama was written by the playwrights Tarja Kylma and Manuela Infante Guell.

Eccho Rights will handle international sales on the six-part series, which is produced by Kaiho Republic in Finland and Parox in Chile. “Invisible Heroes” was commissioned by the Finnish broadcasting company Yle, in association with Chilevision.

“This is an incredible story that will appeal to a wide international audience given its extraordinary subject matter that many will not have heard of before,” said Nicola Söderlund, managing partner at Eccho Rights.

Hot projects on Screenbase this week include German-Canadian co-production In The Lost Lands, twin brothers Mohammed Abou Nasser and Ahmad Abou Nasser’s Dégradé, spy-thriller Damascus Cover and documentary Tomorrow.

Fantasy adventure In The Lost Lands

Milla Jovovich will star alongside Justin Chatwin in this new feature based on short stories from the creator of Game Of Thrones. The German-Canadian co-production is directed by Constantin Werner.

The story revolves around a series of magical and fantastic tales centring on a sorceress in search of a spell, a warrior girl on a quest and a young barbarian who encounters a witch in a spacecraft.

Steve Hoban, Oliver Luer and Nico Bruinsma produce. Myriad Pictures chief Kirk D’Amico will serve as an executive producer.

Terrence Malick’s Voyage Of Time

Malick’s documentary features the voices of Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. Dede Gardner, Nicolas Gonda, Sarah Green, Grant Hill, Brad Pitt, Bill Pohlad and [link...

Double Dutch International president Jason Morning announced on Wednesday (February 4) the company will kick off pre-sales in Berlin on the heist film.

Michael Wenning will commence shooting in spring in Berlin on the tale of a mysterious person who hires a team of glamourous thieves to steal the most valuable stamp in the world. Amr Waked, Sönke Möhring and Anika Noni Rose star.

Ilann Girard produces and Nick Cannon from America’s Got Talent will serve as executive producer with D Street Picture’s Dexter Davis.

“The Blue Mauritius has all the making of a classic heist film with a modern edge,” said Moring. “We’re excited to introduce this truly international film to buyer’s in Berlin, a city with its own rich history that will set the tone and act as the backdrop for this sexy thriller.”...

The Impossible

Stars: Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland, Samuel Joslin, Oaklee Pendergast, Marta Etura, Sönke Möhring | Written by Sergio G. Sánchez | Directed by J.A. Bayona

Director J.A. Bayona burst onto the scene to widespread acclaim back in 2007 with the Guillermo Del Toro backed The Orphanage, an impressive ghost story filled with the classical sense of dread Del Toro himself excels out while telling a deeply personal story. Instead of going on the horror movie merry-go-round which has taken so many promising directors over recent years, Bayona instead aimed for the stars, using a big budget and big names to tell a “true” story of the horrific Boxing Day Tsunami and one family’s struggle to find each other in its wake.

It’s not hard to get worked up by the events of The Impossible, the sheer tragedy which struck was splashed all over our TV screens for weeks...

The American Film Institute (AFI) today announced its red carpet Centerpiece Galas and Special Screenings . comprised of award season contenders and the year.s most highly anticipated works from film masters, moving image icons and breakthrough talents . for AFI Fest 2012 presented by Audi. This year.s line up includes feature films of iconic figures such as President Abraham Lincoln, prolific filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock and Beat Generation writer Jack Kerouac, as well as non-fiction and inspired-by stories about the Central Park Five and West of Memphis teenagers, Southeast Asia tsunami survivors and much more.

As previously announced, the World Premiere of Hitchcock (Dir Sacha Gervasi) is the Opening Night Gala and the World Premiere of Lincoln (Dir Steven Spielberg) is the Closing Night Gala.

The Centerpiece Galas are Life Of Pi in 3D (Dir Ang Lee); On The Road (Dir Walter Salles);Rise Of The Guardians in 3D (Dir Peter Ramsey...

Director Quentin Tarantino's World War II action adventure Inglourious Basterds stars actor Brad Pitt as an American officer, leading a squad of renegade Us soldiers behind enemy lines. The film's ensemble cast includes Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, Eli Roth, Samm Levine, B.J. Novak, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Paul Rust, Michael Bacall, Omar Doom, Sylvester Groth, Julie Dreyfus, Jacky Ido, August Diehl, Martin Wuttke, Richard Sammel, Christian Berkel, Sönke Möhring, Michael Fassbender, Mike Myers, Rod Taylor, Denis Menochet and Cloris Leachman. Basterds reunites Tarantino with Academy Award-nominated editor Sally Menke, Academy Award-winning Dp Bob Richardson and production designer David Wasco. Also joining Tarantino for the first time is Academy Award-nominated costume designer Anna Sheppard. Academy Award-nominee Lawrence Bender produced the film with Erica Steinberg and Lloyd Phillips. Co-producers are Charlie Woebcken, Christoph Fisser and Henning Molfenter, with Pilar Savone, associate producer. The Weinstein Company and Universal Pictures,...

Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this week, yet according to Variety's Thompson on Hollywood the filmmaker may make a few more alterations to his WWII film:

Brad and Angelina seemed happy, as did an ebullient Quentin Tarantino, although Twc's 50/50 partner on the picture, Universal, Update: is talking to the filmmaker about returning to the editing room post-Cannes to make some trims edits that might include adding a scene, says Tarantino, who reminds that the film, at two hours 27 minutes, is well under his contractual final cut length of two hours 48 minutes.

The ensemble cast of Inglourious Basterds includes Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, Eli Roth, Samm Levine, B.J. Novak, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Paul Rust, Michael Bacall, Omar Doom, Sylvester Groth, Julie Dreyfus, Jacky Ido, August Diehl, Martin Wuttke, Richard Sammel, Christian Berkel, Sönke Möhring, Michael Fassbender, Mike Myers,...

Filed under: Fandom, Brad Pitt, Movie Marketing, Images

The first image of Brad Pitt from Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds has just arrived online (see below gallery and click to enlarge). In the film, Pitt plays Lt. Aldo Raine, who leads a group of Jewish-American soldiers during WWII called 'The Basterds'. For these men, their job is to track down and viciously murder Nazis in an attempt to provoke fear in the Third Reich. Basterds is currently in production in Germany, and stars Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, Eli Roth, Samm Levine, B.J. Novak, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Paul Rust, Michael Bacall, Omar Doom, Sylvester Groth, Julie Dreyfus, Jacky Ido, August Diehl, Martin Wuttke, Richard Sammel, Christian Berkel, Sönke Möhring, Michael Fassbender, Mike Myers, Rod Taylor, Denis Menochet and Cloris Leachman.

Obviously they're wasting no time spreading hype for this flick (but will Tarantino have it done in time for Cannes,...

Quentin Tarantino has begun production on his exploitation/war epic Inglorious Bastards. Now, that's the last time I can use the correct spelling of those words in connection with this film, because Qt spells it Inglourious Basterds, an artistic decision (or editing omission) for which I find I have a very low tolerance.

Anyway, Basterds is currently filming, and enjoy this Love Boat-sized ensemble: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, Eli Roth, Samm Levine, B.J. Novak, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Paul Rust, Michael Bacall, Omar Doom, Sylvester Groth, Julie Dreyfus, Jacky Ido, August Diehl, Martin Wuttke, Richard Sammel, Christian Berkel, Sönke Möhring, Michael Fassbender, Mike Myers, Rod Taylor, Denis Menochet and apparently, Cloris by God Leachman. I would so love it if Cloris Leachman has a cameo as Frau Blücher.

The last we heard, the hope is still to have this done in time for Cannes...

Here's a round-up of some stuff (and things) currently causing waves online:

-- Word has it the first full length trailer for J.J. Abrams' Star Trek will debut in front of [insert popular film here] this November. TrekMovie claims it will be a "real trailer" with actual "footage from the film." Imagine that! If it does indeed premiere in November, the most likely place for it will be before Quantum of Solace on November 14th. In a related piece, Abrams has confirmed the running time to be about two hours.

-- Principal photography on Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds (new spelling) has begun in Germany (see initial poster to the right), and what appears to be the full, final cast has been announced (and it includes some familiar Tarantino regulars). Joining Brad Pitt will be Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, Eli Roth, Samm Levine, B.J. Novak, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard,...

Update: The full cast list from today's official press release for the movie (carrying Qt's infamously misspelled title Inglourious Basterds): Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, Eli Roth, Samm Levine, B.J. Novak, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Paul Rust, Michael Bacall, Omar Doom, Sylvester Groth, Julie Dreyfus, Jacky Ido, August Diehl, Martin Wuttke, Richard Sammel, Christian Berkel, Sönke Möhring, Michael...