Films seen so far this year: 346
Films seen this week: Ong-Bak 2: The Beginning, Exam, Love Exposure, Couples Retreat, The Limits of Control, A Prophet, Paper Heart, Wah Do Dem, Law Abiding Citizen, Fantastic Mr Fox, Precious
Post credits scenes: An update
Last year I wrote a blog post on post credits scenes and how it was always worth sitting through the credits on the off-chance that there'd be a piece of off-the-wall nonsense or comedy gold tagged on at the end. Well, I've seen a handful of films recently that all had post-credits scenes (or stingers, as I believe they're sometimes called) but none of them have really been worth sticking around for, so this is a general plea to directors to make your post credits scenes funnier. After all, half the joy of the post credits stinger lies in telling everyone that left when the credits started that they should have stayed because they missed a hilarious post-creds gag.
Anyway, recent examples include: Couples Retreat (the four guys standing together, urinating and talking about the financial crisis); Wah Do Dem (the lead character listening to music, which sort of detracts from the actual ending, but never mind); and a particularly good one in Zombieland, although to say anything about it would give away one of the film's best moments, so you'll just have to see that one for yourself. Also, if you're a fan of that sort of thing, check out this stinger-dedicated website.
Films I'm Looking Forward To: Amelia
I've been dying to see Amelia ever since they screened a brief clip of the film as part of a 'Who might be winning Oscars next year?' montage at the end of this year's Academy Awards ceremony. A biopic of Amelia Earhart, the film is directed by Mira Nair and stars Hilary Swank as Amelia, with Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor and Christopher Eccleston (who's not in the trailer) in support. Frankly, I'm a sucker for anything set in the 1930s and Mira Nair's films are always, at the very least, gorgeous to look at, so if the script is good, this probably has a very real shot at a Best Picture nomination next year. Swank is almost certainly a shoo-in for a Best Actress nomination too and I was amused to note (on the Wikipedia link above) that Earhart, like Swank, had a gap-toothed smile that she was often urged to conceal in photos. For once, this does actually have a UK release date – it's out on November 13th, which also makes it a strong contender for the Surprise Film at the London Film Festival.
Top 10 Films On Release This Week (as recommended by me):
Just three new entries this week, with Pixar's latest masterpiece UP, hugely enjoyable zom-com Zombieland and Shane Meadows' hilarious mock-doc Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee all making it into the top ten. No new interviews this week either, but you can read our exclusive interviews with (500) Days of Summer star Joseph Gordon-Levitt here, with Hurt Locker star Brian Geraghty here, with Vinyan star Rufus Sewell here and with Zombieland star Jesse Eisenberg here (although he only really talks about his other -land movie, Adventureland). Oh, and of course, our exclusive interview with the lovely Georgia King (star of Tormented), here.
1. Fish Tank
2. (500) Days of Summer
3. UP
4. Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs (3D)
5. District 9
6. Toy Story (3D)
7. Zombieland
8. The Hurt Locker
9. Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee
10. Vinyan
DVD of the Week: Vinyan (released 12th October, RRP £14.99)
As if to illustrate what I was saying a couple of weeks ago about films getting brief theatrical releases before going more or less straight to DVD, this week's DVD of the Week is Vinyan, a sort of arthouse horror movie, directed by Belgian director Fabrice Du Welz (who made the equally worth-seeking-out Calvaire). The film stars Rufus Sewell and Emmanuelle Beart as a distraught couple whose search for their lost son leads them into the dark heart of the Burmese jungle, but the film's a lot less conventional than that makes it sound, most notably in the astonishing sound design work. Du Welz creates a distinctly unsettling atmosphere throughout and the ending is genuinely horrifying. The performances are superb too – read our exclusive interview with Rufus Sewell here. Unfortunately there are no extras on the DVD, which is a shame, as Du Welz definitely seems like a director with a lot to say. Here's hoping there's a special edition in the works, as this is a powerful, superbly acted and emotionally devastating film. Recommended.