Local titles shine in Top 5 charts

by Annika Pham

21/09/2007 - All five Scandinavian countries had two or three titles in all Nordic Top 5 charts last weekend, an exceptional result in particular from Iceland and Finland, which produce fewer films.

In fact, the best thing that could have happened to the Finnish film sector, currently paralyzed by a strike, was to get thousands of Finnish bums on seats to show politicians that audiences are hungry for good local movies. With its great opening, Markku Pölönen’s The Matriarch did just that, tallying 10,076 admissions from 26 screens. The film, produced by Suomen Filmiteollisuus Oy and distributed by Walt Disney Studios, was second only to Shrek the Third.

Claes Olsson’s war epic Colorado Avenue [trailer], at number four, totalled 14,648 admissions in two weeks. Together, the two films enjoyed 24.5% of the Top 10 box office last weekend.

In Iceland, audiences continue to pour into cinemas to see Gunnar B. Gudmundsson’s comedy Astropia, still number one after four weeks. Meanwhile, Gudny Halldorsdottir’s The Quiet Storm climbed up a notch to second place in the Top 10 after two weeks on release through Sena.

In Denmark, the much anticipated A Man Comes Home [trailer] by Thomas Vinterberg took fourth position with 8,597 admissions sold over the weekend and 13,000 in three days. The comedy released by Filmfolket in 45 locations had the same screen average as Ole Bornedal’s thriller Just Another Love Story [trailer] which kept its third place. The SF/Filmcompagniet release has now reached 155,247 admissions.

The Nordisk release Room 205 [trailer] will reach 80,000 admissions, making it the biggest horror film in Denmark this year. “It’s an impressive result,” said Jan Lehmann, general manager for Nordisk theatrical distribution. “The fact that it is a teen horror flick, which usually has a limited target audience and that the movie is directed by a debut director, Martin Barnewitch, certainly doesn’t make it less impressive. It is also worth mentioning that the movie was produced only by Nordisk Film without financial support from the Danish Film Institute”.

Norway’s Oscar submission Gone with the Woman [trailer] by Petter Næss lost just one seat in the Top 10 for a number three slot and 62,466 tickets sold for SF Norge. The new children’s film The Radio Pirates, also released by Nordisk Film, attracted 8,584 viewers.

Opening today are three further hopeful Oscar contenders: Danish film The Art of Crying [trailer], released by SF Norge on six prints, French title Persepolis [trailer, film focus] (Sandrew Metronome) and Austria’s Oscar entry The Counterfeiters [trailer] (Nordisk).

In Sweden, the romantic comedy Wonderful and Loved By All, distributed by Walt Disney Studios, is holding on to its third place and Sonet Film’s Ett Öga Rött by first time director Daniel Wallentin is number four. The new Nordisk opener The Black Pimpernel by Ulf Hultberg took sixth place.

Today, fans of Sweden’s grand master Roy Andersson will finally be able to see You, the Living [trailer, film focus], released by Andersson’s Studio 24 on 28 screens.

Other European openers include Blindsight [trailer] (SF) and Death at a Funeral [trailer] (Scanbox).