15/12/2006

Today is the last busy opening day of the year with 10 new films on offer, including five European titles: Swedish horror film Frostbite [+see also:
trailer
film profile], released by Soda Pictures; Berlin Golden Bear winner Grbavica [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Barbara Albert
interview: Jasmila Zbanic
film profile], released as Esma’s Secret (see Focus) by Dog Woof Pictures; the two low budget UK directorial debuts The West Wittering Affair, distributed by Yeah Yeah Yeah Ltd, and Dead Man’s Cards, released by Miracle Communications; as well as UK documentary Deep Water, released by Pathé.

Five films released on no more than 33 screens across the entire UK!

Louise Osmond and Jerry Rothwell’s documentary Deep Water, the true story of Donald Crowhurst, a free-thinking electronics inventor who entered the most daring nautical race ever, is benefiting from the biggest print run (17) thanks to Pathé’s weight, but a multiple-award-winning film like Grbavica is playing on only three cinemas, despite very positive reviews, and Anders Banke’s Frostbite on only one West-End screen.

"We would have had more screens in October, but didn’t get the promotional materials in time", said Soda’s head of marketing Kate Gerova. "The fact that we could only get one London cinema (the Prince Charles) is also reflective of the exhibition market in the UK and films like Happy Feet, Casino Royale [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (over £41m) and Borat (£23.3m) are saturating screens. Even US studios find it difficult to find screens", she stressed.

The biggest European release over the Christmas period will be the German high profile thriller Perfume: The Story of a Murderer [+see also:
trailer
film profile], released by Pathé on Boxing Day with a healthy 200 print run. That same day, Icon will present as an alternative the UK high school comedy It’s a Boy Girl Thing by Nick Hurran, executive produced by Elton John.

And to end the year in a reflective mood, Soda Pictures will offer a perfect opportunity to meditate with Philip Groening’s German documentary Into Great Silence [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Philip Groening
film profile] (see Focus), released on three screens. The intimate portrayal of the everyday lives of Carthusian monks in a remote corner of the French Alps just won the Prix Arte for Best Documentary at the European Film Academy Awards.