Well, well - I finally made it to see World War Z! About my last chance - the Empire, Leicester Square was the only one showing it at a reasonable hour, and they were only showing it tonight. Of course, I'd've seen it a lot sooner if its IMDB ratings hadn't kept slipping.. I don't recall what it started at - around 7.6, I think - but it finished at 7.2. Probably deserves something in between.
It was in screen 9, which must be one of the smallest. You could see that online, so I made sure to keep an eye on how the bookings were going, and booked just before heading into town, when I saw seats were filling up. After another sweltering journey - at least I got a seat - I made it to the Empire, which was my first time there. They're vying with the Prince Charles cinema around the corner for title of "best value in the West End". I think the Prince Charles has that one sewn up.. but the Empire is a nice cinema, with nice shiny banisters, and generally feels posher than the Prince Charles. In the lobby, at least. Sadly, Screen 9 turns out to be at the top of the house, and I was breathless by the time I got there.. (no escalators). Anyway, seat was comfortable and reclined slightly when I sat down, which is nice. Not so nice was the fact that the screen was low enough that, when captions or subtitling were displayed along the bottom, I had to crane to read them over the heads in front of me. Just as well it wasn't a foreign-language film..
Straight away, it struck me that this isn't your typical zombie film. For one thing, all the main characters are quite calm. Makes a nice change. For another, we don't see zombies that often in the film. Most of the film has Brad Pitt going around looking worried. As well he might, for it seems that disaster follows poor Brad wherever he sets foot. He's stuck in a traffic jam - zombies attack. He goes shopping - looters attack. He goes into an apartment building - zombies. He goes to a military base - zombies get the captain. He goes to a previously unattacked city - zombies get in. He's on a plane - it crashes. His family are evacuated to a refugee camp at one point, and he's worried about their safety. Frankly, I'd figure they were fine as long as he was elsewhere.
But I don't mean to imply that it isn't a good film - it's a very good film. I'm glad I got the chance to see it. It's a thrill-a-minute, never lags. The lack of constant exposure to the zombies makes them all the scarier. And you might recognise the Irish doctor in the clinic from the Irish tv series Love/Hate. I never took to it myself - only ever watched one episode.
Well, as I say, I'm back to Ireland for the weekend, and heading to the Summer Music on the Shannon festival. Assuming it's not washed out - I believe the rain has been biblical. Well, that'll make a change. And I'm extremely well organised for next week. Planning to see The Conjuring on Monday, although I haven't booked it yet because it doesn't seem to be selling out - well, it is showing widely - and, would you believe, it isn't showing in the Odeon! The nearest place it's showing doesn't have a discount for booking, so I'll leave it open for now. The next three days are booked though - and all for the Odeon Kensington, which makes me think I'll probably have trouble with the ticket machine - it doesn't like multiple bookings. Tuesday is Red 2, Wednesday is Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, and Thursday is The Heat. Gee, how long is it since I went to so many popular things in a row..?
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