Tonight, just a few weeks after Lost in Translation, I went to see another film starring Scarlett Johannson. Once again, she was devastatingly powerful in her role; very sparse dialogue, but an incredible performance. While I don’t think she was necessarily set to win it, I’m distinctly unimpressed at the Academy’s oversight in failing to nominate her for a Best Actress Oscar for either this performance or Lost in Translation.

I was the first person into the cinema, so grabbed the perfect seat naturally. However, it really wouldn’t have made much difference when I arrived, for the audience was only about a dozen people in total. Now, perhaps this was due to the fact that Croydon’s discerning filmgoing public disliked Thursday night performances, but I’m rather inclined to believe that in actual fact they were all down the hall watching Scary Movie 3. While I have nothing against such frivolity, and hey, I like a good (if somewhat vulgar) comedy as much as the next person, but it’s rather disheartening to see so little interest in those non-Hollywood films that really make powerful and original use of the medium. Maybe these films are not for everyone, but you’ll never know if you don’t give yourself the chance to love them.