EIFF 2001: Day 4

Surprise Movie disappoints

by Trinity

At 6.59pm, two packed auditoria at the UGC cinema waited in anticipation for the screening of the Surprise Movie. Lizzie Francke stepped up onto the stage - and didn't launch into the normal introduction. Instead she welcomed to the stage Tim Roth, who proceeded to tease the audience, without revelaing the name of the film. And so, the lights went down, the Fox fanfare rolled and the booming score and starry visuals revealed...

Planet of the Apes

Now this was a surprise choice, given it opens in cinemas tomorrow but, with the Surprise Film, anything's possible. I wonder if this was a "backup" film which had to be drafted in at the last minute. Still the audience seemed to be reasonably satisfied, with most coming to the consensus that the film was certainly spectacular (although I'm still not sure about the "surprise" ending).

Sadly I didn't get to speak to Tim Roth afterwards, but keep reading this site for more film gossip from the festival.

Share this with others on...
News

Underrepresented stories Laura Green and Anna Moot-Levin on Matter of Mind: My Parkinson’s

Between strangers Anthony Chen in capturing emotion in Drift

Art of observation Matthäus Wörle on his collaborative approach to debut documentary Where We Used To Sleep

Gateway between worlds Anu Valia on expectations, reality and We Strangers

The little things Inside the 2024 Glasgow Short Film Festival

Choosing her colours Joe Lawlor and Christine Malloy on Rose Dugdale and Baltimore

Filmhouse gets £1.5m funding boost Edinburgh cultural hub set to reopen this year

More news and features

Interact

More competitions coming soon.