Review Of The Year - Sleeper Hits

Every now and again the world of movies just stops and surprises you with the phenomena that are sleeper.

Word of mouth spreads about something and what was once one person’s love is now known my millions.

Either sneaking up on us or coming with wealth of fan build reputation, these ‘sleeper’ hits are the ones that no-one expected would be big, but FemaleFirst takes a look at back at the best of what crept up on us either at the box office and into minds of those who dole out the awards.

Number 1 – Hurt Locker

Directed by Kathryn Bigelow, the first lady of action, the Hurt Locker brought the front line to the home front with its phenomenal tale about the current conflict in the Middle East.

Depicting the war in Iraq through the eyes of three members of a bomb disposal squad, the Hurt Locker cut through the politics and got to the people involved giving an experience as visceral as anything ever seen on BBC News.

With a cast of near unknowns, The Hurt Locker brought no egos to the screen, letting the characters do the talking, which lends the film a real sense of authenticity.

With action that hits as hard as anything else in any movie this year, with a near permanent nerve shredding levels of tension, The Hurt Locker never gives you a minutes rest during it’s two hour running time.

The movie became the darling of film critics around the world, and whoever saw the film came away stunned.

Unfortunately this didn’t translate to ticket sales, never once breaking into the top ten in the both here and in the U.S.

Now nominated for multiple Golden Globes and in with a real shot of at least an Oscar nomination,The Hurt Locker was this year’s diamond in the rough and is well worth the effort to find it.

Number 2 – District 9

District 9 came from no-where and delivered possibly the freshest and most original sci-fi film of the decade.

Telling the story of a Johannesburg struggling to cope with a colony of aliens (usually called ‘Prawns’) trapped there and of Wikus Van Der Merwe (first time actor Sharlto Copley), an office worker thrown into a war he doesn’t want to fight in order to keep is life on track.

The story of District 9 begins with the failed attempt to bring the videogame Halo to the big screen. Lord of the Rings maestro Peter Jackson, who was acting as the movie’s producer, saw a short film that inspired him.

Called Alive in Joburg and made by young South African director and writer Neill Blomkamp, Jackson was so impressed he immediately hired him for the Halo movie. When the project fell through though, the two stayed together to bring Blomkamp’s short to life.

Buzz spread around the internet as rumours about Blomkamp’s project began to air, and they were possibly the reason the film was anywhere near the success it was.

Fuelled by internet hype and huge critical acclaim, the film went on to be a roaring success, making stars out of not only Blomkamp but both Copley and the Prawns, with fan made shirts and other items soon on sale.

With one of the greatest characters in recent memory and a fantastic plot and action, District 9 is a must see for any sci-fi nut and acts as on heck of a debut for Blomkamp.


Number 3 – The Hangover

The comedy of the year was also the most successful sleeper hit of the year, becoming the biggest money making comedy of all time.

Originally inspired by the events of producer Chris Bender’s friend, The Hangover shows the escapades of a group of what can only be described as ‘men-children’ on a bachelor party in Vegas who try to figure out what they did last night.

Trying to figure out why they now have a baby, trying to get a tiger out of their bathroom and where the groom is are all issues they have to solve in this knock-about affair.

As soon as trailers first emerged for the film, despite the relatively unknown cast, excitement was high, especially on the back of Judd Apatow’s laddish comedies such as Knocked Up and Superbad.

The film exploded onto the scene, taking a massive $45m in its first week alone, even beating Pixar’s Up. Word spread fast and The Hanover soon became the surprise success of the year, becoming the fourth highest earning film of 2009.

Now nominated for a Golden Globe, The Hangover is bound to be buying the first round at the bar.

Number 4 – Paranormal Activity

Called by many this years Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity has taken the world by storm, and divided in half.

A true marmite film it may be, but its success is unquestionable.

Made for an astonishing $15,000, Paranormal Activity, which shows a couple trying to find out if their house is truly being haunted by a supernatural presence struggled somewhat getting released.

Having gone around the festival circuit since 2007 with no one wanting to bite, the film went through two re-cuts before given a limited release in the US this year.

Having struggled for two years to even get this, Paranormal Activity pleaded with audiences in its trailer to try and make the film a success in those places and get it a national release across the pond.

The campaign worked as word of mouth took over with those seeing it eulogizing about it online, upping anticipation. Reflected in ticket sales, it was one of only a few movies that climbed up the charts to hit number one in its fifth week.

After being brought to the UK, re-cut with a new ending to keep the scares fresh, Paranormal Activity did exactly the same here, climbing to the number 1, unbelievably beating New Moon in both of their second weeks for the top spot.

Not bad for a film that cost less than a new Ford Mondeo....

FemaleFirst Cameron Smith