Critical Week: Take a bite

The surprise of the week for journalists is that Piranha 3D is one of the most enjoyable action movies of the summer - irreverent, smart and very silly. Oddly, the Weinstein brothers opted not to screen the film for critics in the USA, but we in the UK got one screening, and the riotous laughter was constant.

Less successful was the week's big blockbuster screening, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, which is witty and visually snappy but sacrifices story and characters along the way. By contrast, two female-led thrillers kept us much more entertained. Angelina Jolie confirmed her action-hero chops with the skilfully made Salt, while Noomi Rapace continued to seduce us as Lisbeth Salander in The Girl Who Played With Fire.

Off the beaten path, we had the charming and seriously engaging road movie Wah Do Dem, and the blackly hilarious Chilean film The Maid. I also managed to catch up with Banksy's enjoyably untrustworthy feature debut, Exit Through the Gift Shop, a rather brilliant look at the art world that comes out soon on DVD.

This coming week we have the bank robbers thriller Takers, the Will Ferrell comedy The Other Guys, Josh Brolin in Jonah Hex, and the indie horror thrillers The Last Exorcism, Burning Bright and Splintered. So what is it with all the horror at the moment? Perhaps it's a reaction to the economic situation...