Could Tilda Swinton as Julian Assange in Wikileaks: The movie play in theatres next year? Carlo Allegri / AP Photo
Could Tilda Swinton as Julian Assange in Wikileaks: The movie play in theatres next year? Carlo Allegri / AP Photo

What could be the cultural hits of 2011?



With 2011 poking its futuristic robot head aggressively around the corner, you've no doubt all been wondering what the coming year has in store for us on the film, music and books scene, haven't you? Will next year see every single film on the planet remade in 3D? Will Coldplay's fifth album be just as dreary as the past four? And just how many first-time authors will be billed as "the next Stieg Larsson"? Nothing is absolutely certain, but we're prepared to make a few - perhaps slightly outlandish - suggestions on what the biggest hits of the next year might be. Of course, we've made all this lot up. But you never know.

Love Hurts

Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler star in this romantic comedy set in New York. Amanda (Aniston) is a shy dental nurse who has watched all of her friends pair off without ever meeting a suitable partner herself. After being injured in an unprovoked attack by madman Alan (Butler), she finds love in the most unlikely of places: while giving evidence in court! Following a series of side-splitting situations, both victim and assailant start to believe in love at first sight.

Mark Twain

The late American author follows on from 2010's smash-hit literary sensation, The Autobiography of Mark Twain, with his second memoir, "Mark Twain: My Story", which his publishing house has promised will contain more revelations and juicy gossip from late 19th-century American society. What really happened at the book launch for the former president Ulysses S Grant's memoirs? Which former BFF provided much of the inspiration for Pudd'nhead Wilson? Much like other prolific authors such as Katie Price, Mark Twain is due to release a new "tell-all' autobiography every year for the coming decade.

WikiLeaks: The Movie

Tilda Swinton plays Julian Assange in this dramatic interpretation of the whistleblower's life, from his teenage days as a spotty-faced Australian hacker right up to his current status as the worst person you'd want to tell a secret to. Jessica Alba and Scarlett Johansson play Assange's former Swedish lovers who come under the influence of Hillary Clinton (Reese Witherspoon), enraged at his embarrassing political revelations. Meanwhile, Richard Griffiths is the lovable lawyer fighting for his bail. In an explosive finale, Assange attempts to escape extradition with a daring chase through the snowy streets of London.

Michael Jackson

Following on from the recent international success of his debut posthumous album, Michael, Jackson is now putting the finishing touches to his "difficult" second outing from beyond the grave. The singer, who passed away in 2009, is believed to have collaborated with several stars of the moment, including Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga, on several new tracks, while also turning to fellow afterlife neighbours James Brown, Marvin Gaye and Black Lace's Alan Barton for vocal support.

Sex and the City 3

While holidaying in Greece, Carrie and the gang accidentally board the wrong yacht and find themselves heading through the Suez Canal towards the pirate-laden waters of the Horn of Africa. Samantha's insistence on sunbathing in a rather revealing bikini immediately begins to attract the attention of a number of local buccaneers, and the girls are eventually taken hostage. After distracting their guards with a rendition of Olivia Newton-John's Physical, they escape to shore but find themselves roaming the dusty streets of Somalia without a pair of Jimmy Choos between them. In the end, it's up to Mr Big to rendezvous with the local ambassador and ensure that the fabulous foursome are reunited with their wardrobes. Hurrah!

Khloe and Kourtney Take Kabul

We expect TV screens to be buzzing in 2011 with the reality show antics of everyone's favourite family of alliterative Americans. In the latest series, "Khloe and Kourtney Take Kabul", the junior Kardashian sisters find that launching a fashion and beauty boutique in the Afghan capital isn't all smooth sailing, often with hilarious results. Expect katfights, krushes and kidnappings.

Love Conquers All

Gerard Butler and Jennifer Aniston star in this romantic comedy set in 11th-century Britain. Allison (Aniston) is a confident career woman who has watched all of her friends couple up without every having the time to find her own Mr Right. After the ruthless William the Conqueror (Butler) successfully invades her homeland in 1066, she finds love in the most unlikely of places: with her newly installed ruler! Following a series of hilarious failed rebellions and Anglo-Norman antics, both king and subject begin to see that it's important to let your heart rule your head, as well as your country!

At a glance

Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.

 

Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year

 

Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month

 

Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30 

 

Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse

 

Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth

 

Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances

The Scale for Clinical Actionability of Molecular Targets
NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

Specs

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Range: Up to 610km

Power: 905hp

Torque: 985Nm

Price: From Dh439,000

Available: Now

Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder

Started: October 2021

Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Industry: technology, logistics

Investors: A15 and self-funded 

SQUADS

India
Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur

New Zealand
Kane Williamson (captain), Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Ross Taylor, Tom Latham (wicketkeeper), Henry Nicholls, Ish Sodhi, George Worker, Glenn Phillips, Matt Henry, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Trent Boult

The bio

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France

Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines

Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.

Favourite Author: My father for sure

Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst

Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5

Titanium Escrow profile

Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue  
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
​​​​​​​Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Stree

Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5

In Full Flight: A Story of Africa and Atonement
John Heminway, Knopff

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Founders: Michele Ferrario, Nino Ulsamer and Freddy Lim
Started: established in 2016 and launched in July 2017
Based: Singapore, with offices in the UAE, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand
Sector: FinTech, wealth management
Initial investment: $500,000 in seed round 1 in 2016; $2.2m in seed round 2 in 2017; $5m in series A round in 2018; $12m in series B round in 2019; $16m in series C round in 2020 and $25m in series D round in 2021
Current staff: more than 160 employees
Stage: series D 
Investors: EightRoads Ventures, Square Peg Capital, Sequoia Capital India