I was quite surprised by Edgar Wright's The World's End. Not by the fact that it is very funny, impeccably made, cinematically literate, with a cast of Britain's finest character actors. But by its very melancholic tone and sense of introspection. Behind the clever comedy and science fiction trappings, there is a rather pertinent examination of nostalgia and that fortysomething obsession with recapturing one’s youth. In some respects, the concept can be broadened into a wider notion of a nation that is still obsessed with its glory days. It should also be noted that this is not a romantic or rose-tinted exploration of the aforementioned themes.