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One Direction ‘This Is Us’ premiere: the reaction

 

Laura Davis
Wednesday 21 August 2013 10:25 BST
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Simon Cowell (C) with (L-R) Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles and Liam Payne from One Direction attend the 'One Direction This Is Us' world premiere
Simon Cowell (C) with (L-R) Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles and Liam Payne from One Direction attend the 'One Direction This Is Us' world premiere (Getty Images)

Thousands of fans waited eagerly to catch a glimpse of Harry Styles - and the others - as they attended the UK premiere of One Direction's debut film This Is Us. You could hear the screaming from Manchester.

One fan apparently camped outside since Sunday morning to be first in line to the Leicester Square screening.

The band came third in 2010's X Factor, but have gone on to sell 30 million records worldwide, beat the Beatles to become the first UK band to go straight to number one in the US with their debut single, and guess what, they are expected to make $1 billion this year - just in America. No wonder they're always smiling.

So what does everyone think about Morgan Spurlock’s 3D documentary about One Direction?

The Independent's Geoffrey Macnab said:

"There’s not much in the way of sex and drugs when One Dimension go on tour... the band members’ own love lives are strictly off limits...They’re personable, talented and hard working and seem to relish life on the road."

Robbie Collin at the Telegraph was less amused:

"This Is Us has been made with these fans in mind, and there’s nothing like a guaranteed profit to stifle creativity."

Simon Reynolds from Digital Spy took a stronger approach, likening the film to propaganda:

"As far as music documentaries go it's fairly standard stuff...the film offers up no real sense of what the band are really like as individuals away from fame...it's all carefully calibrated to reinforce the 1D brand."

Natalie Edwards at The Mirror seemed more impressed:

"This Is Us is all in 3D so fans will feel so close to the band that if it had smellovision you would discover Harry’s shampoo of choice...there is plenty to keep the fans happy."

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