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johanlefourbe added 1 item to A Complete Review of Danny Boyle's work list
Cast : Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Talulah Riley, Maisie Williams
What was it about?
Based on the memoir of Steve Jones, the legendary Sex Pistols guitarist who helped usher in a punk revolution in Britain.
My two cents:
To be honest, even though I have never been a huge fans of the Sex Pistols, it did sound really interesting and I loved the fact that, since it was a mini-series, they had the time to go really deep into this subject. And, indeed, I really loved the first three episodes. Unfortunately, I still ended up with some mixed feelings though. Indeed, by episode 4, easily the weakest of the bunch, I became not so fascinating anymore. It was still interesting, that's for sure, but not as fascinating as it could have been. Eventually, even though they had around 5 hours of running time at their disposal, instead of focusing on the band or the members of the band, they wasted it by focusing too much on some random fictitious characters. On top of that, I still don't understand why they spent so much on arguing that Chrissie Hynde had so much influence on Steve Jones when they even acknowledged that it never really did happen.
My rating: 7/102 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1930's) list
Notes: It is considered as a classic of Chinese cinema from the 30ās and it is also a fine example of left-wing film. Indeed, it did appreciate that the Communist message delivered here was at least more subtle than what we got from the Soviet propaganda movies of the same time period. Eventually, they focused on the slums of Shanghai with great details and they certainly didnāt sugarcoat their living conditions. I also did appreciate the fact that they didnāt depict the characters as being perfect, in fact, they all seemed rather ignorant but it didnāt mean that they didnāt deserve our attention, in the contrary. Indeed, their shortcomings made them even more human and more interesting to behold. However, what I enjoyed the most was how, even though it might have been a really bleak drama, which it also was, there was also some room for some comedy and slapstick. How they managed to mix such various tones and genres was actually quite impressive. Furthermore, even though Iām not a huge fan of musicals, I have to admit that I really enjoyed the songs in this movie. And, yet, even though I admired the work done, it was still missing something to really dazzle me. Maybe it had to with the fact that, even though the characters all felt real, none of them was really fascinating after all. Or maybe it was because the copy I saw on YouTube was pretty sh*tty.2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: It is considered as a classic of Chinese cinema from the 30ās and it is also a fine example of left-wing film. Indeed, it did appreciate that the Communist message delivered here was at least more subtle than what we got from the Soviet propaganda movies of the same time period. Eventually, they focused on the slums of Shanghai with great details and they certainly didnāt sugarcoat their living conditions. I also did appreciate the fact that they didnāt depict the characters as being perfect, in fact, they all seemed rather ignorant but it didnāt mean that they didnāt deserve our attention, in the contrary. Indeed, their shortcomings made them even more human and more interesting to behold. However, what I enjoyed the most was how, even though it might have been a really bleak drama, which it also was, there was also some room for some comedy and slapstick. How they managed to mix such various tones and genres was actually quite impressive. Furthermore, even though Iām not a huge fan of musicals, I have to admit that I really enjoyed the songs in this movie. And, yet, even though I admired the work done, it was still missing something to really dazzle me. Maybe it had to with the fact that, even though the characters all felt real, none of them was really fascinating after all. Or maybe it was because the copy I saw on YouTube was pretty sh*tty.2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Street Angel
“To be honest, I wasnāt sure what to expect from this movie but since it was included in the āThey Shoot Pictures, Donāt They?ā list, I thought I might as well check it out. Apparently, it is a rather obscure movie and not even a thousand of people has rated it on IMDb but it is actually cons” read more
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a video
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Summerland
“I wasnāt sure what to expect from this movie but since it was starring Gemma Arterton and Gugu Mbatha-Raw, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, to be honest, it wasnāt really good, Iām afraid. First of all, even though Arterton was lovely as usual, in my opinion, she was rather miscas” read more
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to Best 2nd Directorial Effort from 1923 until 2023 list
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1920's) list
Notes: I was surprised to find out that it was actually Sergei Eisenstein's directorial debut as the damned thing was quite complex and ambitious for a first-timer. Still, to be honest, I have to admit that I had actually a rather hard time to get into the damned thing though. The fact that such Soviet propaganda movies actually never focused on the characters individually and instead handled the working class as one single character probably didnāt help. On the other hand, I have to admit that it was just quite inspiring and exhilarating to see this crowd of working men rising up all together against their bosses but also the whole system in general. Even if you believe that Communism and Socialism were the worst possible thing in the world, there was a time when an alternative was actually possible. At least, for a short while, it was explored and this alternative did provide something else than our current endless chase after financial profits and personal gain. The final act during which the ruthless repression took place was also strong and, unfortunately, felt quite realistic. Itās interesting that, when you read other reviews, they mostly focus on the technical aspects of this movie which was, for the time, apparently quite groundbreaking, but, to be honest, I didnāt focus too much on that. 2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: I was surprised to find out that it was actually Sergei Eisenstein's directorial debut as the damned thing was quite complex and ambitious for a first-timer. Still, to be honest, I have to admit that I had actually a rather hard time to get into the damned thing though. The fact that such Soviet propaganda movies actually never focused on the characters individually and instead handled the working class as one single character probably didnāt help. On the other hand, I have to admit that it was just quite inspiring and exhilarating to see this crowd of working men rising up all together against their bosses but also the whole system in general. Even if you believe that Communism and Socialism were the worst possible thing in the world, there was a time when an alternative was actually possible. At least, for a short while, it was explored and this alternative did provide something else than our current endless chase after financial profits and personal gain. The final act during which the ruthless repression took place was also strong and, unfortunately, felt quite realistic. Itās interesting that, when you read other reviews, they mostly focus on the technical aspects of this movie which was, for the time, apparently quite groundbreaking, but, to be honest, I didnāt focus too much on that. 2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Strike
“Since this movie was directed by Sergei Eisenstein, I was quite eager to check it out. Indeed, I did see āBattleship Potemkinā, arguably his most famous movie, but it was maybe 20 years ago, it was really neat to finally see another movie from this great master, especially after all these years.” read more
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to Best Directorial Debuts from 1921 until 2021 list
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a video
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of It Comes at Night
“I wasnāt really sure what to expect from this flick but since there was a decent cast involved, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, I usually have a weak spot for such minimalist horror features but, to be honest, Iām rather surprised this movie received such solid reviews. I mean, itā” read more
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1920's) list
Notes: Even though it might seem to be a simple story (it is basically about a guy losing his job, not much more), I have to admit that I was really impressed by the sheer power of its visuals and of the performances, especially by Emil Jannings who played the main character. Itās only afterwards that I discovered that Jannings, arguably one of the best actors of all time, was actually a major Nazi supporter and Iām glad I didnāt know that before watching the damned thing. Anyway, it was still a powerful movie, so powerful, that they didnāt have to use a single title card for the dialogues. Seriously, it was quite impressive and there was not a single moment while what was going on was not crystal clear. Furthermore, it was such a sad movie, probably one of the saddest I have seen so far. The saddest part, at least for me, was when his neighborhood found out that he had actually lost his job and was pretending to still be a doorman. Indeed, for some reason, maybe Iām too optimistic but I was expecting them to be supportive but, eventually, they were all mocking him which was just so cruel but I guess it was actually true to human nature, Iām afraid. There was also this rather weird and ridiculous happy ending coming from nowhere. Apparently, the producers forced F.W. Murnau and Carl Mayer to end up with something else and more upbeat than the inevitable death of the poor doorman but since they really hated this idea, they went for something really far-fetched and cynical. At first, this ending really bothered me but, the more I think about it, the more I believe it was actually quite brilliant. 2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: Even though it might seem to be a simple story (it is basically about a guy losing his job, not much more than that), I have to admit that I was really impressed by the sheer power of its visuals and of the performances, especially by Emil Jannings who played the main character. Itās only afterwards that I discovered that Jannings, arguably one of the best actors of all time, was actually a major Nazi supporter and Iām glad I didnāt know that before watching the damned thing. Anyway, it was still a powerful movie, so powerful, that they didnāt have to use a single title card for the dialogues. Seriously, it was quite impressive and there was not a single moment while what was going on was not crystal clear. Furthermore, it was such a sad movie, probably one of the saddest I have seen so far. The saddest part, at least for me, was when his neighborhood found out that he had actually lost his job and was pretending to still be a doorman. Indeed, for some reason, maybe Iām too optimistic but I was expecting them to be supportive but, eventually, they were all mocking him which was just so cruel but I guess it was actually true to human nature, Iām afraid. There was also this rather weird and ridiculous happy ending coming from nowhere. Apparently, the producers forced F.W. Murnau and Carl Mayer to end up with something else and more upbeat than the inevitable death of the poor doorman but since they really hated this idea, they went for something really far-fetched and cynical. At first, this ending really bothered me but, the more I think about it, the more I believe it was actually quite brilliant. 2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of The Last Laugh
“Since this movie seemed to have a solid reputation (it is included in the ā1001 Movies You Must See Before You Dieā list among other things), I was quite eager to check it out. Well, even though it might seem to be a simple story (it is basically about a guy losing his job, not much more), I hav” read more
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a video
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Elle s'en va
“I wasnāt really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was starring Catherine Deneuve, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it turned out to be about a middle-aged woman going through some kind of middle-life crisis and going on a road-trip in the process. To be honest, I always” read more
2 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe voted for list
Listal RESISTANCE: Operation Save the Front Page! (82 art items)2 years, 1 month ago