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johanlefourbe posted a review of Gringo
“I wasnât 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. To be honest, I actually had no idea what this movie was about and since there was a big cannabis leaf on all the promotional material, I assumed it would be some” read more
4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1990's) list
Notes: It has been a while since I have seen this flick and I should definitely re-watch it at some point. First of all, to be honest, I'm not a big fan of Stephen King, neither the books or the movies. But, fortunately, a few of these adaptations turned out to be really good and this movie was definitely one of them. In fact, for Rob Reiner, it would be his 2nd acclaimed Stephen King feature following the critical success of âStand by Meâ (such a shame the guy has lost his touch as he hasn't done anything remotely amazing during the last 20 years). Coming back to our main feature, the story was just quite spellbinding and Kathy Bates gave a really chilling performance. Eventually, it will be her breakthrough and she would become the first woman to win an Oscar for the Best Actress in a horror/thriller feature. Eventually, the big difference between this story and the usual tales written by Stephen King is that most of it is actually grounded in reality which made it, at least for me, much easier to relate to and to believe in the characters and what they were going through.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: It has been a while since I have seen this flick and I should definitely re-watch it at some point. First of all, to be honest, I'm not a big fan of Stephen King, neither the books or the movies. But, fortunately, a few of these adaptations turned out to be really good and this movie was definitely one of them. In fact, for Rob Reiner, it would be his 2nd acclaimed Stephen King feature following the critical success of âStand by Meâ (such a shame the guy has lost his touch as he hasn't done anything remotely amazing during the last 20 years). Coming back to our main feature, the story was just quite spellbinding and Kathy Bates gave a really chilling performance. Eventually, it will be her breakthrough and she would become the first woman to win an Oscar for the Best Actress in a horror/thriller feature. Eventually, the big difference between this story and the usual tales written by Stephen King is that most of it is actually grounded in reality which made it, at least for me, much easier to relate to and to believe in the characters and what they were going through.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (2000's) list
Notes: Since it was a huge critical success, I was really dying to watch this flick. Eventually, I had 2 issues with this movie. First, it was very overhyped when I watched it the first time so my expectations were too high. Second, I was expecting a fantasy picture and the fantasy is only half of the movie, the other half being a war drama. Basically, I didn't get what I expected. In spite of all this, I really liked it as there was some very good directing and a fascinating story. Some years later, I watched it again to make up my mind for good and, honestly, the second time around, it gave me about the same feeling. I mean, the directing was indeed very good, the special effects were quite awesome, the story was intriguing and entertaining enough but, honestly, I never really felt swept away by this fantasy world. In my opinion it is a very well made and interesting dark fairy tale but it is not much more than that. Sometimes, you connect with a movie and sometimes, you donât. Apparently, this movie was not really my thing but it doesnât mean I didnât enjoy it. 4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: Since it was a huge critical success, I was really dying to watch this flick. Eventually, I had 2 issues with this movie. First, it was very overhyped when I watched it the first time so my expectations were too high. Second, I was expecting a fantasy picture and the fantasy is only half of the movie, the other half being a war drama. Basically, I didn't get what I expected. In spite of all this, I really liked it as there was some very good directing and a fascinating story. Some years later, I watched it again to make up my mind for good and, honestly, the second time around, it gave me about the same feeling. I mean, the directing was indeed very good, the special effects were quite awesome, the story was intriguing and entertaining enough but, honestly, I never really felt swept away by this fantasy world. In my opinion it is a very well made and interesting dark fairy tale but it is not much more than that. Sometimes, you connect with a movie and sometimes, you donât. Apparently, this movie was not really my thing but it doesnât mean I didnât enjoy it. 4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of 47 Meters Down
“I wasnât expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Mandy Moore, I thought I might as well check it out. I have to admit that I was also wondering how they would develop a whole movie solely on the concept of 2 girls in a shark cage. Well, the title was already a major spoiler” read more
4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (2000's) list
Notes: Back in the 90's, the Dardenne brothers already won the Golden Palm with 'Rosetta' but, to be honest, I thought this movie rather underwhelming, probably the least appealing movie they made so far as a matter of fact. On the other hand, it saw this movie years ago in the movie theatre when it was released and I should probably check it out again at some point. Anyway, the Belgian siblings are one of the few directors who managed to win twice the Golden Palm and I was really curious to see if the second time around, they did actually deserve this prestigious award. And indeed, this time, I thought it was pretty amazing. The story was really heartbreaking and offered no redemption whatsoever. The Dardennes brothers have a very natural directing style and the whole thing almost looked like a documentary. Furthermore, the actors were no well-known stars (at least, back then) but they all gave some very convincing performances. I think I enjoyed more 'Le Fils' but this flick is still one of the best directed by these guys.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1940's) list
Notes: I always had a weak spot for this feature. Indeed, there is one thing that always bothered me with Disneyâs animated features and it is their terrible lack of originality. Basically, all their movies tend to follow the very same formulas and set of rules and even though it was fine when âSnow White and the Seven Dwarfsâ was released, 80 years later, it has become seriously tedious. For this reason, I always had a weak spot for this flick because, even though it is flawed, it remains one of their most original productions and only for this, it should get much more credit. Take for example the âNight on Bald Mountainâ sequence, it is probably one of the creepiest things ever produced by Disney and, even though parents have been complaining about this sequence for decades, I wish Disney would go more often in this direction. Still, while I was rewatching the damned thing, I was actually surprised by how little I actually remember it. Of course, you could argue that it had been more than 20 years since I saw it but I'm afraid that most of these sequences, while they were all interesting and valuable just based on their pure experimental value, were not really remarkable after all. Anyway, even though it might not be Disneyâs most heralded feature, it remains a fascinating blend of classic tunes with some top-notch animation.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: I always had a weak spot for this feature. Indeed, there is one thing that always bothered me with Disneyâs animated features and it is their terrible lack of originality. Basically, all their movies tend to follow the very same formulas and set of rules and even though it was fine when âSnow White and the Seven Dwarfsâ was released, 80 years later, it has become seriously tedious. For this reason, I always had a weak spot for this flick because, even though it is flawed, it remains one of their most original productions and only for this, it should get much more credit. Take for example the âNight on Bald Mountainâ sequence, it is probably one of the creepiest things ever produced by Disney and, even though parents have been complaining about this sequence for decades, I wish Disney would go more often in this direction. Still, while I was rewatching the damned thing, I was actually surprised by how little I actually remember it. Of course, you could argue that it had been more than 20 years since I saw it but I'm afraid that most of these sequences, while they were all interesting and valuable just based on their pure experimental value, were not really remarkable after all. Anyway, even though it might not be Disneyâs most heralded feature, it remains a fascinating blend of classic tunes with some top-notch animation.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1940's) list
Notes: This is the very first movie I have shown to my daughter, I have seen it countless times when she was just 2 or 3 years old. The funny thing about this production is that, even though 'Pinocchio' and 'Fantasia' were both critically heralded, they were also some really ambitious projects that had cost Disney a lot and they didn't turn out to be some huge box-office success like 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'. So, back then, they decided to come up with something smaller and cheaper and, surprisingly, it turned out to be a hit. To be honest, I think that the scope was too limited to make it one of my favorites and, with a running time of barely 60 minutes, and the fact that Timothy Q. Mouse was just a recycled version of Jiminy Cricket, it did feel a little bit cheap. And yet, this Dumbo character was really awesome. Indeed, it showed some guts to have a title character who didnât say a word during the whole thing and there were a couple of scenes involving him and his mother that were just amazing and quite heartbreaking to behold. Also, you won't see any time soon in a Disney feature an infant getting drunk and hallucinating afterwards and a bunch of black crowns smoking some huge cigars. On top of that, they gave us their weirdest (also one of their most awesome) musical sequence with the legendary 'pink elephants on parade'. 4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: This is the very first movie I have shown to my daughter, I have seen it countless times when she was just 2 or 3 years old. The funny thing about this production is that, even though 'Pinocchio' and 'Fantasia' were both critically heralded, they were also some really ambitious projects that had cost Disney a lot and they didn't turn out to be some huge box-office success like 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'. So, back then, they decided to come up with something smaller and cheaper and, surprisingly, it turned out to be a hit. To be honest, I think that the scope was too limited to make it one of my favorites and, with a running time of barely 60 minutes, and the fact that Timothy Q. Mouse was just a recycled version of Jiminy Cricket, it did feel a little bit cheap. And yet, this Dumbo character was really awesome. Indeed, it showed some guts to have a title character who didnât say a word during the whole thing and there were a couple of scenes involving him and his mother that were just amazing and quite heartbreaking to behold. Also, you won't see any time soon in a Disney feature an infant getting drunk and hallucinating afterwards and a bunch of black crowns smoking some huge cigars. On top of that, they gave us their weirdest (also one of their most awesome) musical sequence with the legendary 'pink elephants on parade'. 4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to Top 10 worst movies 2018 list
Notes: Following the mess during the production of this movie, I wasnât expecting much but, after being stuck for years in development hell, they still apparently managed to release this movie after all so I have to admit that I was still curious about the damned result. Well, unfortunately, the damned thing turned out to be pretty weak, Iâm afraid. Eventually, the only positive thing about this flick was that it did provide some kind of (unintentional) metaphor about Amber Heard and Johnny Depp. Indeed, Heard was basically playing a gorgeous but eventually rather vapid and talentless girl whose only skill was to manipulate all the men around her. Concerning Depp, the once very talented actor was once again playing another character hiding being some massive layer of hideous makeup and some rather eccentric costumes meaning the guy didnât really have to act at all. Eventually, they both played some rather ugly and destructive individuals who didnât care much if their reckless behaviour had any impact on the people around them which had a rather hairy resemblance with how they seem to be for real. Anyway, they were not even the worst character/actor in this dreadful movie. Indeed, Jim Sturgess was indeed just awful delivering one of his worst performances so far. It was not all, there was also a narrator played Billy Bob Thornton who was stuck playing a talentless washed-up writer which is such an old and tired gimmick. Basically, the whole thing was filled with some seriously unlikeable and really uninteresting characters stuck into a very convoluted and rather tedious tale.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of London Fields
“Following the mess during the production of this movie, I wasnât expecting much but, after being stuck for years in development hell, they still apparently managed to release this movie after all so I have to admit that I was still curious about the end result. Well, unfortunately, the damned thin” read more
4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 3 items to their collection
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4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies ... my own version (1940's) list
Notes: It was apparently Hitchcockâs favorite movies so I was expecting a lot from the damned thing. Well, to be honest, I was rather amazed by how little I actually cared about this movie. I mean, sure, it was still a decent thriller but I really couldnât see what was supposed to be so amazing about this feature. Indeed, during the first half, nothing much really interesting happened and it took the damned thing forever to take off. Then, in the second half, it started to become slightly more entertaining but it was too little, too late. Basically, the main idea is that the ominous Uncle Charlie goes to his relatives and the viewers are supposed to be charmed by this sweet family living in this nice little town. Well, to be honest, I didnât care much for them. Furthermore, I never really understood their fascination and obsession towards this Uncle Charlie. I mean, they havenât seen him for years, they have no idea what he has been up to and it doesnât seem that he has done anything really amazing for them in the past. At least, I have to admit it, Joseph Cotten gave a strong performance and he had some very nice chemistry with the lovely Teresa Wright. Anyway, even if it didnât really work for me, it still a classic.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies Chosen By Johanlefourbe list
Notes: It was apparently Hitchcockâs favorite movies so I was expecting a lot from the damned thing. Well, to be honest, I was rather amazed by how little I actually cared about this movie. I mean, sure, it was still a decent thriller but I really couldnât see what was supposed to be so amazing about this feature. Indeed, during the first half, nothing much really interesting happened and it took the damned thing forever to take off. Then, in the second half, it started to become slightly more entertaining but it was too little, too late. Basically, the main idea is that the ominous Uncle Charlie goes to his relatives and the viewers are supposed to be charmed by this sweet family living in this nice little town. Well, to be honest, I didnât care much for them. Furthermore, I never really understood their fascination and obsession towards this Uncle Charlie. I mean, they havenât seen him for years, they have no idea what he has been up to and it doesnât seem that he has done anything really amazing for them in the past. At least, I have to admit it, Joseph Cotten gave a strong performance and he had some very nice chemistry with the lovely Teresa Wright. Anyway, even if it didnât really work for me, it still a classic.4 years, 1 month ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Dragged Across Concrete
“Since it seemed to be a decent flick (I was actually already sold by the title), I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it turned out to be another really solid directorial effort from S. Craig Zahler after âBone Tomahawkâ and âBrawl in Cell Block 99â and you can only wonder what he w” read more
4 years, 1 month ago
