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johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (2023) list
Notes: To be honest, I donāt think this movie grew old very well. I mean, 90 years after it was released, so many vastly superior gangster flicks have been released such as āThe Godfatherā 1 and 2, āGoodfellasā, āScarfaceā and many others. And yet, even if this movie was maybe not the first in this genre, it was certainly a major trendsetter, the precursor of all the gritty gangster movies that came in the 30ās but also afterwards up until nowadays. On top of that, even if the movie itself didnāt really impress me, I have to admit that Edward G. Robinson was pure gold though. Indeed, the guy was just so convincing and even if you maybe didnāt like his character, he was still seriously charismatic. Sure, he was definitely not a nice guy but he was tough and rather smart and, eventually, it all made sense how Little Caesar managed to climb up the ladder in the mob world. As a result, this realistic approach made the whole thing quite compelling to behold. However, the rest of the movie didnāt have much to offer, Iām afraid. Indeed, none of the other characters was remarkable whatsoever. Itās also interesting that there was only one female character involved, a character barely developed, and you might wonder why the main character didnāt have a girlfriend or a lover which is usually a main attribute for any average gangster. Even if it didnāt complete blow me away, it was still a really solid vintage gangster flick though.5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of The Equalizer 2
“Even though āThe Equalizerā had turned out to be fairly successful at the box-office, I didnāt care much for this flick but since I have a weak spot for Denzel Washington and since this movie was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check this sequel. Well, to be honest, it turned o” read more
5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (2023) list
Notes: To be honest, it took me a while to get into the damned thing. The fact that the copy I saw was pretty bad probably didnāt help but I also believe that the first half was rather slow. Indeed, it seemed that it was dealing with a frustrated teacher who entertained the same sexual fantasies that his pupils had and I thought the guy was actually rather pathetic and not really interesting. However, it all changed when the guy decided to actually marry Lola Lola. Indeed, it was such a surprising turn of events and it didnāt seem to be make any sense to everyone, his colleagues, Lola, her colleagues,ā¦ And thatās when the movie did start to become fascinating. Indeed, how could this decision actually make sense to Professor Immanuel Rath himself? Behind his stiff demeanor, was he actually some closeted romantic? Eventually, you never really found out why he made this choice but watching his downward spiral was so spellbinding to behold. It was definitely a strange character and the main reason why he actually worked was because Emil Jannings gave here such a strong performance. Concerning Marlene Dietrich, she got her breakthrough with this movie and she was, of course, pretty good but, in my opinion, her character was much more straightforward than Immanuel Rath and therefore less interesting.5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Joker
“Of course, since I kept hearing some great things about this flick, I was really eager to check it out. Well, to be honest, even though I did like it, I canāt say I was completely blown away after all. I have to admit that it took me a while to figure out what actually bothered with this movie whi” read more
5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to Top 10 best movies 2019 list
Notes: To be honest, even though I did like this movie, I canāt say I was completely blown away after all. In fact, it took me a while to figure out what actually bothered with this movie which had been virtually universally loved so far. Was it the saturation? I mean, we get such an overdose of super-hero movies. Even with the Joker himself, it has been already at least the 5th iteration of this iconic character in 30 years and, even if Joaquin Phoenix was quite amazing, Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger and even Mark Hamill were just as heralded as he was. Furthermore, even though they are all making a big fuss about the fact that this movie could be a revolution in this genre, in my opinion, the story was actually rather basic and predictable. I mean, it was a decent story but this tale of a rather sad mentally ill man slowly becoming homicidal was not really original. Eventually, the genius moves from Todd Philips was not to deliver a great story but to include the Joker in the mix and to have this popular character played by one of the best actors around. Seriously, if you would remove these 2 elements, I wonder if this movie would make so many waves. And, yet, there is no denying that, once again, Joaquin Phoenix gave us here another intense and spellbinding performance. Basically, the whole thing was some kind of amazing dark one-man-show and Phoenix definitely made the most of it. 5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to Movie tickets collection list
1st viewing
2nd viewing5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (2023) list
Notes: To be honest, even though some older movies are still considered as classics, in fact, they feel rather dated and Iām not always a fan of them (especially comedies like āSome Like It Hotā or āBreakfast at Tiffany'sā). However, some other movies are still as powerful as when they were released decades ago and this movie was definitely one of those. Basically, it is one of the first great war movies and the whole thing was quite impressive to behold. Indeed, it was just terribly realistic and greatly done and even though this flick was very old, I thought the whole thing was still completely spellbinding. It gives such a bleak view on the concept of war and, as a result, this movie belongs to the great anti-war features. I also liked the fact that it didnāt focus on a single character, there is no hero here and thatās the best way to deal with this subject because, in a war, it is never about the individual but always about the group.5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of The Wonders
“I wasnāt really sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Monica Bellucci, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, first of all, Bellucci had a rather small part after all which was slightly disappointing. Anyway, eventually, even though I did appreciate the realis” read more
5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (2023) list
Notes: To be honest, it has been ages since I have seen this flick and I should probably re-watch it at some point. After his first surreal experiment with Salvador Dali with āUn chien andalouā, Luis BuƱuel was this time working on his own but he still managed to deliver another surrealist cult-classic and, from this poini, BuƱuel would be the master of the genre through his whole career. At least, this movie had some kind of a plot but it was hardly what BuƱuel cared about. Indeed, the whole thing was pretty much a succession of really weird and sometimes pretty messed up scenes and it is hard to imagine a major director trying to bring up something like this nowadays. David Lynch might be the most obvious exception but the fact that he has stopped making movies for already more than a decade shows how hard it is, even impossible, to make something truly surreal in the current movie business. Anyway, coming back to our main feature, even though it might be an acquired taste, I thought it was quite fascinating to behold. 5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe posted a review of Pete's Dragon
“Since I kept hearing some pretty good things about this flick, I was quite eager to check it out. First of all, I have to admit that I havenāt seen the original version but since it is also available on Disney+, I should eventually watch it at some point in the future. Anyway, to be honest, it too” read more
5 years, 3 months ago
johanlefourbe added 1 item to 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die (2023) list
Notes: To be honest, I really had a hard time to connect with the damned thing after all. The fact that I saw a very poor copy on YouTube probably didnāt help but the issue went beyond that Iām afraid. I have to admit that Iām not really familiar with the old Soviet propaganda movies (it was only the 2nd movie I have seen in this genre). Anyway, I was rather amazed by how this movie was filmed and edited. Indeed, it is usually considered as a masterpiece but probably 90% of the shots were some close-ups which is such a weird way and, to be honest, rather uncomfortable way to shoot a movie. I thought it was even more bewildering since it was a silent movie. Indeed, most silent movies do actually the opposite, they focus more on wide shots showing the characters being more active to compensate the lack of dialogues. However, in this movie, you get instead a succession of faces constantly moving their lips but in complete silence. Considering the story itself, well, there was actually no real story and no characters involved, it was either a beautiful allegorical poem about the glory of the rise of the poor farmers against the landlords or some blatant Soviet propaganda, depending on where you stand regarding this matter. Anyway, it had been a while since I have struggled so much with an old classic so maybe I should give it another try at some point in the future.5 years, 3 months ago