Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t really expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Nick Frost, I thought I might as well check it out anyway. After checking his filmography, I was actually surprised to discover that it was, sor far, Frost’s first (and only?) leading part which made this movie already worthwhile. However, to be honest, I didn’t care much for the concept but I have to admit that Frost did make the most of it though. Indeed, his character had some potential and the general idea (no matter how you look, you can still be the best at something and shine in front of everybody) was actually pretty neat. To see this rather average guy reclaiming a major part of his identity was nice and I actually wish they focused more on this instead of the really generic and barely entertaining love triangle they gave us. Another thing that bothered me was that even though Nick Frost obviously put a lot of effort and energy in this project (he apparently trained intensively for 7 months), during the scenes he was dancing, it was shot way too close so, in most of the scenes, we basically didn’t see him dancing which was rather disappointing. Concerning Rashida Jones, she was lovely as usual and she did what she could but her role was just barely developed and rather thankless. Concerning Chris O'Dowd, of course, I understand that his character was supposed to be obnoxious but they pushed it too far and the guy was eventually more cringe-inducing than actually entertaining. But, again, I wish they didn't bring this love triangle at all and focused more on the journey made by the main character to become who he was always supposed to be. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was still a decent watch though and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I had no idea what to expect from this flick but since it was directed by Anne Fontaine, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it turned out to be another dark page of history regarding the aftermath following the liberation of East Europe by the Soviets during WWII. Of course, what the Nazis did was horrible (they burned entire villages back then) but you might wonder if the Soviets were such an improvement and it was hardly surprising that they would raid such a convent and rape the nuns. Eventually, what made this movie worked for me was above all Lou de Laâge, a girl I had never seen it before. Indeed, not only she had the coolest name ever but she was also terribly charismatic, some kind of intriguing mix of Claire Foy with Léa Seydoux. It’s a pity that they never really developed her character and her relationship with the other characters were seriously limited as well. For example, her relationship with her colleague were limited to him constantly flirting with her and asking what the hell she was hiding which got old rather fast. In fact, it didn’t make much sense that she didn’t tell him at some point what she was up to. I mean, he was also a freaking doctor, someone also doing everything he can to help his patients, so he wouldn’t have caused any trouble, in fact, the chances were pretty high that he would have helped her. However, even if we basically learn nothing about the main character, de Laâge definitely made the most of it though. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was still a solid drama and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, at first, I wasn’t really interested by this movie but since I kept hearing some pretty good things about it and since it was available for free on Disney+, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, there is no denying that the damned thing was rather derivative as it turned out to be a mix of many movies such as ‘Ready Player One’, ‘Groundhog Day’, 'The Matrix', ‘Her’ and obviously above all ‘The Truman Show’. They even thrown in some completely random references to ‘Captain America’ and ‘Star Wars’ because, well, Disney is nowadays such a juggernaut that they pretty much own most of the most famous brands and names in the business nowadays. Furthermore, I wish they found something else than an evil software developer stealing some code. Indeed, they could have gone slightly deeper in what it could mean to be alive for such an AI. Still, in spite of its flaws, it was definitely a fun blockbuster completely tailor-made for Ryan Reynolds’s skills and charisma. Furthermore, even though I don’t play much nowadays, I used to be a hardcore gamer and their depiction of the open world concept in videogames was pretty much spot-on. I also enjoyed how they displayed that, even though such games can be technically impressive, they also usually provide some really dumb-ass gameplay after all. Seriously, I can’t remember how many times I saw my stepson roaming around in ‘GTA’ just to steal some car and randomly beat someone around and, this, for hours on end. Eventually, it turned out to be a decent reflection on the fact, that even though we could technically create the most advanced and intricate worlds, we always go for something so much less ambitious and interesting after all, as long as it makes a profit. Anyway, to conclude, even if the damned thing was no masterpiece whatsoever, it was still an entertaining feel-good feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was starring Jake Gyllenhaal and since it was available on Netflix, I was quite eager to check it out. To be honest, it’s only later on that I discovered that it was actually a remake of a Danish film which I haven’t seen. As a result, there is a fair chance that the damned thing was another useless Hollywood remake of a perfectly fine foreign feature. Still, I have been working in various helpdesks for most of my adult life and it is always pretty neat to see a movie dealing with a 911 dispatch call center which must be by far the most difficult and stressful helpdesk you can work for. Furthermore, I always had a weak spot for such minimalist movie taking place in one location with only a handful characters (that this movie was shot during the Corona pandemic was pretty obvious). Finally, i turned out to be another impressive one-man-show from Jake Gyllenhaal who really had to carry the whole thing on his shoulders. So, I was definitely a decent watch but, to be honest, not much more than that though. Indeed, even though I figured out fairly early on that there was something fishy about Emily, the whole plot around her 911 call was not bad at all. No, what bothered more was that, even though Gyllenhaal gave another strong and intense performance, his character didn’t really make much sense. I mean, for starters, I don’t think they would give such a stressful job to someone who was clearly psychologically seriously distressed. The argument provided was that he was a demoted police officer who got this detail as some kind of ‘punishment’ but it was not really convincing as this job requires someone really dedicated and completely focused. Then, I thought it was very unlikely that if this guy would completely loose his cool while on duty and that no supervisor would intervene and tell him at first to chill and then to go home if it would escalate like it did during this movie. Seriously, it was rather weird and even downright ridiculous that the main character would go apeshit like that and that nobody would do anything about it. Anyway, to conclude, even if it wasn’t really flawless, it was still fairly entertaining though and I think it is worth a look, at least, if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since the material was interesting and since it was available on Neflix, I thought I might as well check it out. I was also intrigued by the fact that, even though I did receive some solid reviews, it didn’t get much love after all (it has right now a rather pathetic 5.0 rating on IMDb). Well, after watching the damned thing, I think that most of the viewers were expecting a straightforward biopic but ended up with something rather surreal. Well, that’s actually for this reason that this movie actually got some extra points from me. Indeed, at least, they tried to be creative with the genre and I think it did fit Nikola Tesla, arguably one of the weirdest and mysterious investors that ever existed. On the other hand, I have to admit that the karaoke session was probably too much though. However, if I dug the surrealist approach, I wonder why they focused on his relationships with 2 different women, Anne Morgan (daughter of JP Morgan, one of the richest men on the planet) and Sarah Bernhardt, Indeed, it seemed to be a rather bewildering choice since Tesla was a notorious bachelor who never got married and would rather spend all his time and energy making up the most amazing and/or craziest machines ever invented. At least, his relationship with Thomas Edison was much more interesting, thanks to Kyle MacLachlan who gave here a really solid performance. Concerning Ethan Hawke, even though I always had a weak spot for this actor and even though he seemed to be a fine choice to play this character, to be honest, I wish he went for something slightly less catatonic though. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was definitely not flawless, I still think it was a decent watch and I think it is worth a look. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since ‘Escape Plan’ was not bad at all, I thought I might as well check out this sequel. Well, not so long ago, I already saw ‘Backtrace’ starring Sylvester Stallone, it was pretty awful and, to be honest, this movie turned out to be only slightly better. Sure, I didn‘t expect the damned thing to be a masterpiece but the previous instalment was not bad and the concept had some potential. Indeed, movies dealing with prison breaks can be seriously entertaining, at least, when they are well made but it was definitely not the case here. Seriously, the opening scene was just so poorly shot and edited, it was some kind of mix of shaky cam with way too many quick cuts and the end-result was pretty much unwatchable. Then, a major appeal with ‘Escape Plan’ was obviously to see Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger finally working together (‘The Expendables’ doesn’t count because it was more a group effort and Schwarzenegger never played a major character in this franchise). Unfortunately, Schwarzenegger didn‘t show up this time around (probably a smart move from the Austrian Oak though) and, if you would believe the promotional material, he was apparently replaced by Dave Bautista which wasn‘t necessarily some bad news. However, it turned out that Bautista had a rather small part after all and showed up only for a couple of scenes. The bewildering thing was that it was actually the case for almost all the actors involved (Bautista, 50 Cent, Jaime King and even Stallone himself) as all of them showed up sporadically and usually for some rather meaningless scenes. Concerning the story itself, I have to admit that I have a weak spot for prison break movies but it was probably the most idiotic movie I have seen in this genre. Seriously, the whole thing looked so fake and pretty much nothing really made sense (How did they end up there? Why on Earth did they have to fight each other? What was supposed to be so great about this ‘sanctuary’?). At least, Xiaoming Huang was a badass martial-artist but it was pretty much the only positive thing about this cheap-ass sequel. Anyway, to conclude, the damned thing was seriously lame and you should probably avoid it. 

I already saw this movie but since my wife has a weak spot for the genre, I thought I might as well re-watch it with her. Well, even though my wife did like it, to be honest, I enjoyed it more the first time around but it is probably because I already knew how it would end. Anyway, even if it was nothing really original, I still think it was not bad at all. Basically, it turned out to be one of these good old serial killer thrillers that they used to make back in the 90’s and not only it had been a while since I saw a movie in this genre but it turned out to be actually pretty solid. It was rather surprising that it was coming from John Lee Hancock who had been a rather uninspired director so far but, here, the mood was pretty much pitch-perfect. On top of that, there was a great cast with 3 Academy Awards winners (Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto) and they were all at the top of their game. However, I wish that Malek’s character would have remained more consistent, like the 2 other main characters. Indeed, he started as cocky and confident but ended up as a total wreck but I guess it was one of the goals of this movie, to show that cops are no super-heroes, that they are human like anyone else and the psychological toll of their work can be huge and sometimes even irreversible. Another thing I did appreciate with this movie was that, at the end, the case remained unresolved which was pretty bold. Eventually, the whole murder case remained an enigma which was pretty neat. To be honest, I think it was pretty obvious that Sparma was not the killer (but maybe he was the peeping Tom looking from the other side of the street?). Indeed, the way he walked was completely different than the way the killer walked while chasing the blonde girl during the opening scene. Anyway, to conclude, even if was nothing ground-breaking, it turned out to be a solid thriller though and I think it is worth look, especially if you like the genre. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since there was a decent cast involved, I was quite eager to check it out. Well, I really enjoyed the concept but, to be honest, I wish they did cast a slightly more attractive actor than Seth Rogen. Seriously, it was already rather ridiculous 14 years ago when he hooked up with Katherine Heigl in ‘Knocked Up’ but, with Charlize Theron, he managed somehow to get some major and completetly bewildering upgrade. I mean, I actually liked his character, completely identified myself with him, and I understand that he was supposed to be some kind of hipster leftist nerd but, honestly, there is no way on earth that this man would end up with this woman. And, yet, I actually liked the damned thing though and it mostly had to do with Charlize Theron. Seriously, I have been following this actress for about 25 years and it is incredible that she is still so gorgeous. But it went beyond that as she was quite pitch-perfect playing this talented and committed but also terribly lonely woman. On top of that, the whole thing reminded me of the time when I was 14 years old and I had a major crush with a friend of my older sister and, to some extent, of my relationship with my wife who was (and still is) a gorgeous MILF when I met her. Basically, I just love the idea that a rather average looking guy might end up with such an incredibly beautiful woman and the way their relationship evolved was actually fairly convincing. Anyway, to conclude, even if Seth Rogen was rather miscast in my opinion, I still had a weak spot for the damned thing and I think it is worth a look, at least, if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was starring Shia LaBeouf, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, pretty much like everything else LaBeouf has done recently, the damned thing was pretty meta. At least, you have to admit that it took some guts to write such a bleak account of his youth and, on top of that, to play his father who must have had a huge impact on him. On the other hand, even if LaBeouf is an interesting actor, he is also pretty controversial and this movie will certainly not debunk his terribly narcissistic reputation. Still, the damned thing gave a really bleak and deglamorizing look on the life of children stars. In fact, it’s not really uncommon that, when a child is getting a steady gig in the entertainment business, his parents actually stop working to ‘support’ him (for example, when Ryan Gosling was just a kid and worked on ‘The Mickey Mouse Club’, he lived with his family in a nearby trailer park and he was the family's only source of income). However, what happened to Otis (and to some extent, probably, to Shia LaBeouf himself) was pretty much the stuff of nightmare though. It’s too bad that, even though Lucas Hedges was fine here, he didn’t look anything like Noah Jupe or Shia LaBeouf. It’s strange since Jupe, who also delivered a strong performance, was a perfect choice to play a younger version of Shia LaBeouf. On the other hand, to have a younger version of Shia LaBeouf, an older version of Shia LaBeouf and Shia LaBeouf himself was maybe too much though. Another issue I had was with FKA Twigs. I mean, it’s not that she was really bad, it was more the fact that her character was rather useless. Furthermore, it was rather cringe-inducing to see in her in such a personal movie for LaBeouf and to know that they would start afterwards a relationship during which he would be terribly abusive with her (which is not hard to believe after you see this movie). Anyway, to conclude, it turned out to be another dark and intriguing movie from LaBeouf and I think it is definitely worth a look.