Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it seemed to have a decent reputation (it is included in the ‘The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made’ list selected by the New York Times, among other things), I thought I might as well check it out. First of all, I have to admit that I have never read Alexandre Dumas’s famous book. However, I did watch Kevin Reynold’s adaptation but it was years ago and, to be honest, I didn’t remember much about it. Anyway, it is definitely a classic tale and, from all the numerous adaptations that had been delivered so far, it is usually considered as the best one. Well, to be honest, I still had some mixed feelings about the damned thing though. I completely forgot that Napoleon’s return from exile and finale demise had something to do with Edmond Dantes’s tragic story but, all in all, it felt rather convoluted. Still, it does deserve its classic tale status though and, from the moment Dantes started to dig this tunnel, a task which took him a whopping 10 years, I have to admit that the damned thing did become quite entertaining after all. Concerning Robert Donat, I have noticed that the guy was praised for his work in this movie but it actually took me a while to warm up to his performance. Indeed, I thought he was terribly stiff when his character was still a naïve young man. However, it was pretty neat how he played the character differently when he became the Count of Monte Cristo. Sure, he was the good guy and everything ended up well for him and the people he loved but there was something slightly psychotic and sinister about his demeanor and it was all thanks to Donat’s subtle performance. Anyway, to conclude, even if it didn’t really impress me, I have to admit that it was still a decent watch though and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, ever since this movie was announced, there was some pretty good buzz about it and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. First of all, I have to admit that I actually never heard of Leonard Bernstein before watching this movie but the guy was definitely fascinating. Furthermore, Bradley Cooper was quite spellbinding to behold here and the guy probably delivered here the best performance of his career. Unfortunately, even though the material was interesting, the movie itself was never really fascinating though. Indeed, even though it might have seemed to be a good idea to focus on his relationship with his wife, a relationship which did last 30 years, I think it was a mistake after all. I mean, there was nothing really wrong with either of them but, above all, the trajectory that their relationship took turned out to be rather underwhelming. Basically, they both completely fell in love with each other, she proclaimed she loved him as he was which was intriguing. However, fairly soon, he completely neglected her, she resented him for it but, of course, they patched things up before she died of cancer. Well, there was nothing really wrong with all that but it was never really thrilling though. At some point, when they just met, Cooper seemed to be hinting that he would go for a much wilder approach but it didn’t last very long. Eventually, the end-result was a rather generic biopic focusing on the (after all very basic) love life of an amazing artist instead of focusing on his amazing artistic achievements. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, I have to admit that it was still a decent watch though and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre or if you are interested in Bradley Cooper’s work. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it did win the César of the Best movie of the year, I was quite eager to check it out. Eventually, it turned out to be some kind of French version of ‘Training Day’, except that everything that happened during this first work day didn’t seem to be so far-fetched after all (ok, except maybe for this lion cub lost in a French ghetto…). Eventually, it was probably one of the greatest assets in this movie, this realistic approach and the fact that the makers always remained neutral. Indeed, depending on where you stand, you might think Chris is awful but, most of the time, he did seem to be a decent cop delivering a solid job (he still did some sketchy stuff though). What stroke me was the fact that, even though all these different groups (the parents, the children, the cops, the mayor, the drug dealers,…) all did scream and fight with each other, they were actually all completely powerless to improve their own situation and/or the situation of anyone else in this environment. Eventually, they were all functioning on a survival mode looking only for their own best interest. Concerning the actors involved, they did deliver some solid performances but, to be honest, they were all lacking some charisma though but that’s usually the issue when you go for some super realistic characters. Furthermore, even if I really did appreciate their approach, the content was nothing really groundbreaking after all. However, it all changed with the chaotic, even anarchist, final act. Indeed, at this point, the whole thing took a drastic left turn but the end-result was quite spellbinding to behold. Eventually, outside of France, a lot of people are wondering why the French youth goes on a regular basis on such rampage, burning cars and what not, and I think this movie finally gave a pretty good idea about what the background and context could be behind such events. Anyway, to conclude, I thought it was a really solid and realistic drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for [Link removed - login to see], I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it turned out to be another riff on the ‘Groundhog Day’ concept and, this time, they mixed it up with a typical high-school drama which wasn’t necessarily a bad idea. The issue with these movies is that they all follow the same template though. Indeed, the main character get stuck in a time-loop until they change something which was fine with ‘Groundhog Day’ but it makes all these similar movies terribly predictable. In this case, another issue was that it took too long to start the time-loop. Indeed, it was only after 30 mins that it finally started which was obviously too long for a movie lasting around 90 mins. It didn’t help either that it was obvious for pretty much everyone who watched this movie when Samantha went to this party what she was supposed to do and, yet, it took her forever to figure it out. Finally, even though Zoey Deutch was so lovely as usual, her character was barely interesting and the other characters were in fact even worse. At least, I have to admit that I didn’t expect it to end up this way though. Indeed, the whole concept consists in the main character redeeming him/herself in some way or another. However, in this case, she actually had to sacrifice herself which was at least a different approach. Eventually, even if I didn’t care much for most of it, I have to admit that there was an interesting vibe which was amplified by the way it all ended. Anyway, to conclude, my rating was probably too generous here but I still think it is worth a look though, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was directed by Claude Chabrol and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. At the time, Chabrol was going through a string of failures and this movie was apparently a big flop at the box-office as well which almost completely derailed Chabrol’s career. It’s interesting because something similar happened with Charles Chaplin who also tried more than a decade before to make a movie about the same story (‘Monsieur Verdoux’) but it was also a huge failure at the time. Anyway, it’s definitely a fascinating story but, in this case, I’m afraid Chabrol’s directing felt terribly flat. To make things worse, I thought it was pretty messy. I mean, there was no real introduction to Henri-Desiré Landru and, out of the blue, he got some letters from the post office and started his killing spree. Finally, the tone was also really uneven. It’s interesting that these legendary directors decided both to make a dark satire but I really doubt that it was the best approach with this material. Indeed, while watching this movie, Landru did remind me of Ted Bundy in the sense that both men were some charismatic seducers but also some hustlers, some pathological liars and they both proclaimed their innocence until their very end. I mean, can you imagine making a dark satirical comedy about Bundy? At least, the cast was pretty cool and you had many lovely ladies involved such as Michèle Morgan, Danielle Darrieux and Stéphane Audran but it’s a pity that they were all given so little to do. On the other, it had been a while since I saw Charles Denner in a movie and he was pretty much pitch-perfect here. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was still a decent watch though and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Claude Chabrol’s work. 

Since I kept hearing some pretty good things about W.C. Fields, I was quite eager to check his movies. Well, this is only the 2^nd movie I have seen involving the legendary comedian but, to be honest, it seems that the guy played pretty much the same character in all his movies. On the other hand, I have to admit that I was rather tired and distracted when I watched the damned thing but, to be honest, the story and the characters involved were not really strong. In fact, almost half of the duration was some kind of Vaudeville act involving the Great McGonigle and his troupe but I thought it was only mildly entertaining. However, it was absolutely quite awesome when W.C. Fields or the Great McGonigle did his juggling act. Indeed, I always loved this kind of circus acts and I have to admit that I was actually quite blown away by Fields’s skills. I also think it displayed that, even though the Great McGonigle was a hustler, a loser, a cheat, he was also a real artist after all and I think it was pretty neat. Anyway, even if the plot was hardly inspiring, there is no doubt that Fields was the real deal and the guy was always entertaining. Another thing that I enjoyed was the final scene. Indeed, even though it might not seem much, I thought it was really awesome because it made me realized that the character Dr. Aldous Smith in ‘La ballade des Dalton’ (a rather obscure French animated feature which I saw 100’s times when I was a kid) was actually based on W.C. Fields which was really cool. Anyway, to conclude, even though it didn’t really impress me that much, it was still a decent watch though and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, even if it seemed to be another uninspired and forgettable Netflix production, I think the damned thing actually had some potential. Indeed, above all, the relationship between Mélanie Laurent’s and Adèle Exarchopoulos’s characters was just so well developed, they were so cool, they were together quite spellbinding to behold. Surprisingly, Manon Bresch was also quite charismatic and they made a really neat trio together, even if it would have better worked if her character would have been introduced from the start. I also enjoyed the feminist vibe so the whole thing could have been a neat French variation on ‘Charlie’s Angels’. Unfortunately, pretty much nothing else did work in this movie though. Indeed, even though the concept was not bad, the whole thing was just so unfocused, the tone was so uneven and the action scenes were never impressive so the end-result did feel terribly flat. Eventually, it seemed that Laurent did spend a lot of time to finetune the connection between Carole and Alex which was great but she also apparently neglected pretty much everything else which was just too bad. Concerning [Link removed - login to see][Link removed - login to see], it had been a while since I saw the legendary French actress but I’m afraid that she was rather weak here. Indeed, it seemed that she tried to emulate Marlon Brando who was mumbling and sleepwalking as well through all his last performances. Anyway, to conclude, I think I was quite generous with my rating here but I just loved this group of cool chicks and, only therefore, I think it is worth a look but there is no doubt that it could or should have been much better. 

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from this flick but since it was starring Emma Roberts and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, unfortunately, as expected, it turned out to be a cheap romantic comedy with a rather weak concept. I still think that Emma Roberts and Hayden Christensen were quite cute and they had a decent chemistry together but they both seemed to be terribly miscast. First of all,  Christensen is 10 years older than Roberts and obviously looked much older than her but, above all, there was the fact that none of them has an Italian background at all. Coming back on the cheap aspect of the whole thing, even though it was taking place in ‘Little Italy’, for some reason, it was taking place in an Italian neighborhood in… Toronto, of all places. Seriously, there wasn’t a single moment during which I was conscious that it was taking place in this specific city because everything looked so bland. Concerning the rest of the movie, well, it was full of clichés and I wonder how pissed off Italians and Italian descendants would get if they watched the damned thing. At least, I was once again impressed by how lovely Emma Roberts was, I think she is 100’s times more attractive than her famous aunt ever was, but it’s such a pity and even a real shore to watch her in such underwhelming features. Concerning Hayden Christensen, even after the Star Wars debacle, I never had anything against the poor guy but he did spend most of his career playing in such B features. Anyway, to conclude, even if I have to admit that the damned thing was rather harmless, I still think it was pretty weak and I think you can pretty much avoid it, even if you have a weak spot for romantic comedies like I do.