Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was directed by [Link removed - login to see] and since it was available on Disney+, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, to be honest, I have to admit that I was actually pleasantly surprised by the damned thing. In my opinion, even if it was the least successful instalment at the box-office, it was actually the best Poirot feature directed by Branagh so far. Indeed, it was visually pretty neat and the ominous mood was quite pitch-perfect. The other thing that I enjoyed was the fact that, even though I kept reading on the internet that Hercule Poirot was this time involved in some kind of supernatural case, the supernatural aspect turned out to be much more downplayed than I expected which was a relief. Eventually, most of what was supposed to be paranormal was debunked by Poirot who displayed that with wits and common-sense, he could explained pretty much everything that did happen in this 'haunted' house which was pretty neat. Sure, some of it remained unclear and ambiguous but it was exactly the right amount and it never overshadowed Poirot’s cerebral process which should be the whole point of these movies. I have to admit that I figured out who was the murderer fairly early on and it seemed easier to spot on this time then in the previous movies (I have to admit that I have actually absolutely no recollection on who did it in ‘Death on the Nile’). It didn’t matter though because the mood was really neat and it was just nice to see Poirot debunking all these supposedly supernatural shenanigans while he was actually also hallucinating himself. Anyway, to conclude, it turned out to be a nice surprise and I think it is 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 YouTube, I thought I might as well check it out. It is usually considered as a major milestone in motion picture history because it was the very first movie shot in Technicolor. Well, the damned thing sure looked pretty good but I’m not sure if I really cared about the story though. In fact, it’s only when the movie started that I realized that Becky Sharp was actually the main character of ‘Vanity Fair’. Eventually, it turned out that this movie was in fact an adaptation of a play adapted from this book. Well, I’m not surprised that it was based on a play since the performances of all the actors were quite theatrical and the end-result was slightly jarring. Basically, instead of talking normally, they all seemed to be shouting their dialogues which might be appropriate for a play but it was a rather dubious choice for a movie like this one. Still, I have to admit that the cast was often quite entertaining to behold though. Concerning the story, it reminded me of ‘Barry Lyndon’ which is not surprising as Stanley Kubrick thought about for a while to adapt ‘Vanity Fair’ at some point but decided to do ‘Barry Lyndon’ instead after all. Indeed, the time period was similar and both stories were dealing with some rather selfish social climbers starting very low and reaching some improbable heights without caring much about the people around them. However, even in glorious Technicolor, there is no way this movie could compete with a Kubrick production, in any area or department you could think of. Anyway, to conclude, even though it didn’t really blow me away, I have to admit that it was still a decent watch and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was very well received and since it was available on Disney+, I thought I might as well check it out. I have to admit that I always had a weak spot for romantic comedies but, to be honest, it has been a while since I have seen a really good movie in this genre. Well, this movie was eventually the proof that you still can deliver something worthwhile in this genre. Indeed, even though it might seem simple, their masterstroke with this movie was not to go for a gimmick which is so often the case in this genre but, instead, to focus on the characters and what they were going through. As a result, there was something really genuine about this cute couple and I thought that they had such great chemistry from the very first moment they met each other in these toilets. Sure, during the 3^rd act, there was a break-up and, at the end, they went back with each other which was quite generic but both events still made sense and it didn’t feel like some far-fetched occurrences led by a plot on auto-pilot. Still, I have to admit that it missed something to really dazzle me though. Maybe it had to with the fact that, even though the two actors who played the leads both delivered some solid performances and even though they made such a cute couple, they were maybe not charismatic enough. I guess it’s the tricky thing, if you deliver some identifiable but also average characters, you might miss the swagger that goes with hiring some genuine movie stars. After thinking about it, I think the issue was mostly with the story though. Since the action took during mostly one single day, it did remind me of ‘Before Sunrise’ and they could have used some worse inspiration. However, even though ‘Before Sunrise’ is a classic romantic feature, it is actually the least interesting movie in the fascinating ‘Before..’ trilogy because, in my opinion, the story is really generic which was also the case here. Anyway, to conclude, I really enjoyed the damned thing though and I think it is definitely worth, especially if you like the genre. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but I have always been intrigued by Ennio Morricone’s work and since this movie was directed by Giuseppe Tornatore, I thought I might as well check it out. To be honest, the first 10 minutes were rather slightly annoying. Sure, I get that Morricone was amazing but I didn’t need around 20 people to repeat this one after the another. Fortunately, after going on and on about this, they finally let it go at some point and started to tell his life from the very beginning which was maybe a conventional approach but it was efficient enough. I still think that they were too many talking heads telling about their admiration of Morricone but, even though it was nice, their testimony had most of the time very little added value after all. However, as long as they were focusing on Morricone himself, the damned thing was actually quite spellbinding to behold. Indeed, like everyone else who’s interested in movies, I grew up watching movies with his soundtrack (he worked on a staggering 500 movies) and I have to admit that I always took his work for granted. However, thanks to this movie, I finally understood that, beside being monstrously productive, the guy was actually a great composer and it was awesome to get more acquainted with him. Eventually, this movie really made me want to re-watch Sergio Leone’s spaghetti Western trilogy, if only to listen once again to Morricone’s amazing soundtracks. I mean, it might be a controversial statement but was the soundtrack maybe actually the best thing in these classic movies? Anyway, to conclude, even if it was nothing really ground-breaking, it was still a solid documentary and I think it is worth a look, especially if you have ever enjoyed one of the many soundtracks delivered by the maestro.       

To be honest, since this movie didn’t get much love when it was released, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from it but, since it was directed by Robert Rodriguez and was starring Ben Affleck, I thought I might as well check it out anyway. At least, it couldn’t possibly be worse than ‘Spy Kids: Armageddon’. Well, even though it was indeed not worse, it wasn’t really much better either, I’m afraid. It’s too bad because it was something Rodriguez had apparently been working on for about 20 years and I have to admit that it did have some potential. Indeed, there were some scenes which did feel sometimes like an episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’ which was neat. However, it was pretty obvious that such a vibe was never what they attempted to do with this movie. Furthermore, in spite of some decent effort from Affleck, pretty much everything else was rather underwhelming with this movie. The first thing that you have to let go while watching this movie is that it didn’t seem to make much sense that a ‘hypnotic’ could take control of someone pretty much instantly, with barely any contact whatsoever. Eventually, it was basically the logic in this movie and, even if it was never really convincing, it didn’t really bother me that much. However, the concept was still rather half-baked and there were also too many twists which were obviously added to make this movie more complex than it was. In fact, I read some comments from some guy on the internet who described this movie as some kind of B feature which tried to emulate Christophe Nolan’s style and I think that this description was indeed pretty accurate. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was rather harmless, the damned thing was still pretty weak and I don’t think it is really worth a look. 

Recently, I have been focusing on older movies and, after watching Charles Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, it was really time to finally watch something with Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle. Back then, Arbuckle was actually the biggest star of them all but he was hit by a scandal at the beginning of the 20’s which crippled his career until his untimely death in the 30’s. Anyway, after 5 mins, I understood why the guy was so popular at the time. Sure, the damned thing was really random, there was no plot whatsoever and, instead, it was pretty much a succession of sketches. However, the end-result was seriously hilarious, in fact, it has been a while since I saw such a funny vintage short silent comedy. Of course, it did help that Roscoe Arbuckle was assisted by Buster Keaton (in fact, Arbuckle was the one who discovered Keaton and pretty much launched his career) and the two masters were quite marvelous together. Hopefully, in the future, I will watch more movies with and directed by Arbuckle (indeed, he also directed most of his movies, something really new at the time). Anyway, to conclude, I really loved the damned thing and I think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

I’m not a huge fan of Adam Sandler so I had some rather low expectations concerning this movie but since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it is always a rare (but nice) surprise when a movie starring Sandler actually turns out to be watchable and it was definitely the case here. Sure, some might complain about the nepotism involved since Sandler got his own daughter to play the lead (and also his wife and his other daughter in some supporting roles) but, fortunately, it wasn’t a debacle like it turned out to be for Will Smith with ‘After Earth’. Still, the acting performances from all these kids, not only the Sandlers, were not bad but, to be honest, it wasn’t really much more than that and none of them really impressed me after all. At least, it was a nice touch that Sadie Sandler was about the same age her character seemed to be and not 10 years older which is so often the case in this genre. Concerning the concept of setting a classic teen drama-comedy in a Jewish community which was obviously the whole point of this movie, it was intriguing and fairly well done but, to be honest, it was never really fascinating though. I guess, it was just too predictable and the fact that all the characters were all pretty basic and stereotypical probably didn’t help either. Still, it was refreshing to see a Sandler movie during which people were acting like some actual average people and not some hyper hysterical morons. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was nothing really groundbreaking, I have tot admit that it was a decent watch and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in watching something actually worthwhile with Sandler for once.