Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since it was directed by Alex Garland, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, after ‘Civil War’, Garland didn’t waste any time and came up quickly with another war feature but the approach was completely different this time around. Indeed, this time, he went for probably the most realistic depiction of warfare I have seen so far and the end-result was quite intriguing and instead of some bombastic action scenes full of CGI, they focused on the technical details involved when modern soldiers are at work. To be honest, I have to admit that I didn’t really understand what was their actual mission. I had to look it up afterwards and, apparently, they were performing what they call some ‘overwatch’ to support another US marines operation. Anyway, the whole thing went sideways and you spent then 90 mins watching what happened pretty much in real time. In this case, there was no room for politics discussions of this specific war was justified or not. The goal was to show the bond between these soldiers, without showing who were they were at home or even who they were outside their work during such missions (except for one scene at the beginning showing them watching a popular music video at the time). What I found interesting is that, even though they had access to the most advanced technical means available at the time, they still felt helpless against such guerilla warfare involving a dedicated local population fighting for their land. Eventually, the end-result was a little bit dry but also really raw showing the technicality, the skills involved but also how futile it eventually is when you are a hit by a massive IED explodes nearby. Anyway, to conclude, it was another intriguing directorial effort from Garland 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 there was a decent cast involved and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it had been a few decades since I saw Uma Thurman playing the lead in a movie which had actually some potential. Unfortunately, the damned thing was still rather weak though. It’s too bad because, like I mentioned before, this whole money-laundering scheme combined with a satire about the Art business world actually had some real potential. However, the end-result turned out to be a mess. It’s interesting or rather pathetic, depending on how you look at it that, even though ‘Pulp Fiction’ was already released 30 years ago, filmmakers are still trying to emulate the rapid-fire smart*ss dialogues from this seminal classic but they usually terribly fail. Even hiring Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson won’t be enough to compensate the general weakness displayed here. The first act was especially awkward to behold. Indeed, they tried to introduce the main characters but I seriously had no idea who they were, what they were doing and what they were actually saying. At some point, it all became clear but the way to get there was rather convoluted and, above all, not entertaining at all. After that, the dialogues were constantly indecipherable but, since the story was quite generic and predictable, I didn’t really follow anymore what they were saying, at least, not word for word and I seriously didn’t miss a thing. Coming back on Thurman, I still think she was actually pretty good here but it’s rather sad that her best performance in years was still wasted in yet another rather weak movie like this one. Anyway, to conclude, even if I have seen worse, I just didn’t care much for this movie and I don’t think it is really worth a look. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since it seemed to have a decent reputation, I thought I might as well check it out. To be honest, this movie was for so many years on my queue and I kept postponing seemingly forever because, I don't know, it seemed to be a rather stuffy true story. Well, I have to admit that I was quite wrong and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it after all. Sure, when I think about it, it is basically a feelgood movie exaggerating the amazing relationship between the gay activists and the miners in strike at the beginning of the 80's in the UK but, still, for some reasons, I was on the verge of tears through most of the duration. I mean, the resilience of the gay community there in the UK but probably everywhere in the world as well when you think that they are despised by half of the population was just so inspiring. And to see them support the miners, since I'm a massive leftist, well, I couldn't resist this combo, that's for sure. There were also many sub-plots involved which were all barely developed but, for once, it didn't matter much. I also won't forget soon Dominic West's mighty dance moves and I didn't expect him to be so wild on the dance floor. Eventually, people who hate gays, as displayed in this movie, simply don't know them and homophoby is just plain ignorance. At the end of the day, even if some might look weird, they just want to enjoy life like everybody else and, in the process, they will probably have more fun than most of the straight people who will try to ruin everything for them. Anyway, to conclude, even if it might not be a masterpiece, I really enjoyed the damned thing and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

To be honest, I have never been a huge fan of this franchise but, since this last installment was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out anyway. I was also intrigued by the fact that it had been a huge box-office hit but also worried about watching John Freaking Wick whacking some random dudes for 3 hrs. Well, at least, I have to admit that the time did pass by fairly quickly so I guess I wasn’t bored but, still, I can’t say I was really impressed by the damned thing though. First of all, it had been about 5 years since I saw the 2 previous installments and I have to admit that I barely remembered them but did it really matter? Eventually, I wonder if the fans actually care about the convoluted and pretentious mythology they cooked up here. And what was this about these bulletproof suits? Were they already in the previous movies? Seriously, it looked rather ridiculous. Concerning the new cast involved, I have to admit that there were some pretty cool characters/actors added to the mix (Bill Skarsgård, Donnie Yen, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Rina Sawayama, Scott Adkins). However, even though Skarsgård was not bad, I wish they hired a French dude to play this character. I mean, half of the time, he didn’t sound like a French guy at all (I’m French so I think I can tell). I thought it was also hilarious that John Wick would stand a chance against Donnie Yen only if Yen was blind. His scenes were pretty awesome though. I was also quite amazed by Scott Adkins. Indeed, it took me a while to recognize him but I thought he was actually really funny and to have him wear a fat-suit for his fighting scenes was such a master move. Concerning the rest of the movie, the dialogue scenes were all terribly pompous and, of course, you had some endless action scenes, the trademark of this franchise, which were technically well made but, as far as I was concerned, it was all rather repetitive and not really fascinating. Anyway, to conclude, I still don’t get the popularity of this franchise but I have to admit that it was a decent watch and 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 included in the ‘1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die’ list, I was quite eager to check it out. Eventually, did it really deserve to be on the prestigious list? Probably not but I understand why it is still highly regarded. Apparently, it was a huge hit when it was released in the UK and the 4 main actors all became stars thanks to this movie. The fact that I saw it on YouTube without subtitles probably didn’t help but, in my opinion, the story was too convoluted. However, what I really enjoyed were the characters. Indeed, Hester, Clarissa and Lord Rohan were all fairly complex, more complex than the characters that you usually get in such vintage dramas. It was also intriguing that, in spite the title and in spite the fact that James Mason was displayed prominently on all the promotional material, he wasn’t the main character after all. It’s interesting that even though Mason was, in my opinion, so charismatic and spellbinding in this movie, he actually despised his performance. In fact, this movie was above all about these 2 women who were much more complex than you might expect. Clarissa was much more than a nice naïve spoiled rich woman and  Hesther was also much more than a cold ambitious social climber. Indeed, Hesther was pretty clear from the start that Clarissa shouldn’t become her friend and Clarissa knew from the start what it would mean to get married with Lord Rohan so none of these characters were really clueless or flawless but they were all quite intriguing to behold. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was still a decent watch and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

P.S.: I forgot to mention that this Toby character with some blackface make-up was just awful and really did add nothing to the whole thing so why didn't they take a white boy without this make-up to play this character?

To be honest, when I heard about this movie, I can’t say I was really excited. A vampire movie called ‘Sinners’? It did sound like a rather boring B feature to me. However, since it did receive some really solid reviews, I have to admit that I started to become really intrigued by the damned thing. Well, Ryan Coogler certainly pulled it off one more time and I would go even further by saying that it might be his best directorial effort so far. Indeed, within a few mins, I had the feeling that I was transported in this time and place. He also managed to give this community such a strong identity showing their strength and weakness and, in spite of the oppression and the rather hopelessness of their situation, these characters were still laughing, making love, playing music, dancing, while surviving in a dangerous world where the dice were loaded against them from the start. It was seriously equally fascinating and heartbreaking at the same time. Of course, to have Michael B. Jordan playing a set of twins made the whole thing even more awesome than it already was. Eventually, I wouldn’t mind watching a whole series of movies focusing on these twins as they apparently went through so many things during their lives. So, it was really closed to become a masterpiece but, unfortunately, I didn’t care much about the vampire stuff, I’m afraid. I’m not saying that it was a bad idea, it just that it didn’t jive with me. Take for example ’12 Years a Slave’, another classic depicting the hardships faced by the black folks in the USA, would it have been an improvement if they would have added some vampires, werewolves or zombies to the mix? I really doubt it. Obviously, Coogler was inspired by ‘From Dusk Till Dawn’, except that, this time around, there was no twist and we all knew before the movie started that these vampires would show up at some point. Anyway, to conclude, even if it didn’t completely work for me, I still really enjoyed most of it and it is definitely worth a look. 

I don’t know if you have noticed but I tend to be pretty random with what I watch. Indeed, I watch pretty much anything and, to be honest, with more than 50% of the movies I watch, I’m actually wasting my time. In this case, while I was watching this one, I kept wondering how the hell did it end up in my queue.  Anyway, the damned thing was pretty weak, that’s for sure. I mean, I have nothing against Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, they can be pretty funny and it was a brilliant idea to have them play some sisters. I also loved the idea of these women in their 40’s throwing some really wild party. Unfortunately, pretty much nothing else worked though. First of all, there was the fact that both women had to play some boring stereotypes. Then, their personal dramas were also rather tedious. Finally, they had to find a way to have them having this party but the way to get there was just so convoluted and, again, above all, barely entertaining whatsoever. It might also explain why this movie was almost 2hrs long which was just way too long for this material. Another issue was that, even though they had a decent supporting cast (Maya Rudolph, James Brolin, Dianne Wiest, John Cena, John Leguizamo, Greta Lee), all their characters were barely developed whatsoever. It was especially weird to see Greta Lee who completely blew me away in ‘Past Lives’, my favorite movie released in 2023, playing here a rather offensive even borderline debasing Asian character. I still think that the material actually had some potential, I just wish it would have been properly developed which was definitely not the case here. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was rather harmless, it was still pretty weak though and I don’t think it is really worth a look. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since there was a decent cast involved and since it was available on Disney+, I thought I might as well check it out. First of all, I was pretty sure I wasn’t the right audience for this movie. Indeed, with my ex-wife, we used to have a lot of dogs, up to 7 at the same time(!) and, when she left me, she took the dogs with her but I certainly didn’t miss them. On top of that, I always found such movies dealing with the relationship between a dog and his master so boring even such ‘classics’ in this genre such as ‘Hachi: A Dog's Tale’ or ‘Marley & Me’. The whole gimmick of hearing the dog’s thoughts is also so lame, so, I had some rather low expectations and, yet, to be honest, I have to admit that I was actually really surprised by the damned thing. Seriously, towards the end, I was actually quite emotional which was the last thing I was expecting to happen while watching a movie about a freaking dog. Eventually, I do believe it’s the best movie I have ever saw dealing with such a relationship. Of course that the dog really loved car racing was rather ridiculous but they didn’t push it too much into this direction so it actually worked. Above all, it was about the unconditional love this animal and this man had and, I have to admit it, for the first time, I actually understood what this connection meant. To be honest, I wish they didn’t add this conflict with his in-laws, they were possibly the worst in-laws I have ever seen by the way, but I guess the makers felt that they had to add some extra drama in this story (the fact that his wife already died of cancer was apparently not enough…) . The fact that the guy was just way too old to breakthrough in Formula 1 was also rather ridiculous but his whole racing career was obviously not the point at all here. Seriously, for the first time in 2 years following our separation, I was actually thinking about the damned dogs she took with her and how it would be to see them again. Anyway, to conclude, I have to admit that I actually enjoyed the damned thing 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 seemed to have a decent reputation and since it was available on YouTube, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, I wasn’t disappointed, that’s for sure. Since Ozu had such a strong reputation, I started to discover his work but it was only with this movie that I finally understood why the guy is considered a master. Indeed, it was such a fascinating portrait of a daughter and her father and, even though the setup was fairly simple, the end-result was however quite fascinating. I was first amazed by Setsuko Hara’s performance. She was so charismatic but there were also so many layers to her character, she was just quite spellbinding to behold. The movie was mostly focusing on her so, it took a little more time to notice, but I became also fascinated by Chishû Ryû who was playing the father. I don’t think I have seen such a strong bond and connection between family relatives brought forward not by blood or by growing together but by some very subtle and pitch-perfect acting. The material was also super interesting. Recently, I have seen some other Japanese vintage features like this one and I have noticed that, very often, the characters in these movies were stifled by the rigid Japanese rules and traditions. Here, you might expect something similar but I think it went much beyond that though. Indeed, the reason why Shukichi Somiya did push his daughter to get married was not only because it was the proper thing to do but, above all, it was an act of love because he wanted her to be happy. Sure, he was well aware of the fact that by getting married, there was no guarantee for happiness but, by staying and taking care of him, it was however sure that she would end up alone and possibly ostracized by her community. It was also quite fascinating how this whole situation was still relevant today more than 70 years later. Indeed, in Western countries, especially in the Netherlands where I live, kids tend to get really comfortable and take seemingly forever to leave their parents but, even though there is nothing really wrong with that, as depicted in this movie, when you get children, the goal is never to have them live forever with you, even if this process might be heartbreaking. Anyway, to conclude, I really loved the damned thing and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.