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CollectionsI wasn’t really sure what to expect from this movie but since it has won the Golden Kalf of the best Dutch movie of the year, I was quite eager to check it out. In fact, the Dutch movie industry is so limited that there are basically only 2 kind of movies that manage to win this prize. Indeed, they are either some really commercial feature which were usually some big box-office success or they are some really obscure Art-house features that really nobody saw when they were released. Well, this movie definitely belonged to the 2nd group, that’s for sure but, even though it was clearly an ambitious production with some potential, it has been a while since I have seen such a pretentious and tedious movie. Seriously, the whole thing never took off and I had such a hard time to care about this rather convoluted and unconvincing love story. Eventually, the only thing that really worked with this movie was Sylvia Hoeks. Indeed, I already saw her in 2 other Dutch movies and she seemed to have some potential but, in this movie, I thought she was simply quite mesmerizing to behold which was quite an achievement since her character was in fact really underwritten. Anyway, to conclude, I think my rating was actually rather generous here but I guess it is still worth a look, at least if you like the genre.
An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 3 January 2017 08:36
(A review of The Girl and Death)
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 2 January 2017 03:24
(A review of Analyze This)[Link removed - login to see]To be honest, it has been a while since I saw this movie and maybe I should rewatch it at some point. Still, I remember it very well when this one was released. Indeed, back then, everyone, including myself, praised Robert De Niro for trying something so drastically different than his usual work. Indeed, it was basically a commercial comedy but it was pretty neat that De Niro would choose to make fun of his legacy and, above all, the damned thing was actually genuinely entertaining. However, what we didn’t know at the time is that De Niro wouldn’t stop after this 1st attempt and he would in fact eventually keep showing up in such commercial comedies but these movies would be more and more underwhelming to watch and, as a result, the once greatest actor ever has by now pretty much ruined his amazing legacy. As a result, I look back at his movie with some rather bittersweet memories. Still, if you can put this aside, I have to admit that the damned thing was actually quite fun. To conclude, even though it was far from being a masterpiece, I still think it was one of the better comedies starring Robert De Niro and I think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 2 January 2017 12:39
(A review of Awakenings)I already saw this movie but since it was a while back, I thought I might as well check it out again. Well, even though this movie definitely has a solid reputation, I can’t say it completely worked for me. I have to admit that it was a fascinating story but, unfortunately, the tone was just too cheesy for me. On top of that, it displayed another typical dramatic performance by Robin Williams. Indeed, ever since his performance in ‘Dead Poets Society’, Williams would keep showing up in such dramas from time to time. The problem is that ‘Dead Poets Society’ must be one of the most overrated movies ever made and I thought that Robin Williams was only decent at best in this movie. For this movie, he gave his usual cheesy performance and, while it was again rather watchable, except for a few scenes, I thought he was hardly convincing. On the other hand, Robert De Niro was still at the top of his game at the time and he gave here another impressive and really intense performance. It's too bad because there was definitely something quite spellbinding about the material, it’s just that I didn’t care much about the approach they chose. Anyway, to conclude, even though it didn’t completely work for me, it was still a decent watch and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 1 January 2017 08:07
(A review of The Hundred-Foot Journey)When was the last time that Lasse Hallström has directed a really good movie? Anyway, this time around, he went for something really similar to 'Chocolat' (which must be his most overrated movie) and, even though it seemed to be quite popular, it didn't really work for me, I'm afraid. First of all, even though it felt like a true story, it was actually some fiction. As a result, while watching the damned thing, I was really impressed by this Indian guy who managed to become one of the best chefs in France but, in fact, it never actually happened so this tale became suddenly much less powerful. Another thing that bothered me was the fact, pretty much like with 'Chocolat', once again, Hallström struggled to make an English-speaking movie in France with a majority of French characters. Seriously, it was a mess. Indeed, sometimes, within the very same conversation, the characters would switch from English to French and back to English without any reason. I also don't understand why they chose Helen Mirren to play this part. I mean, she wasn't bad and her French was actually pretty good but I could easily name 10 French actresses who would have been better for this part. And, yet, I have to admit it, the whole thing was still a decent watch. Indeed, Hallström knows how to create a really nice mood, the cooking was fascinating and the food really looked delicious. Seriously, after watching the damned thing, I actually really felt like cooking and eating something really nice. In fact, I actually that this story really had some potential but the rivalry between the 2 restaurants was really boring and predictable and I wish they actually got rid off it but since it was the whole point of the book it was based on... Anyway, to conclude, even though it was yet another weak effort from the Swedish director, I think it is still worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 30 December 2016 07:33
(A review of Horns)Apparently, it was not enough to adapt so many books written by Stephen King, now, they have decided to adapt also the books written by his kids as well. Well, even though it was not bad at all, at least, it was better than 'Mirrors' which was probably the last movie I saw directed by Alexandre Aja. However, to be honest, it was still missing something to really win me over though. I mean, the concept had some potential but I'm not sure that this story had anything else really interesting to tell. First of all, they used this rather old gimmick of going back and forth between the present and the past but it is in fact a rather cheap way to make a simple story look more complicated than it actually is and it was definitely the case here. For example, I figured pretty much from the very beginning that Lee was actually the one who killed the girl. Concerning Harry Potter, sorry, I meant, Daniel Radcliffe, it was pretty obvious that he tried to shake his image with this movie but you wonder if playing another character with some supernatural powers was really the best choice. Still, I have to admit it, he was not bad in this movie. Anyway, to conclude, all in all, I thought it was a decent watch and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A good movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 29 December 2016 08:46
(A review of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story)To be honest. even though I did like 'The Force Awakens', I thought it was slightly disappointing. Indeed, like many others, I thought it was way too similar to 'A New Hope'. However, thanks to this last entry, I finally understood what they tried to achieve with 'The Force Awakens' which was basically to show that you could make a decent Star Wars feature and, at the time, they took no risks whatsoever. In fact, this new spin-off was the real test as it was not a sequel or a prequel and none of the most familiar characters had a major role. Eventually, I have to admit that I was quite impressed as it turned out to be one of the best Star Wars features I have seen and easily a big improvement on 'The Force Awakens'. Indeed, it was quite spectacular, the characters were interesting enough (this robot K-2SO was above all just really awesome) and the damned thing was simply really entertaining. Furthermore, I liked the fact that they took a darker approach, for example, by showing the shaddy aspects of the Alliance and how some of them must have done some terrible things for the 'cause'. Of course, there was also the fact that all the main characters actually died in this movie which was something really bold. To be honest, I also think that there was a practical side to these deaths. Indeed, if they would have survived, how would you explain why they didn't show up in the first trilogy? Still, it wasn't completely flawless. Indeed, there were probably too many characters so none of them really had the time to be properly developed. Above all, at the end of the day, the story was actually nothing really amazing. I mean, basically, it was just about some guys trying to steal some blueprint so it wasn't really supposed to be some epic tale, even if the makers tried obviously to blow it completely out of proportion. In fact, I think I would have preferred to have the final act to be some kind of 'Mission Impossible' including a crew of maybe only 5 or 10 people instead of the massive battle they eventually provided. Anyway, even if it wasn't perfect, it was still a damned fine blockbuster and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 5 months ago on 28 December 2016 08:06
(A review of Hit and Run )First of all, let me address the elephant in the room. Of course, the fact that Dax Shepard managed to hook up with someone like Kristen Bell gives hope to many ordinary guys in the world but, let's be serious, it is actually rather sad to see such a cute girl end up with someone rather unattractive, not really successful and, on top of that, not really talented. Watching this movie made this conclusion even more obvious. Indeed, even though I didn't expect much from the damned thing, I thought it was quite terrible. In fact, I have to admit it, the concept actually had some potential. Indeed, imagine a girld who find a new job in another city but your boyfriend is reluctant to go. Eventually, when they finally get there, she learns that he is in fact in the Witness Protection Program and when he goes back to his home city, they get into a lot of trouble. That was actually a nice set-up but, unfortunately, Shepard really poorly developed this idea. Indeed, the introduction was just so awkward, it took them way to long to explain why he couldn't leave town. Furthermore, if his girlfriend knew he was in the Witness Protection Program, then, she should have known that he probably had a pretty shaddy past. Anyway, to conclude, even though the whole thing was rather harmless, I thought it was pretty weak and I don't think it is worth a look.
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A good movie
Posted : 8 years, 6 months ago on 25 December 2016 07:49
(A review of Macbeth)To be honest, I don't think I really needed, at this point, another version of this classic Shakespeare play. Especially since the previous version I saw (a modern Australian version starring Sam Worthington) was just so weak. Still, since the two main characters, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, were played by Michael Fassbinder and Marion Cotillard, I have to admit that this new version sounded quite intriguing. Well, first of all, the whole thing looked great and I think it was a great idea to keep the original setting in Scotland in the 11th century. This way, the text worked better as it really matched the surroundings of the characters. Furthermore, of course, both Fassbender and Cotillard really nailed their performances. And, yet, even though I admired the work done there, the damned thing was still missing something to really dazzle me. Was it because I have seen this story so many times before (it must have been at least the 5th adaptation I have seen by now)? I think it had mostly to do with the fact that, except for 2 battle scenes, which were visually pretty neat, nothing else really happened and what remained were some strong actors trying to deliver these classics Shakespearean dialogues the best they could. I mean, if it's your thing, you will probably love this movie but, otherwise, it is rather difficult to really get into the whole thing. To conclude, even though it didn't really blow me away, it was still a decent watch and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 6 months ago on 25 December 2016 10:10
(A review of The Truth About Cats & Dogs)For some reasons, it was a movie I wanted to watch for quite some time. To be honest, at first, I thought it was actually quite terrible. Indeed, basically, it was obvious that they went for some modern version of 'Cyrano de Bergerac' switching the sex of the characters. Well, I already didn't like at all 'Roxanne', another modern version of this story starring Steve Martin, and this version seemed to be pretty bad as well. Above all, the main issue with this movie was that Janeane Garofalo was just not ugly at all, in fact, I thought she was really attractive so the whole thing never worked at all. It's just too bad because she was so charismatic and even though she had a very productive career, it was one of the very few times that she played a leading part. On the other hand, I never thought that Uma Thurman was really gorgeous in this movie, above all, because her wardrobe was not flaterring at all, in the contrary. Furthermore, they pushed it too far with her character and made her sound really moronic, especially at the beginning. Still, somehow, the whole thing won me over. I mean, I still didn't care for the whole 'Cyrano' gimmick, that really never worked at all, but, at some point, I started to enjoy the relationship between these 2 women. Eventually, I wish they dropped the whole mistaken identity thing and focus on these 2 different women who, somehow, became really good friends. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, I guess it is still worth a look though, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 8 years, 6 months ago on 23 December 2016 09:07
(A review of Sinister)To be honest, I really had no idea what this movie was about but since it seemed to be a decent horror flick, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, eventually, the beginning was quite promising. Indeed, Ethan Hawke is a solid actor and I loved the idea of this washed-up writer going to a new city hoping to finally write his next best-seller about a local gruesome crime. Unfortunately, the whole thing started to fall down when he found those Super-8 films. I mean, it was pretty neat that he found one but so many of them? I wish he actually found just the one dealing with the crime he was investigating and that they would focus just on this murder case but, instead, they went for something way too convoluted for my taste. Indeed, even though you might expect the main character to do some investigating, in fact, he just spent pretty much the whole duration watching some creepy films. To be honest, as a result, the whole thing felt like some kind of mix between 'Paranormal Activity' and 'The Ring'. Anyway, even though I don't think they chose the right angle to develop this material, I have to admit that it was still pretty creepy and I guess it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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