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Posted : 10 years ago on 22 June 2015 08:53
(A review of New York Stories)Even though it is a rather obscure flick, an anthology about New York with short features directed by by such great directors like Martin Scorsesem, Francis Ford Coppola and Woody Allen sounded really appealing. Eventually, the whole thing turned to be rather disappointing. I mean, the quality of the segments was just really inconsistent as it went from the average (Woody Allenâs bit) to the really tedious (Francis Ford Coppolaâs part). Fortunately, the part directed by Scorsese was actually really good and probably the main reason why you should watch the damned thing. Indeed, the directing was really solid, the story was quite spellbinding and there was an awesome performance by Nick Nolte. Concerning the segment directed by Woody Allen, it was a decent watch but he just developped the same ideas and concepts that you get in 99% of his movies so it wasnât really something really satisfying to watch. Then, you had Francis Ford Coppola who apparently had no clue about what he was doing here and delivered some of his worst work ever. To conclude, even though the whole thing was barely worth a look, you should still check this movie if only for the very nice segment directed by Martin Scorsese.
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An average movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 22 June 2015 07:37
(A review of Desire)Since this movie had quite a controversial reputation, I was quite eager to check it out. Well, even though the whole thing was indeed a bold experiment, the end-result was still rather disappointing, Iâm afraid. Basically, it turned out to be some really average TV feature with some very explicit and quite often unsimulated sex. Concerning the acting, there were many good-looking girls involved, Iâll give you that, but the performances were at best bearable but sometimes really pathetic to behold. On top of that, I thought that the whole thing was seriously poorly written. Indeed, I donât mind that they didnât provide a main plot but this combination of half-baked sub-plots was seriously underwhelming. And, then, of course, you had all these sex scenes⊠Some of them actually did work pretty well and, with those scenes, you did get a glimpse of the actual potential for such a project but many sex scenes felt pretty random and without much purpose, pretty much like the rest of the movie. Anyway, to conclude, even though this project really had some potential, the whole thing was still really underwhelming and I donât think it is really worth a look, except if you are dying to see some unsimulated sex in a mainstream production.
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A good movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 21 June 2015 08:18
(A review of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith)At last, Georges Lucas got it right. Indeed, the first two prequels were rather disappointing, especially 'Attack of the Clones' which was by far the lowest point in this franchise in my opinion. Finally, we finally got what we were asking from the very beginning: the dark story of Anakin Skywalker and how he became one of the most feared men in the galaxy, one of the greatest villains in film story, the mighty Darth Vader. So, it was indeed pretty gloomy and so many people got killed but it was much more satisfying that anything that happened in the 2 previous movies. Even the political intrigue, which was still pretty shabby, at last started to make sense. Indeed, the way Anakin got confused between both sides was actually pretty convincing and you could feel his struggle. Still, the whole journey to get to this result was seriously awkward and Lucas made so many mistakes along the road, it was almost beyond repair. Eventually, his biggest mistake was probably to choose to write and direct all the prequels, something he didnât even do for the original trilogy. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was far from being a masterpiece, it was still pretty solid and entertaining and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A good movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 20 June 2015 09:23
(A review of A Dangerous Method)It has been a while since I wanted to watch this flick and I'm glad I finally managed to watch the damned thing. For a 3rd time around, David Cronenberg was working with Viggo Mortensen and since there previous collaborations were really enjoyable, I had some rather high expectations with this movie. However, this time, the lead was actually played by Michael Fassbender, one of the most exciting actors at work nowadays. Anyway, even though this movie didnât get much love when it was released, I thought it was dealing with a fascinating subject, basically, the birth of psychoanalysis. Unfortunately, even though those 2 historical figures were really mesmerizing, I'm not sure I really cared about the character played by Keira Knightley. I mean, apparently, this woman was essential in their work and their relationship but I wish they spent more time developing their fascinating ideas amd theories. Instead, half of the movie was therefore about some average love affair with a rather predictable outcome. I must confess I have never read anything written by Freud, quite shamefull, I know, but I discovered I stood behind everything he said. Indeed, the way that sexuality has a major impact on our mind and behavior or even the fact that there is no place in paranormality or superstition in science are some of the thoughts I really share with him Not that Jung was an uninteresting fellow, in the contrary. To conclude, even though it was really a masterpiece, it wasn't still a really interesting movie and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you're interested in this subject.
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An average movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 20 June 2015 06:21
(A review of The Real McCoy)Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Kim Basinger and Val Kilmer, I still wanted to check it out. While watching this, the first thing I was thinking is that they don't make movies like this anymore. Indeed, nowadays, they produce only massive blockbusters with a 200 million dollars budget or small indie features with a shoe-string budget, nothing in the middle anymore. I mean, don't misunderstand me, it was still a really weak movie anyway. Basically, they went for the most generic heist plot you could think of, using all the known clichĂ©s, and decided to have a female main character thinking that it would be enough to make this really original and entertaining. Above all, the whole thing was just really poorly written. Why pretending in the intro that the main character was a guy? Also, the whole gimmick of the master thief coming out of retirement for one last job is really old and boring. As a result, you have to wait about 45 minutes before Kim Basinger does what she was supposed to do from the very beginning. At least, Basinger did look fine but it wasnât enough to make this movie really interesting. To conclude, it must be one of the weakest heist movies I have ever seen and it is not really worth a look.
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A good movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 20 June 2015 07:25
(A review of Wreck-It Ralph)I already saw this movie but since it was a while back and since it is available on Disney+, I thought I might as well check it out again. Back then, Disney was finally going through a very nice renaissance, delivering once again some fine animated features and, while watching this one, I thought it could be their best one from this period. Indeed, even though 'Frozen' was a decent flick, to be honest, it didn't really blow me away. On the other hand, this production definitely had some potential. I remember it very well, when I first saw the trailer, I thought 'This looked totally awesome! HĂ©, I didn't know that Pixar was coming up with a new flick?!?'. Indeed, it looked like a Pixar production, it smelled like a Pixar production but it was in fact a Disney film. When you watch the damned thing, it did become pretty obvious though. Anyway, the whole thing looked amazing and the characters were really neat. Concerning the video-game references, I myself was a hard-core gamer in the 80's-90's so it was pretty much a blast for me but I'm pretty sure that most of the kids won't get those. And finally, what about the story? Well, it was at first very promising giving that awesome feeling that only the best Pixar productions could provide but, then, the plot became rather convoluted pretty quickly. Basically, they had to find some excuses to have Ralph leaving his arcade but what they came up with was never really convincing. Sure, it was still entertaining but the depth was gone after 15-20 minutes. Anyway, to conclude, even though I don't think it was a masterpiece, it is still one of the best animated features produced by Disney lately and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A very good movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 19 June 2015 09:51
(A review of White Wedding)For the international community, Vanessa Paradis has been mostly known for her long running relationship with Johnny Depp, resulting in 2 kids. Well, in France, she has been one of the most famous singers for almost 30 years, starting with her hit âJoe le taxiâ when she was just 15 years old. She pretty much became a star overnight and, a couple of years later, she also gave her acting debut. For this movie, Paradis was only 17 years old but she already displayed some solid acting chops and she was rewarded the CĂ©sar for the Most Promising Actress, something that the likes of Mariah Carey, Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera obviously didnât achieve with their respective abysmal acting debut. Basically, it is a dark and intense drama about a doomed love affair between a teacher and a young student played by Paradis. It was some rather controversial material but it was never exploitative and the young actress was rewarded for taking such risks. Unfortunately, she would stop acting and would come back only 6 years later for âĂlisaâ which would be another hit in France. To conclude, even though it is nowadays pretty much forgotten, I think it is a pretty good drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in French movies.
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An average movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 18 June 2015 10:00
(A review of 187)I wasn't sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Samuel L. Jackson, I thought I might as well give it a try. At first, I must say that I was rather impressed. Indeed, the whole thing started with an intense dark and gloomy depiction of your average inner-city school and I thought it was a nice fictional counterpart to an interesting documentary I saw recently called 'Waiting for Superman'. Basically, in this completely hostile and filthy environment, is it really possible for an average kid to learn something or for a decent teacher to do his/her job? It is an awful and depressing system that only lead to some major failures. So, it was really interesting and Jackson's really solid performance was making all the other movies in this genre looking like some kind of family features produced by Disney. Unfortunately, during the second half, they decided to add a rather half-baked and underwhelming vigilante angle and the whole thing pretty much lost it. I mean, sure, the guy was traumatized and his actions were understandable but it was just poorly developed. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, I still think it was a decent watch and it is definitely worth a look.
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A good movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 18 June 2015 10:16
(A review of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids)This movie is definitely a childhood favorite. Indeed, I saw it in the theater when it was released, I must have been 10 years old, and I really loved the damned thing at the time. Back then, when there was no CGI, I thought it looked really awesome and the story was really exciting for my young age. Of course, the plot was not really impressive but it was never supposed to be since it was definitely oriented towards a young audience. After all these years, I have to admit that it does look a little bit cheesy for nowadays standards but I still think the whole thing still look decent even 20 years later. Obviously, since it was a box-office success, they had to come up with a sequel. Eventually, I watched this sequel many years later and it was just terribly underwhelming. Concerning Joe Johnston, it was a solid directing debut and even though he never became a major director, he has managed to build up a decent career focusing mostly on blockusters (âJumanjiâ, âJurassic Park IIIâ, âThe Wolfmanâ, âCaptain America: The First Avengerâ). To conclude, even though the whole plot is a little too simple for the adults, I think it is an awesome flick for young kids and I feel a lot of nostalgia when I think about this movie.
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An average movie
Posted : 10 years ago on 18 June 2015 07:51
(A review of 9 Songs)Since I have always been interested by Michael Winterbottomâs work, I was really eager to check this flick and it took me a while to finally see the damned thing. Eventually, I found it rather difficult to judge this flick. Indeed, on paper, as pointed out by Roger Ebert, it was a very intriguing experiment but, eventually, the end-result was not really impressive. Basically, it is a trademark in Winterbottomâs work. Indeed, the guy is pretty much a workaholic, making more then 20 movies in a 20 years long career, and even though he always manages to find an interesting concept, an interesting idea, most of his projects turn out to be rather half-baked and this one is a perfect example. For example, with a running time of barely 70 minutes, was it really wise to spend so much time with some random concert footage? Same thing with the Antarctica stuff, it didnât add anything to the whole thing. All these scenes seemed to be used as merely to fill the blanks between the sex scenes. And then the sex⊠To be honest, if you watch this flick and you turn out to be shocked or revolted, then, you should think about it twice before watching the damned thing. I think those scenes did work pretty well but itâs too bad that everything else in the movie was rather underwhelming. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, I think it was an interesting experiment but it is definitely an acquired taste and you should be well aware of its content before watching it.
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