Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Joaquin Phoenix, I thought I should give it a try. Basically, it is a pretty obscure feature which was not even released in the US because it was premiered just 2 days before the tragic events of 09/11. Obviously, such an anti-military feature couldn’t be released in the middle of this tragedy and eventually it was released a year later (on the foreign market) and was barely noticed. I think it’s a shame because it is actually a pretty good flick dealing with anti-establishment behaviors. Of course, it was nothing really amazing but I thought it was a fun and entertaining feature. It also displays the range of Joaquin Phoenix, one of the best actors of his generation, and he was again really good in such a controversial comedy. Concerning Gregor Jordan, it was another interesting attempt for the Australian director who seems to be quite talented but all his movies always seem to underperform and are always plagued by some flaws. Still, all in all, this movie basically suffered from bad timig but it is actually pretty good and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

I already saw this movie but, since it was available on Netflix, I was quite eager to check it out again. Well, even though I already saw it a second time a few years ago, I was actually amazed by how little I actually remembered the damned thing which is rather odd for a classic of this magnitude. Anyway, from all the huge classics directed by David Lean, it is easily and by far my favorite one. I mean, of course, I did enjoy ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’, ‘Great Expectations’, ‘Brief Encounter’ and even ‘Doctor Zhivago’ but this movie is however from a different level. First of all, visually speaking, it is Lean’s most thrilling epic. For example, during his first trip in the desert, you have this amazing paranomic shot of the desert and it was just mesmerizing. It was a long static shot of the desert and, at some point, you finally see a camel rider coming from afar and coming slowly towards you. In this very shot, in my opinion, you actually had the real essence of this movie. Indeed, it was slow but also very meditative and so beautiful to look at. Of course, I shouldn't forget to mention Peter O’Toole who was just brilliant in this star-making performance and ever since I saw him in this movie, I became intrigued by this actor and I try to check his other movies whenever I get the opportunity. Somehow, I also felt a connection with this fasinating character torn apart between two cultures which maybe had to do with the fact that I’m half-French and half-Dutch. Eventually, the only critic I might have was the fact that, except for Omar Sharif, the other major Arab characters (Prince Faisal and Auda Abu Tayi) were played by Alec Guiness and Anthony Quinn who were obviously not Arab at all but, fortunately, it didn't ruin the whole thing though. Anyway, to conclude, I really loved this flick, it is a massive epic, a classic, and a must see for any decent movie buff.

Considering the fact that I’m not a huge fan of musicals in general, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since it is a classic, I was still eager to check it out. With the first dance sequence, I got kind of worried and thought it would be a rather long and boring watch. Fortunately, as soon as Frank Sinatra and, above all, Marlon Brando showed up, it became much more enjoyable. I mean, Frank Sinatra was pretty good but I was above all impressed by Marlon Brando. Back then, the guy was really on fire, probably the best actor around and he shows he could take anything, even a musical, and make it really spellbinding to watch. Of course, he was incredibly charismatic but it goes further than this as he gave his character some extra layers which made him really stand out from the crowd. Furthermore, I actually liked the general ambiguous attitude towards gambling and drinking (after watching this flick, does it look really look so bad to you?). Still, it was still too long for its own good but it remained quite entertaining. To conclude, it is indeed a pretty good musical and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Before going a little more mainstream and finding a new muse in Viggo Mortensen, David Cronenberg made this very bleak feature. Honestly, it has been a while since I saw this one and I should definitely re-watch it whenever I get the opportunity. The point is that, like most of the movies directed by David Cronenberg, it is not very pleasant to watch, it is very dark and bleak but there was definitely something quite mesmerizing about the whole thing. Indeed, I have a (rather creepy) fascination towards mental diseases and this movie gives one of the most heartbreaking and spellbinding depiction of schizophrenia I have ever seen. To make things ever better, this disturbed main character was played by Ralph Fiennes , one of the best actors of his generation, and he gave one of his best performances, at least that’s my opinion. The directing was also, as usual with Cronenberg, pretty immersive and I was completely sucked in this demented world. Eventually, the main issue with this flick is that, except for the amazing one-man-show provided by Fiennes, there was not much else going on and the scope was therefore too limited to make it a truly amazing feature. Still, even though it was not quite a masterpiece, it remains one of the best movies dealing with this subject and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Cronenberg’s work.

For 6 long years already, Lindsay Lohan has been the biggest trainwreck in Hollywood. Recently, the great Philip Seymour Hoffman died of an overdose and you wonder how, on the other hand, Lohan is still around after all the mess she has been through. What is even more remarkable is that she has still managed to (more or less) work during those years. However, except maybe for ‘Machete’ which was not bad, all her recent releases have been truly dreadful and this movie was not an exception, that’s for sure. Even though it was supposed to be originally made for the movie theaters, it was released as a TV feature so I wasn’t expecting much and, indeed, it was just really weak. I mean, Lohan was still at the time quite charismatic and you could see her potential but you can't help thinking that she did this one only for the paycheck (at least, I hope so). Basically, it is a pathetic comedy with a lame concept, the jokes were not funny and the characters were barelly developed. To conclude, it is actually quite morbide to watch Lohan wasting her life in general and her talent in all these awful movies and it is definitely not worth a look.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since it is considered a classic from the 80’s, I thought I might as well give it a try. Well, in my opinion, like other classics from this time period like ‘Footloose’ , it didn’t grow old very well, I’m afraid. I mean, I have to admit it, there was a pretty nice soundtrack but, a part from that, there is not much else to really admire in this movie. Of course, it faithfully follows the formula and remains watchable but not much more that. For Jennifer Beals, it was a star-making performance, even though her career never really took off afterwards. Somehow, it is not surprising because she has never done all those heavy dance moves and, something quite notorious, up to 3 other people were involved in the infamous audition scene (a real dancer, a gymnast and even a male break-dancer). Honestly, when you see this scene, it is rather pathetic and shows the level of the whole thing in my opinion. For Adrian Lyne, it was another success at the box-office and he would keep making some successful features, usually some steamy erotic thrillers. Nowadays, at 70 years old, he seems to be pretty much retired though. To conclude, even though it is nothing really awful, it remains an average flick but I guess it might be worth a look if you really love the genre.

I have always been amazed that, according to Imdb, ‘Good Will Hunting’ is still Gus Van Sant’s best movie. I saw it again recently and, honestly, I think it is a decent drama and an entertaining feature but I don’t see what was so amazing about it. In my opinion, his best movie was actually this flick, his sophomore directing effort. To be honest, it has been a while since I saw it and it probably needs a re-watch but, back then, I thought it was quite amazing and one of the best movies dealing with drug addiction. At the time, Matt Dillon was one of the leading actors of his generation and he was really good in this (apparently, Dillon cites this film as his personal favorite of all the films he's done and I have to agree with him). It is seriously a dark and rather ominous affair and when William S. Burroughs shows up on the screen playing a junky priest, it becomes even quite surrealist. The only critic I would have is that Matt Dillon and Kelly Lynch might look too good to be some massive junkies but, on the other hand, you could argue that they had been hooked only for a few years. Anyway, in my opinion, it is one of the great forgotten classics of the 80’s and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Gus Van Sant’s work.

It had been a while since I saw a good old fashioned ghost story, plus, I was pretty sure that Nick, my step-son, would be interested so we ended up watching this flick. Personally, I think I was a good choice for Daniel Radcliffe to pick up a project like this one after the massive Harry Potter franchise. Indeed, it is something really different and there wasn’t a massive all-star cast behind him (indeed, except maybe for Ciaran Hinds, there was no familiar figures involved) so he really had to carry the whole thing by himself. Eventually, I thought he was quite believable, even though you might argue that he looked a bit young to be a father. Still, while watching this, I couldn’t help thinking that an ambitious, reckless and arrogant young man would have been more suited but I guess that’s how the story was written originally. Above all, the whole thing looked great and you really had a feeling of this time period but, still, the story itself was not really amazing. I mean, it was some pretty standard horror stuff and while it was fairly entertaining, it was also quite forgettable. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, it remains a well made feature and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Even though I studied in English in College (I even got my master), I have actually never read Jane Austen (to be honest, I’m even more ashamed of the fact that I have never read William Shakespeare either). With this in mind, I wasn’t sure if I would really enjoy this flick but, even though the makers try to constantly convince you that it’s ok if you didn’t the read the books to actually enjoy this movie, I still have my doubt about this matter. So, I didn’t really love this flick but there were still many things to enjoy though. To start with, there was a very nice cast (Maria Bello, Emily Blunt, Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, Maggie Grace, Kevin Zegers, Marc Blucas, Hugh Dancy, Lynn Redgrave, Nancy Travis). Above all, I was very impressed by Emily Blunt who really stood out from the rest. Even though the way she patched things up with her husband was rather unexpected and not really satisfying, she still managed to give her character some extra dimension. I also liked how the relationship was developped between Hugh Dancy and Maria Bello but, since there was just too many sub-plots, there were all rather underdevelopped. To conlude, even though I thought it was rather flawed, it was still an interesting watch and I think it is worth a look, even more so if you are a fan of Jane Austen’s work.

Back in 2012, there were two Snow White movie productions and while ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ was a success (at least, if you consider the box-office results), this movie was a flop. Well, I didn’t care much for ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ but it was still indeed slightly better than this flick. The most saddening effect is the impact it might have on Tarsem Singh’s career. Indeed, I think I have never seen a director rising and then falling so quickly. Indeed, he started with the visually impressive ‘The Cell’, then blew us away with ‘The Fall’ and many, including myself, thought we had one of the most exciting directors but then he gave us two huge misfires (‘Immortals’ and this feature) and there is not much left from those great expectations. I mean, once again, the whole thing looked terrific. Indeed, everything, from the design, the costumes, the sets were just gorgeous but that was probably the only positive thing I can think of. Basically, the story was just terribly underwhelming. Furthermore, even though Lily Collins and Armie Hammer were perfectly cast (Hammer having the most fun with his part), I seriously didn’t care much for Julia Roberts. I mean, it was nice that she tried to be the villain for once but the Evil queen needs to be really evil, not just arrogant and selfish (just check Charlize Theron in ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’, that’s how you should play it). To conclude, it was a really misguided project from the start, it is seriously tedious to watch and I don’t think it is really worth a look.