Reviews by johanlefourbe

Honestly, I’m rather surprised that so few people have rated this movie. I mean, don’t misunderstand me, I don’t care much about this flick but I always thought it was very much loved. Anyway, my wife is a die-hard fan so she bought the dvd box and, obviously, I had to watch the whole trilogy with her. At first, I wasn’t really thriller by the idea and I thought it would be completely awful but, to be honest, the first installment was not bad at all. I mean, I wasn’t blown away either but I could see its appeal and why it was so popular. Above all, Romy Schneider was terribly charming in this and without her, I‘m afraid the whole thing would have been terribly boring to watch. Eventually, even though this first installment was not bad, the sequels were really underwhelming and, apparently, they were even planning to make a 4rth movie but Romy Schneider refused to play the title character any longer. Good for her! To conclude, obviously I wasn’t the target audience for this movie but, I have to admit it, it was not bad at all and I guess it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since there was a nice cast, I was quite eager to check it out. First of all, I have never read anything written by Leo Tolstoy but it was quite interesting to learn a little bit more about his life, at least the end of it. Apparently, in his lifetime, he was a already an international superstar and his life oddly resembled the everyday routine of some of our popular pop-stars, with the paparazzi constantly around and his entourage constantly manipulating the poor fellow. A part from that, it also reminded me of another movie starring James McAvoy, ‘The last king of Scotland’, in the sense that even though McAvoy was the main character, the main point of interest was a real life figure and he just happened to be around. Honestly, I don’t really like this gimmick (in ‘The last king of Scotland’, it was even worse since his character didn’t really exist at all). Of course, I understand that his character more or less represents the viewer but, in the process, you spend a lot of time with the wrong character in my opinion. Still, the cast (Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer, Paul Giamatti, James McAvoy) was really good but I just had a rather hard time to really care about the whole thing. To conclude, I do have a weak spot for real life stories dealing with renown artists and even though this one was not really amazing, I still think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Like many other actors, Andy Garcia decided he should direct his own movie and, apparently, it was a labor of love that took him 16 years to make. Unfortunately, it wasn’t really good, I’m afraid. I mean, it wasn’t really bad either, but it was such an ambitious project that could have worked only with a seasoned director, at least, that’s my opinion. Basically, it is a love letter about Cuba before the revolution and, even though it looked really good, it wasn't really impressive. For example, Andy Garcia put too many dance scenes. A couple of them at the beginning would have been enough to establish the scenery but, instead, they pop-up rather randomly every 5 minutes. Then, there was Bill Murray who was being… himself pretty much, portraying an enigmatic character who supposedly seemed to be here to lighten up the proceedings but he didn’t really fit in the movie. Finally, there was a rather half-baked romance involving the main character (also played by Garcia) and the wife of his deceased brother. It gave the feeling that all the political and family drama was not enough so they had to add an obligatory romance. To conclude, even though the whole thing was too long and a failure, I still think it was pretty neat that Andy Garcia managed to make this homage to the old Cuba and I think it is worth a look.

15 years ago, I saw ‘Festen’ in the theater and, instantly, it became one of my favorite movies. I have re-watched it recently and it is still an amazing picture. Ever since, I have tried to follow Thomas Vinterberg’s career but he hasn’t been really productive and his other movies have been pretty obscure. This recent effort is a pretty good example. Even though I loved ‘Festen’, it was a very tough watch, one of the most heartbreaking movies I have ever seen and this flick was also pretty bleak and quite relentless in his portray of human misery. Basically, it starts with two very young boys neglected by their alcoholic mother and, on top of that, they had to take care of their baby brother. Eventually, it goes all very sour, becoming a huge traumatic experience for those boys and the rest of the movie displayed how messed up they have become, each in their own way. Honestly, the whole thing was really depressing and it didn’t work out as well as ‘Festen’ which was better constructed in my opinion. Still, Vinterberg remains a skilled director and the actors were really good as well. To conclude, even though it wasn’t really amazing, it remains a solid drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Since I’m a huge fan of Michael Caine, I was really eager to check this movie which belongs to his classics. Indeed, since this movie had a really solid reputation, I had some rather high expectations but, to be honest, I thought it was actually slightly disappointing. Of course, it was better than the remake starring Jude Law but, somehow, I had a hard time to get into this movie. Personally, I think it is because the morals and opinions have changed. I mean, 50 years ago, when this movie was released, you can imagine the impact that this libertine character must have had but, nowadays, we have a different relationship with sexuality (30 years of AIDS epidemic didn’t help either I guess). I also had a hard time with this guy, Alfie. Obviously, Michael Caine shouldn’t be blamed as he gave, as usual, a brilliant performance but I just didn’t like this character much. Indeed, he is really unlikeable, obnoxious and, even though the makers try to convince you that he is pretty cool, I thought he was actually rather pathetic. I don’t know, maybe I was in the wrong mood the first time I watched it and I should maybe give it a 2nd chance one day. To conclude, even though I thought it was rather disappointing, it still remain an intriguing feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Michael Caine’s work.

Honestly, I wasn’t really dying to watch this flick but since I had the dvd for ages (seriously, I think I bought it something like 2 years ago at least…), I thought it was finally time to watch the damned thing. Well, it wasn’t really good, I’m afraid. I mean, Rainn Wilson can be pretty funny and it was a nice to see him playing the lead for once but that wasn’t the right vehicle for him. Eventually, the funniest thing was actually to see Emma Stone and Bradley Cooper just a year before they really broke through (respectively, Emma Stone in ‘Zombieland’ and Bradley Cooper in ‘The Hangover’, even though you could say that Emma Stone already made a splash with her debut ‘Superbad’). The main issue was that the whole concept was not really interesting and they played it just way too straightforward. There were also way too many little weak sub-plots like the fact that Rainn Wilson seems to be in physical pain because of the concerts, or his relationship with Christina Applegate which really underdeveloped or the background of the other band members. To conclude, even though it wasn’t really bad, it was still pretty average and I don’t think it is really worth a look.

Meryl Streep is my favorite actress and I’m not the only one who thinks she is the best actress in the world. Not only she is incredibly talented, she is also really versatile and she has done movies in almost any genre you could think of. She didn’t do much action movies though and I think this flick was the only one she did in this genre. As usual, she completely nailed her performance and, as a result, you can see how more compelling an action flick movie can be when the main character is played by a very good actor (see also ‘The Bourne Identity’ for example). This movie was also directed by Curtis Hanson, a decent director who has just recently retired due to Alzheimers. His previous directing effort, ‘The Hand that Rocks the Craddle’ was a hit but it is above all his following movie, ‘L.A. Confidential’ which would be massively heralded. This movie that he made in between is nowadays pretty much forgotten and it is actually rather understandable. I mean, the whole selling point is to see Meryl Streep in an action movie and that’s precisely what you get, no more and no less. Indeed, basically, Streep was very good but the plot was just too pedestrian and predictable for my taste. Still, even though it was nothing really amazing, it was not bad at all and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Meryl Streep’s work.

Like most of the kids of my generation, I grew up with those Karate Kid flicks and it was with a great joy and nostalgia that I re-watched them with Nick, my step-son. To be honest, even though I really enjoyed the first installment, the sequels were not really good. Of course, since the first movie was a big success, it was pretty obvious that they would come up with some sequels. The issue, in my opinion, is that the first movie worked fine on its own but the concept was just too limited to be expanded over more movies. At least, with this first sequel, they tried to add something new to the mix by moving the action to Japan which was a nice touch. It was also interesting that they tried to develop Mr Miyagi’s background (even though you could argue that making him a mysterious figure was more interesting). Unfortunately, the rest of the movie just followed basically the same plot of the previous installment making the whole thing rather pedestrian and terribly repetitive. Still, in spite of its flaws, it remains a decent sequel and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Like most of the kids of my generation, I grew with those Karate Kid flicks and it was with a great joy and nostalgia that I re-watched them with Nick, my step-son. To be honest, you can skip the sequels but this first installment is still actually pretty good. Especially if you watch it as a kid, it is pretty much a total blast. Basically, it follows the standard formula : a kid gets into trouble, finds a master, they don’t get along at first but they eventually become best pals and, at the end, the kid becomes some kind of martial arts expert. And, of course, he is never allowed to fight! Yeah, whatever... So, the whole thing is actually really pedestrian and predictable but Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita were both charismatic and they had some great chemistry together. Eventually, most of the training is actually pretty much rubbish but, if you are a kid, you don’t care about these things, as long as it is uplifting and inspirational, you don’t care. Eventually, some of the scenes have become pretty iconic (‘Wax on… wax off...’). To conclude, even though it is actually nothing really great, it is still a really entertaining flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since there was a pretty cool cast, I thought I might as well give it a try. Basically, it was an intriguing paranormal thriller which was mildly entertaining but not much more than that, I’m afraid. I mean, when you watch a thriller, they try to make you believe that the far-fetched plot is remotely possible (usually, it is not) but when you deal with a paranormal thriller, well, there is pretty much no boundaries, everything is possible, and you need a good dose of suspension of disbelief otherwise it is pretty much unwatchable. In this case, I thought it was some kind of mix between ‘The X-files’ and ‘Akira’. Like I said before, there was some qualities about the whole thing but the biggest mistake, aside the fact that the running time was too short so the whole thing felt pretty rushed, was the fact that the FBI agent played by Aaron Eckhart was also a nut job and, in my opinion, it would have worked better if this character would have been more grounded. Still, there was a nice mood, it was not bad and I guess it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.