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Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 15 November 2013 08:21
(A review of El Mariachi)Like everyone else, I have been following Robert Rodriguez for many years and I thought it was finally time to watch his directing debut. First of all, before judging this flick, you have to bear in mind the circumstances during which it was directed. Indeed, it was made on one shoe-string budget (allegedly 7000 dollars, although the post-production and promotion did cost 1 million dollars), Rodriguez considered this movie as pure practice and it was actually meant to be a straight-to-video feature. So, of course, it looks cheap, the acting was pretty weak and the plot was rather pedestrian. Still, I did like the damned thing though. Indeed, it is a fun movie and it is just really amazing to see how Rodriguez managed to shoot those action scenes, even though the guy didnāt have any money at all. Since then, Rodriguez has been pretty productive and even though not all his movies were great, he has been a master at making low cost features always generating a profit so I think he is actually some kind of role-model, especially in the current movie environment which is nowadays dominated by the massive expensive blockbusters. To conclude, even though it is nothing really amazing, I still think it is a pretty cool flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Robert Rodriguezā work.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 14 November 2013 10:30
(A review of Fish Tank)Since I kept hearing good things about this flick (it was even on the list ā1001 movies you must see before you dieā for a couple of years), I was really eager to check it out. Eventually, even though I did like it, I canāt say I was really blown away by the whole thing. Letās start with the good stuff. Indeed, it was a solid British social drama, reminiscent of Ken Loachās style and it was a very striking depiction of a teenage life in a barren social environment. Also, this young actress, Katie Jarvis, was pretty impressive but, on the other hand, since she played someone so close to herself, you might wonder if she was acting at all. As usual, the always dependable Michael Fassbender, one of the best actors of his generation, was really good as well. So, it was a good flick, thatās for sure, but I was missing something though. I mean, during the first 90 minutes, there was not much going on, reflecting the fruitless and hopeless life of the main character and, then it got pretty intense in the last 30 minutes, even though it was fairly predictable. Indeed, it was pretty obvious that she would have had sex with her motherās boyfriend, it was also pretty obvious that he was already married with kids and it was again really obvious that the dance audition was for some kind of strip-club. On top of that, the ending was not really convincing. I mean, a random guy she just met tell her he wants to go to Cardiff and, thatās it, sheās got her ticket out of this mess. Still, in spite of these flaws, it remains a pretty good British social drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 14 November 2013 07:31
(A review of Troy)I have always been surprised by the mixed reactions towards this movie. Indeed, on one hand, it has a solid rating on Imdb (7.1) which should mean that many people love it but, on the another hand, it was pretty much trashed when it was released. In my opinion, it is actually a decent blockbuster and āGladiatorā (a really overrated flick in my book) which is regarded as a āclassicā is only slightly better. Of course, Ridley Scott is a better director than Wolfgang Petersen and neither Brad Pitt or Eric Bana are as bad-ass as Russell Crowe but both stories were both entertaining without being really amazing. One of the biggest critic was that it was not really faithful but thatās rather ridiculous. I mean, the Iliad is full of legends, Gods and myths and it was never meant to be really historically accurate and the makers made their own adaptation which was fine by me. A part from that, the whole thing was pretty spectacular, there was a solid cast (Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Diane Kruger, Brian Cox, Brendan Gleeson, Garrett Hedlund, Sean Bean, Julie Christie, Peter O'Toole, Saffron Burrows) and the whole thing was quite entertaining. It was also one of the last blockbusters starring Brad Pitt, a genre he has been cautiously avoiding, and, to be honest, it wasn't really his best flick or best performance. To conclude, even though I donāt think it is anything remotely amazing, it remains a decent flick and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 13 November 2013 09:46
(A review of Sissi - Die junge Kaiserin)Honestly, Iām rather surprised that so few people have rated this movie. I mean, donāt misunderstand me, I donāt care much about this franchise but I always thought they were very much loved. Anyway, my wife is a die-hard fan so she bought the dvd box and, obviously, I had to watch those flicks with her. At first, I thought it would be completely awful but, to be honest, the first installment was not bad at all. I mean, I wasnāt blown away either but I could see its appeal and why it was so popular. This 2nd installment was also actually quit decent. I mean, the whole thing was still rather sappy and completely predictable, but it was watchable and I was actually rather entertained throughout the whole thing. Still, at this point, the whole concept really started to grow thin on me and the following installment was really boring and tedious to watch. 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 wasnāt 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.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 13 November 2013 09:16
(A review of Intermission)Honestly, I had no idea what to expect from this flick but since there were a couple of interesting actors involved, I thought I might as well give it a try. Basically, it is one of those hyperlink movies, you know, when different storylines between multiple characters are more or less intertwined. This time, it was settled in the urban landscape of Dublin and I thought it was a pretty good mix. Like I said before, there was a pretty cool cast (Colin Farrell, Cillian Murphy, Kelly Macdonald, Colm Meaney, Shirley Henderson) and they all delivered some solid performances. Still, even though I do like the genre, there is one issue and it is that there is sometimes a little bit of overkill and, in this case, not all the subplots were really necessary of interesting. You have also to bear in mind that it was John Crowleyās directing debut and maybe he was trying to cover up the weakness of the whole project by adding all those plots and characters. Eventually, his following directing effort, āBoy Aā would be more satisfying. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was nothing really amazing, I actually liked the damned thing and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 13 November 2013 09:00
(A review of Unknown)Following his recent come-back with āTakenā, Liam Neeson keeps making those European based thrillers and this flick was one of those. Pretty much like āTakenā, it is a rather far-fetched story but thanks to Liam Neesonās impressive charisma, it remains entertaining. Basically, it is a mix between āFranticā and āThe Bourne Identityā but this movie definitely had not the ambition to be that good. Indeed, while watching this, I was reminded about how awesome āFranticā started (it was eventually a half-baked movie but it started great). It was great because it was really ambiguous. Well, here, they removed any shred of ambiguity right from the start and you are thrown directly into some shady conspiracy. They even throw in a beautiful female bystander, just like in āFranticā and I wonder if it was the best choice to cast a German actress to portray a Bosnian woman living in Berlin. At some point, you even get to see the great Bruno Ganz so you think for a minute that the whole thing might get somewhere more unexpected but he didnāt have much to do, Iām afraid. Still, in spite of its flaws, I still think it remains a decent thriller and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 12 November 2013 10:38
(A review of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest)Honestly, I never really understood the whole frenzy about āPirates of the Carribean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'. I mean, yes, I did enjoy it but what is that great? It is even on the Imdb top 250ā¦ Sure, it was a fun movie but not much more than that, Iām afraid. Anyway, after the surprise success of the 1st installment, of course, they quickly went forward with some sequels and they even shot those 2 sequels back-to back for a huge budget. Eventually, this bet paid off and those movies were hugely successful, especially this first sequel. Indeed, it is so far the most successful installment of this franchise, it broke many records when it was released and even ended up 3rd highest grossing movie of all time (behind āTitanicā and āThe Lord of the Rings : The Return of the Kingā). Thatās all really nice but was the movie actually any good? Personally, I had some rather mixed feelings about the whole thing. I mean, it was entertaining enough and rather well made and it was pretty neat to see again good old Captain Jack Sparrow but the whole thing was nothing great whatsoever. Above all, the plot was just way too convoluted for its own good. Still, for a blockbuster, I have seen much worse than this and it remains a fun flick, no doubt about it, and it is worth a look, especially if you enjoyed the first movie.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 12 November 2013 10:30
(A review of The Long Good Friday (1980))Since this movie is considered a classic, arguably the best British gangster flick ever made, I was really eager to check it out. To be honest, I had a rather hard time to get into the whole thing though. I mean, the first 10 minutes were almost impossible to follow and then the rest of the movie was still rather hard to decipher. I mean, even the characters had no clue about what was going on and it started to grow thin after a while. Of course, in the last 10-20 minutes, you finally find out what was going on and, in retrospective, it was actually rather obvious. So, in my opinion, even though the plot was entertaining, it wasnāt really amazing though. Still, it doesnāt mean it was a bad movie, far from it. Indeed, the directing was solid, the music was not bad (which is quite remarkable since you are dealing with a 80ās feature) and, of course, Bob Hoskins was downright impressive. Indeed, the little guy delivered one hell of a kinetic performance and it would give him his breakthrough. Helen Mirren was also pretty good but, even though she did fight to expand her character, I though her character was still rather limited. Anyway, to conclude, even if I donāt think it was great, it was still a really good flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A very good movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 11 November 2013 10:14
(A review of Beautiful Memories)Basically, it is once again one of those really obscure French movies which almost no one has seen here on Listal. A few years back, we used to have a French-speaking channel called TV5 and they would often broadcast movies. Some of them were pretty classic and some others were pretty obscure. Well, this movie definitely belonged to the 2nd group. Still, I have to admit it, it was actually a very good flick. Indeed, it is a very sensitive love story dealing with a couple of sick people and the performances were quite impressive. Isabelle CarrƩ won the CƩsar of the best actrice for her performance and, even though she has a solid reputation, I was rather oblivious about her work. Even more surprising was Bernard Campan who had built a career with some rather gross comedies and here, he plays at the same level of Isabelle CarrƩ and, together, they just really nailed it. If you expect a stereotypical romantic-comedy from Hollywood with some easy answers and a happy ending, you will be sadly disappointed. Basically, it is a really sweet love story with some really raw and realistic moments and it was quite spellbinding to watch. To conclude, even though it is a really obscure movie, it is actually really good and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in French movies.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 7 months ago on 11 November 2013 09:54
(A review of What's Love Got to Do with It)I already saw this movie but, since it was ages ago and since it was available on Disney+, I was quite eager to check it out again. It is basically a solid biography, even though Iām not an expert on Tina Turnerās life (in fact, even herself admitted that most of the movie didn't happen at all). I mean, this woman was definitely an icon and she definitely deserved such a movie to tell her story. Of course, the biggest asset in this flick was the performance by Angela Bassett who would be nominated for an Academy award for her work. Eventually, it would probably be her most memorable performance but itās too bad she gets only supporting parts nowadays but Hollywood is pretty ruthless on women above the 40ās. Laurence Fisburne was also pretty good and was also nominated for an Academy award. Eventually, the most intriguing thing about this movie, at least to me, was that only half of it was about her musical career and the other half was basically a drama dealing with domestic violence. Even though I saw this movie maybe 30 years ago, I still could remember how Ike Turner was beating up Tina Turner and not with a single slap. It had quite an impact on me, I actually never forgot it and Iām surprised we donāt see more recent movies about the subject. Even in the pop world, back in 2009, Chris Brown had assaulted Rihanna, his girlfriend at the time, so it is definitely still topical and, yet, it is barely touched in the movies. In this case, Tina Turned remained with him for 20 years which was quite shocking but it also displayed how complex their relationship was, something which, I feel, was not really well developed in this film. Anyway, to conclude,Ā in spite of its flaws, I thought it was still a solid biographical feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre or if you are interested in Tina Turner.Ā
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