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Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 18 October 2013 09:06
(A review of Pietje Bell II: De jacht op de tsarenkroon)Ever since I moved to the Netherlands, I have watched many Dutch movies but, after almost 10 years, honestly, I came to the conclusion that the Dutch movie industry is not really interesting and rather limited. I mean, there are some good Dutch productions but not many Iâm afraid and the thing that disappoints me the most is the lack of ambition with those flicks. Still, some of them are actually pretty popular and those are the family productions. Unfortunately, it doesnât have really to do with their quality but more with the fact that, except for the animated features, the other foreign movie are always released in the original language which is a good thing but for young kids, it means that they canât watch any foreign movies until they actually can read the subtitles. In this context, the Dutch family features do some good business at the box-office and since the first installment âPietje Bellâ was successful, they released this sequel. Personally, I really didnât like the first movie and this sequel was just as tedious to watch. I mean, my kids did like it but like I said before, it is not as if they have been able to watch all the family classics at that point. To conclude, even though the whole thing was pretty harmless, it was still pretty weak and I donât think it is really worth a look.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 18 October 2013 08:42
(A review of Black Butterflies)Even if her career never really took off internationally, Carice van Houten is still pretty much ruling the Dutch movie industry. Indeed, with this movie, it is already her 4th movie winning the Golden Calf of the best Dutch movie of the year (the other movies being âAlles is liefdeâ, âZwartboekâ en âMinoesâ) and she won also 4 Calves for the best Actress during her career. Anyway, how was the movie itself? For a Dutch production, it looked pretty good which was pretty nice and the story was quite intriguing, even though I always find it rather underwhelming when a story takes place in Africa but deals with white people, as if black folks were not interesting enough. On top of that, they never really managed to make Ingrid Jonker a truly compelling character. I mean, you can feel she must have been a talented troubled and fascinating woman but this movie never really sells the deal and it kept showing her only from afar, drinking a lot and being promiscuous with men. Also, the way they meet each other was quite over-dramatic, the fact that it was true or not doesnât really matter. Still, Carice van Houten and Liam Cunningham gave some solid performances and Rutger Hauer was also pretty good even though his character was seriously limited. To conclude, I think my rating might be a little bit generous but I still liked this flick and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 17 October 2013 08:25
(A review of New Kids Turbo)When I saw the trailer for this movie, I really thought it looked lame and stupid but, somehow, I still ended up watching this. Personally, I have never been a really big fan of those comedies focusing on some moronic characters so I wasnât sure if I was the right audience for this. And, indeed, at first, I didnât care much about the whole thing. I mean, it is basically a succession of swearing (âkutâ which means pretty much fuck in Dutch comes out every 30 seconds I think) and random violence involving some utterly stupid Dutch rednecks. Still, after a while, it kind of got to me and I couldn't help laughing at the preposterous scenes involving those guys. There was also a nice touch when they started to be followed by the local TV station and you got to see the people at home following their stupid adventures (I mean, you eventually wonder who is really stupid. Those 5 dudes or the people following them watching the TV show? It is one of the reason why I really resent the current wave of real TV which started as a matter of fact in the Netherlands with âBig Brotherâ). Anyway, even though it was really stupid, it was still actually rather entertaining and I guess it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 17 October 2013 02:13
(A review of Cast Away)I already saw this movie but since it was a while back, I thought I might as well check it out again. Well, before the damned thing was released, there was actually some buzz about it because it was the first time since âForrest Gumpâ that Robert Zemeckis and Tom Hanks were working together. Eventually, this time again, Hanks would be nominated for the Best Actor in a Leading Role Academy Award. Eventually, it was rather well received by the critics, even though it didnât become such a huge phenomenon like âForrest Gumpâ. Anyway, even though I donât think it was really amazing, I still liked the damned thing, more than âForrest Gumpâ as a matter of fact. Basically, the story was divided in 4 chapters (before the plane crash, the survival on the island, the escape on a raft and the return home) and all these chapters worked fairly well, thanks to a really solid performance by Tom Hanks. Above all, the whole time that Tom Hanks sat alone on this island, only with this volleyball to talk to, was pretty impressive. On the other hand, the 2nd time around I watched this flick, I was thinking that there was slightly too much focus on âWilsonâ. Basically, even if it have might seemed like a great way to show the psychological turmoil of the main character, it was eventually more a trick to make sure that Hanks didnât spend more than half of the movie without saying a word. Furthermore, Iâm still not sure about the constant usage of FedEx. Indeed, on one hand, it was nice to see a movie character with a real job and, thanks to the FedEx packages, the main character had some nice stuff to improve his difficult situation. However, on the other hand, it was just weird and hardly appropriate to see all these FedEx logos constantly through the whole duration, even on a freaking desert island. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was nothing really ground-breaking, it was still pretty damned entertaining and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 17 October 2013 11:41
(A review of From Prada to Nada)Even though the whole thing did look pretty bad, since I have a weak spot for Camilla Belle, I thought I might as well give it a try. Indeed, with such a lame title and poster, you already know beforehand what you are going to get. During the opening credits, I discovered that it was actually a modern version of âSense and Sensibilityâ which made it even worse since I also knew the main lines of the plot even before anything actually took place. The fact that this movie was just way too long for its own good didnât help either. Concerning Camilla Belle, it is yet another disappointing flick on her rĂ©sumĂ© and even though she always looks charming and all, she definitely has to pick some better projects if she wants to be taken seriously at some point. Eventually, I was above pleasantly surprised to see Alexa Vega, yes the little girl from âSpy Kidsâ, all grown up but that was basically the only really positive thing I could think of while watching this. The main issue with these kind of movies is that the makers donât take the subject seriously at all so you eventually end up with something terribly fluffy and underwhelming and since the makers donât really care about the subject, why should you? To conclude, I have seen worse but it is still a rather lame romantic-comedy and it is not really worth a look, Iâm afraid.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 16 October 2013 09:27
(A review of French Connection II)Of course, almost everybody with a decent movie culture has seen or at least, has heard about âThe French Connectionâ which is a classic (it reminds me that I should re-watch it at some point). However, most of us tend to forget that they actually made a sequel which might not have been as great as the original (was it even possible?) but which was actually pretty good. Indeed, this time, Popeye Doyle has to leave his home turf to go fight the drug lords in their own territory, good old France, and it was not an easy task thatâs for sure. Indeed, this change of setting was quite intriguing and induced a whole new dynamic concerning Doyle and his crime fighting methods. Eventually, since he doesnât speak a word of French and since the French, as usual, really suck in English, he gets in a pretty tight spot. Of course, the whole thing gets pretty far out when he gets hooked on smack and then goes cold turkey but most of the plot was pretty solid. I also enjoyed a lot the ending which was pretty exciting and the final shot was quite priceless (no worries, I wonât spoil it). To conclude, even though this sequel tends to be overshadowed by its illustrious predecessor, it is actually a pretty decent flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 16 October 2013 09:07
(A review of Face (1997))Back in the 90âs, Antonia Bird became noticed after directing âPriestâ, a movie about a gay priest. 20 years later, I still havenât seen this flick but I did manage to see this movie, her following directing effort which was also starring Robert Carlyle who was this time playing the lead. Back in those days, after breaking through with âTrainspottingâ, Carlyle was one of the most interesting actors at work and itâs a shame his profile didnât rise much and nowadays, he doesnât make many movies and focus more on some TV work like âStargateâ or âOnce upon a timeâ. Anyway, coming back to our main feature, even though it was nothing really amazing, it was still a pretty solid and gloomy British crime flick. Basically, it is the old tale of some bank robbers who messed up one crucial job and even though it was not really original, it was very well made with some good performances by Robert Carlyle and Ray Winstone. There was also an intriguing political sub-plot and the combination of the heist with some social realism was quite intriguing. To conclude, even though it is nowadays pretty much forgotten, it is actually pretty good and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 16 October 2013 08:52
(A review of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter)Honestly, I wasnât sure what to expect from this flick but since Nick, my step-son, is a huge fan of vampire movies, I thought we should check it out. Eventually, it is basically one of those movies with a really far out concept which sounded great paper but unfortunately crashed and burned at the box-office. Actually, while watching this, it did remind me of âLe Pacte des Loupsâ, a French movie released 10 years earlier, which also did mix some modern fighting techniques with an older time frame. The main difference is that, here, they went even further and added a historical setting and one of the most famous American presidents to kick some vampireâs asses. Personally, I thought it was not bad. I mean, Bekmambetov has a nice visual style and there were some spectacular set-pieces. Still, even though I shouldnât analyze too much the story since it was all very preposterous, I didnât see the link between slavery and the vampires or maybe I missed the point. All in all, it wasnât really impressive and this movie seemed to be a step down for Bekmambetov after âWantedâ which was maybe flawed but more intriguing story-wise and definitely more satisfying regarding the tone. To conclude, if you want to watch Abraham Lincoln fighting some vampires, you wonât be disappointed, but donât expect much more enthralling than this.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 15 October 2013 09:55
(A review of Loft)The Americans are usually the specialist of the remakes but they are not the only one lacking imagination apparently since this movie is a Dutch remake of a Belgian feature (and guess what, next year the American version is coming up!). Unfortunately, as usual when you watch first the remake, I wish I saw first the original version which seems superior. Anyway, this flick was still pretty good, especially if you consider the Dutch standards. Indeed, I liked the slick directing by Antoinette Beumer, who happens to be the older sister of Famke Janssen, and the cast was pretty good (Anna Drijver, Katja Herbers, Fedja van HuĂȘt, Barry Atsma, Kim van Kooten, Jeroen van Koningsbrugge) even though the wifes didnât have much to do, Iâm afraid. In my opinion, the weakest of the lot was probably Jeroen van Koningsbrugge. van Koningsbrugge is a pretty famous TV personality in the Netherlands and usually a really funny guy but he wasnât convincing in this thriller. The other thing that was rather disappointing is that even though they share a loft for their little adventures, not much happens there, as a matter of fact, two of them never brought anyone there eventually. Furthermore, even though the story was entertaining, it was still pretty far-fetched with the usual annoying twists at the end. Still, in spite of its flaws, I enjoyed the damned thing and it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Dutch movies.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 8 months ago on 15 October 2013 06:16
(A review of Mimic)Since, âCronosâ, Guillermo del Toroâs directing debut, was a critical success, he got his ticket for Hollywood and made there his sophomore directing effort. Unfortunately, the whole thing turned out to be a disaster and, eventually del Toro disowned the film after constant clashes with his producer, Bob Weinstein. To be honest, I don't think it was that bad at all. I mean, it is indeed a pretty weak vehicle and you could see that Del Toro was inspirationally crippled but, still, there was something pretty neat about the whole concept and, for a B feature, I thought it was rather watchable. The fact that I always had a weak spot for Mira Sorvino (who was still in the A list back in those days) must have helped as well. Eventually, it took 5 more years for del Toro to have his breakthrough in the US with âBlade IIâ. Personally, I think that âBlade IIâ is actually quite overrated and I slightly preferred this flick but I guess Iâm in the minority. To conclude, even though the whole thing had some potential, it remains a rather disappointing feature and it is not really worth a look, except maybe if you are a die-hard fan of Guillermo del Toroâs work.
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