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Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 6 November 2012 08:42
(A review of 300)Even though it was a surprise success at the box-office upon its release, it seems to be nowadays a rather polarizing movie. Indeed, basically, you either love or you hate this flick. Personally, I thought it was pretty good. Indeed, above all I thought it was just visually really impressive. I mean, nowadays, we get a massive overdose of CGI but this movie is a good example that it can definitely enhance the story telling. The Spartans were also pretty awesome, they were totally badass and I thought they were rather believable as some of the deadliest warriors ever. This flick obviously displayed a progression for Zach Znyder from his interesting debut, ‘Dawn of the Dead’, and this progression was confirmed by ‘Watchmen’, his best movie so far which is really underrated in my opinion. Many viewers thought those guys looked really ridiculous in their outfit and, even though they definitely had a point, I thought it fit the ‘historical’ context. Still, even though, I really enjoyed it, I have to admit it was far from being flawless. Indeed, the story was entertaining but rather pedestrian and the political intrigue was really poorly developed (I mean, the bad guy gets killed and look how convenient! He was carrying some enemy coins in his pocket… How corny can you get…) Furthermore, their way of speaking wore me down after a while. I mean, it is like every time they open their mouth, even the most trivial conversation becomes some kind of overblown speech. Still, I thought it was a pretty cool flick and I had a good time watching this. To conclude, even though I’m far from being an action movie fan, I thought this one was really entertaining and I think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 5 November 2012 01:08
(A review of The Iron Giant)Way before becoming a major player with Pixar and even becoming a successful action movie director with the Mission Impossible franchise, Brad Bird started his career with this little seen animated gem. Since then, it has reached a decent cult following but when it was released, it was unfortunately barely seen, even myself I saw it much later when it was broadcasted on TV. It is one of the hand-drawn animated features which was victim of the obsession towards computer animated movies. Many of those like ‘Spirit’ or ‘The Road to El Dorado’ didn’t managed to get an audience when they were actually not bad at all. Anyway, this directing debut was pretty good. Indeed, the animation was just gorgeous (just too bad they dropped this technic altogether). Still, I must admit that even though it was entertaining enough, the story was rather pedestrian and honestly nothing really mind-blowing. Still, even though it was a flop, thanks to this flick, Brad Bird got noticed by Pixar and the rest is just history. To conclude, even though it is nothing really revolutionary, it is a gorgeous and charming animated feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 5 November 2012 12:01
(A review of Across the Universe)Since I’m not a huge fan of musicals and since I don’t really care about the Beattles, I didn’t seem to be the right audience for this flick but since I kept hearing positive things about it (for example, according to Roger Ebert, it was one of the best movies released in 2007), I was really eager to check it out. Eventually, it was not bad at all. Indeed, the songs were all right and I especially enjoyed their version of ‘I want to hold your hand’. Furthermore, the directing was really solid, with some very nice visual experiments by Julie Taymor. The cast was also pretty good, above all Jim Sturgess and Evan Rachel Wood who had some very good chemistry together. It was also pretty neat to see Joe Cocker and Bono coming along to sing a song. Still, I can’t say that the whole thing was mind-blowing though. Indeed, personally, I thought that the story was rather pedestrian and really unoriginal and I really didn’t care much about it (something I always dread in most of the musicals I see). Furthermore, I found it was a rather odd choice to set the action in the USA in the 60’s. I mean, the 60’s was an obvious choice but why in the USA? Still, it remains a decent flick though. To conclude, if you are a fan of the Beattles, you will probably have a blast watching this but even if you are not, it remains a very well made musical and I still think it is worth a look.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 5 November 2012 08:49
(A review of Dementia 13 (1963))Even though I have seen all the major masterpieces directed by Francis Ford Coppola, I still try to catch his other less known features when I get the opportunity. In this case, Coppola directed this flick back then when he was working with Roger Corman. Indeed, while on location shooting a totally different movie, Corman actually proposed Coppola to shot his own flick in 9 days for $40,000. Even though the whole thing is pretty shabby (above all the opening scene), there was still some quality about it. Indeed, after the very weak introduction, you get involved in some kind of horror-thriller with many Hitchcockian elements and I thought it was not bad at all. Back then, Coppola already displayed some nice directing skills here and it’s a pity he never tried something similar later on during his career. Of course, since it is a Corman production, you had some obligatory sleaze with one of the female characters getting undressed and going for a swim in her undies. All in all, even though I’m not a real fan of this genre, I thought it was a decent exploitation flick and it was just really neat to see where Coppola was coming from. To conclude, even though it is nothing remotely amazing, it is not bad at all and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 4 November 2012 11:41
(A review of Places in the Heart)Even though it tends to be overlooked because of Sally Field's rather embarassing acceptance speech, it is actually a pretty good flick. Indeed, I thought it would be a rather over-sentimental drama but, eventually, it was actually enjoyable. Of course, the story is nothing really original or mind-blowing, the directing was pretty solid and there was a really good cast (Sally Field, Ed Harris, Amy Madigan, John Malkovich, Danny Glover, Terry O'Quinn). Sally Field actually reminds me of Hilary Swank. Indeed, like Swank, Field was nominated twice at the oscars, won twice and did nothing really amazing before or after. Personally, I do like Hilary Swank but I have to recognize that they both had a rather similar career path. Anyway, did Sally Field deserve her academy award? Her performance was pretty good but not really amazing in my opinion. However, if you look at it, the competition was rather weak for that particular year (Judy Davis in 'A Passage to India', Jessica Lange in 'Country', Vanessa Redgrave in 'The Bostonians', Sissy Spacek in 'The River'). To conclude, even though it is nothing really mind-blowing, it is a decent drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like Sally Field.
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A classic
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 4 November 2012 10:21
(A review of Assault on Precinct 13)Since I have seen every single major movie directed by John Carpenter ('The Thing', 'Escape from New York', 'The Fog', 'Halloween') except this one, I just had to watch it really bad. Eventually, it took me a very long time to finally get my hands on it. Unfortunately, something quite dreadful happened under way. Indeed, even though I finally managed to secure a DVD while vacationing in France, when I was back home, I realized it was a French dubbed version with no original version with or without subtitles... So, that was a major disappointment but I still didn't want to throw the damned thing away. Anyway, eventually, I thought the movie itself was pretty good. Basically, it is a B movie, an exploitation flick, and even though, I'm not a huge fan of this genre, this was definitely one of the best that I have seen so far. Of course, the acting and the dialogues were not nothing amazing but it is really inherent to the genre, and since the whole thing was in French (shrug...), maybe it was just some poor dubbing. The plot was not bad, sometimes a little bit hard to follow, and apparently inspired by 'Rio Bravo', another classic I have just seen recently, but pretty much like its illustrious predecessor, I failed to see what was so amazing about this story. Above all, I really enjoyed the amazing score by John Carpenter. Indeed, Carpenter is not only a very good director but also an impressive composer who produced some really memorable soundtrack (I'm pretty sure everyone has heard the 'Halloween' theme at least once in their life). To conclude, even though it is nothing really amazing, as a B feature, it is 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, 6 months ago on 3 November 2012 03:19
(A review of Skyfall)I already saw this movie, I actually saw it in the movie theater when it was released, but since it was a while back, I thought I might as well re-watch it, especially since my wife never saw it before. Well, first of all, even though I have seen every single James Bond flicks except the very last installment starring Daniel Craig, I have to admit that I have never been a huge fan of this franchise though. However, in this case, since I kept hearing here and there that it was one of the best James Bond installments ever made and Sam Mendes being a terrific director, it did seem really promising. Unfortunately, even though I have to admit that this movie was not bad at all and that it was even fairly entertaining, to be honest, I really failed to see what was supposed to be so great about it. Indeed, in my opinion, it was a little bit better than 'Quantum of Solace', which wasn't that bad but I still preferred 'Casino Royale' which wasn't really great after all. Above all, I was rather underwhelmed by the story. Seriously, was it really supposed to be a brilliant story? I have to admit that it was still an enjoyable flick though with some pretty cool action scenes. On top of that, Daniel Craig was getting better and better every time and, by then, he definitely owned the part. Furthermore, even though the bad guy was rather uninspiring, Javier Bardem gave a really solid performance and completely disappeared behind the character. It was also pretty cool what they did with Q, Moneypenny and Mallory (AKA the new ‘M’). However, even though Bérénice Marlohe was a gorgeous and intriguing Bond girl, it was rather disappointing that she was given very little screen time and, as a result, she had very little to do. Anyway, to conclude, I have to admit it was still a decent James Bond flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre, even if I don't think it is anything brilliant after all.
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An average movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 2 November 2012 10:00
(A review of The Last House on the Left)I didn't have some huge expectations regarding this feature but since the ratings were rather decent, I thought I should give it a try. Honestly, I haven't seen the original version but I do hope it is better than this remake. I mean, it was not really bad, the directing was solid and the actors did a decent job but it really felt like a very weak version of 'Funny Games' which is one of my all time favorites (the original version, not the remake). It was indeed pretty violent with a rape, some mutilations and a few kills and, even though, it was all very well done from a technical point of view, I couldn't care less about the whole thing. And what was this about the sexy shots of Sara Paxton earlier in the movie?! Are we supposed to get aroused before she gets raped?!? And don't even start with the infamous macrowave scene at the end... Except from Justin (played by Spencer Treat Clark) which was a rather interesting character, I didn't care much about the others, victims or executioners. Basically, it was one of those rather tedious torture-porn flicks which inflict you one nauseous scene after the other just to see how much you can take. Unfortunately, I was never interested in this genre. To conclude, I have seen worse but this one was still pretty damned average and I don't think it is really worth a look.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 2 November 2012 09:20
(A review of Love the Hard Way)To be honest, I really had no idea what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Adrien Brody, I thought I might as well check it out. Like most people, I do believe that Adrien Brody is a very good actor, or at least, used to be a very promising actor and I always tried to check his movies when I got the opportunity. However, he always shows up in the most obscure movies you can imagine, even after he won the Academy award for the best actor for 'The Pianist'. This flick was a perfect example and it is a probably the most obscure one I have seen so far starring this actor. Fortunately, it ended up being actually pretty good. I mean, it was nothing amazing whatsoever and it was still rather predictable but Adrien Brody delivered a pretty good performance and he had some great chemistry with Charlotte Ayanna, a girl I had never seen before. Furthemore, I really enjoyed the tone and the directing was pretty solid. To conclude, even though you have probably never heard of this flick, it is a decent watch and it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Adrien Brody's work.
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A good movie
Posted : 11 years, 6 months ago on 2 November 2012 01:10
(A review of Elf)You might find him terribly annoying and not funny at all but you can’t argue that Will Ferrell is one of the most successful and recognizable comedian of the last decade. Personally, I have some mixed feelings about him. Indeed, he can be sometimes downright hilarious but he keeps playing over and over the same characters and it is getting less and less entertaining and more and more obnoxious. Anyway, 2003 was his breakthrough year, as he showed up in ‘Old School’ and in this Christmas flick which were both tremendous success. Honestly, I never really cared about Christmas movies. Even though I love Christmas, the movies dealing with this celebration usually bore me to death. However, when they put a dark twist, like in this one, it can be pretty enjoyable and, indeed, I had a good time watching this movie. There was a very good cast surrounding Ferrell (especially James Caan and Zooey Deschanel) and the whole thing was really entertaining. Of course, the plot is rather idiotic and it is nothing really amazing whatsoever but they managed to make a fun movie out of this. Not only was it an important movie for Will Ferrell but also for its director, Jon Favreau. Indeed, with his 2nd directing effort, Favreau continued to display some skills and reminded us he would be a director to be reckoned with. To conclude, it is a well made and fun Christmas flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you want to see where Will Ferrell came from.
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