Reviews by johanlefourbe

Since I kept hearing good things about this flick, I was definitely eager to check it out. Before directing blockbusters such as 'Iron Man', Jon Favreau started out as a director with this modest comedy. This flick is also a good reminder that, a long time ago, Vince Vaughn used to be so damned funny. I mean, when was the last time you saw something hilarious starring this guy? My best guess would be 'Wedding Crashers' (which was fun but not really mind-blowing in my opinion) and it was back in 2006. Anyway, 10 years ago, he used to be funny and, especially in this flick, I thought he was f*cking hilarious. Ok, the story itself is nothing amazing and completely predictable but I thought Vaughn and Favreau made an entertaining duo and I was laughing throughout the whole thing. Anyway, for Jon Favreau, it was the start of an interesting directing career (Ok, 'Cowboys & Aliens' was rather underwhelming but the rest was all right...) and I hoped some day Vince Vaughn will eventually pick up something more entertaining than what he has done during those last years. To conclude, I really liked it, it is a very well made and sometimes hilarious comedy and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Since I kept bumping into this flick, I thought I should give it a try. As usual, I didn't read the synopsis so I didn't know what it was about (I mean, I did suspect it had to with suicides but I didn't know anything about it), so at first, it was rather confusing and it took me a while to get what was going on. Basically, it is one of those quirky indie comedies with some excentric characters (Is it really a comedy? a drama? difficult to put it somewhere... it is usually  a good omen though!). Thus, there was nothing really new here and, honestly, there were many things that didn't work very well, especially the happy ending which was far from being convincing (Basically, if you kill yourself, you'll end up in some other dimension but, don't worry, you'll meet a cute girl, you'll both get back alive in the real world and have a sweet relationship together... Rather distressing, don't you think?) And yet, I enjoyed this flick. Indeed, I thought it was really original and provided an interesting perspective on suicidal people (I'm not sure if it was really accurate but it was really interesting). The whole thing was bold and considering all the uninspired garbage coming from Hollywood those days, it should be praised. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was actually quite spellbinding to watch and it is definitely worth a look.

Claude Miller is not really famous or popular here in Listal but he is pretty well known in France and I have really a weak spot for this director. This flick is already 10 years old and, unfortunately, I haven't seen his more recent work. It is probably the least accessible movie he has made so far. Indeed, it is full of cryptic dialogues, drenched with symbolism and I probably missed the half of what they meant but I still think the whole thing was quite spellbinding to watch. You also have a top cast (Ludivine Sagnier, Nicole Garcia, Bernard Giraudeau, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Robinson Stévenin, Julie Depardieu, Michel Piccoli) and they all delivered some impressive performances. I discovered later on that this movie is actually a free adaptation of 'The Seagull', a play written by Anton Chekhov, and, of course, I'm not familiar with this play which doesn't really help to understand this flick. Anyway, I thought the characters were fascinating, even though I didn't always understand their motivation. Basically, this movie combines Russian playwright and French cinéma which could be daunting for some viewers or fascinating for some others. Fortunately, I belong to the second category and I did enjoy this flick. To conclude, even though it is a rather difficult movie to follow, I really liked it and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in French movies.

At first, it didn't seem to be something that would interest me. But then, since it was a surprise success back then, I thought I should give it a try anyway. Eventually, I really enjoyed it and, as a matter of fact, it is one of the best romantic-comedies I have seen lately. First of all, I have to say that this movie touched me on a personal level. Indeed, 10 years ago, I was a mess and then came this gorgeous lady, 10 years older than me, married to someone else(!) and she simply told me that she fell in love with me and we have been together ever seen. So, there was so many things I recognize in this movie and they got many things right. Futhermore, I thought Jay Baruchel gave a pretty good performance but, on the other hand, Alice Eve didn't have much to do, except looking gorgeous, but the movie was not from her perspective. Of course, it was not a perfect flick and some stuff didn't work very well. For example, the 3 buddys were pretty good but the ex-boyfriend and ex-girlfriend were both really caricatural and seriously annoying. Furthermore, it remains a rather standard romantic comedy with nothing really mind-blowing and I wish they developed a little more their relationship so that we get to see what happens next. Still, I really liked, it is a  well made romantic comedy and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Since I have a huge weak spot for Jane Fonda, I was definitely eager to check this flick. I'm not a huge fan of Westerns in general but I always enjoy a good Western from time to time but, honestly, it wasn't one of them. I mean, Jane Fonda was really charming, as usual, and she tries really hard to make her character appealing but it didn't work, I'm afraid. I know, it is just a Western comedy and I shouldn't take it too serioualy but I thought it was one of the most boring and idiotic Westerns I have ever seen. I mean, it wasn't really bad, I'll give you that, but it wasn't entertaining either. The worst thing, the most frustrating thing, was that Lee Marvin eventually won an oscar for his supporting part. He wasn't really bad and he actually gave a decent performance but, from all the characters he has portrayed during his impressive career, was it really the one which should have been rewarded?! I don't think so .... Furthermore, I think it is a good idea to make Westerns with a female main character, I haven't seen many of those, but they should provide a more interesting plot than this. Anyway, to conclude, I thought the whole thing was really disappointing and it is not really worth a look, in my opinion.

I wasn't expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Michael Douglas and Peter Hyams, I thought I should check it out anyway. In fact, it was apparently a remake of a decent thriller made by Fritz Lang 50 years before. I have to admit it, I haven't seen the original version so I can't compare both movies but they apparently changed many things about the plot. Anyway, this remake was a typical Hyams effort, unfortunately. Indeed, the whole thing really had some potential, there was a terrific storyline (an ambitious journalist pretends to be a murderer to reveal that a DA is tempering with evidences) but the end product was just downright disappointing. First of all, Jesse Metcalfe is charming but he is also a rather weak actor and he never convinced me as a journalist. Micheal Douglas was all right but I couldn't help thinking he was just cashing his paycheck. The worst thing is that it was not even a bad movie. Indeed, the story was really interesting and I was on the edge of my seat more than once but, then, there were also many annoying and stupid things ruining the whole thing. Like many other American thrillers, there were too many idiotic twists and the ending was especially disappointing. To conclude, this flick did have some potential, but eventually, it is just another average thriller and it is not really worth a look.

I wasn't expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Keanu Reeves and Diane Lane, I thought I should check it out anyway. First of all, even though I don't think Keanu Reeves is a great actor at all, I also don't think he is as bad as a lot of people think. Still, even though it was interesting to see Mr Reeves starring in something different than his usual roles, I thought it was still a pretty weak baseball flick. Above all, it was so damned predictable ... The guy has to coach some kids who really suck. He can't stand them, they can't stand him and they play like sh*t for a while but slowly, they get a bond, they play better and eventually, they win some big game. I really don't understand why 90% of the sport movies follow always the same formula, it is just so damned boring. They also threw in a romance involving Diane Lane (which was totally underused here) but it was just like the rest, rather predictable and pretty boring. To conclude, it is not really awfull but it is still really average and it is not worth a look whatsoever.

I had the privilege to see this flick on the big screen but since it was already 15 years ago, a re-watch was really needed. And I wasn't disappointed. Indeed, back then, I was pretty impressed but the second time around, I was really blown away. Basically, the whole thing is just so shocking, heartbreaking and downright revolting. In my opinion, it is easily the best movie starring Kirk Douglas and one of the best directed by Stanley Kubrick. It is basically one of the greatest anti-war movies, it is as simple as that and even though it was only Kubrick's 3rd directing feature, he was apparently already one of the great masters. For example, the battle scene was just really impressive. It might not have been as bloody as 'Saving Private Ryan' but for a 55 years old flick, it was technically and visually quite brilliant. I above all loved the juxtaposition between the fancy headquarters, the nice little diners, the little chats, the nice dance parties the general have together and the dirt, the constant humidity, the hunger, the fear and the horror of the trenches. Also the way the generals talk about the soldiers was so despicable but, unfortunately, probably accurate. In the history books, this war was called 'The Great War' but there was nothing much great about it, except maybe the huge number of casualties. To conclude, it is a great movie, one of Kubrick's best, and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Stanley Kubrick's work.

Honestly, I have never been a fan of Formula 1, as a matter of fact, I always thought it was one of the most boring sports on earth (and I'm from Le Mans!). Still, since this movie has some huge ratings (8.6 on Imdb and 8.2 on Listal), I thought I should give it a try anyway. I do remember Senna but mostly his last years when he was struggling at Williams and, of course, I remember when he died. I heard about the rivalry between him and Prost but I was too young when it actually happened. Eventually, I thought it was a pretty good flick with some thrilling racing sequences and lots of drama and tragedy. When I was a kid, I never really understood what was all the fuss about this guy. ok, he won 3 championships.... Big deal! Prost has won 4 of them, Schumacher has won 7 titles but somehow, Arton Senna is more legendary than many other drivers. Well, thanks to this movie, I understand it a little bit more. Basically, he was extremely talented, a nice looking man with a good heart (if you believe what they tell you here), there was also this fascinating rivalry with Alain Prost and, finally, he died at only 34 years old when he was still a great competitor. The weakest point in this flick would be that you never really learn much about the man himself who remains rather a mystery. Still, even though I don't even like this sport, I thought it was a rather spellbinding documentary and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Since Jean Renoir is one of the best French directors ever, I was really curious to check out this flick. It also stars Michel Simon who was back then the best actor in France. Eventually, I thought it was pretty good but not Renoir's best work. Indeed, I thought the story was a little too simplistic, there is no plot and there are only a few characters developped. I know that many people would said that it is actually the strength of this movie that because it is simple that is why it is so great but I wasn't really blown away by the whole thing. The best thing about it is how relevant it is, still 80 years after it was made. Indeed, the different attitudes of people coming from different social classes, the way norm and values dictate our behavior, it was really spot on here with this movie. They made a remake a few years ago starring Gérard Depardieu, another giant of the French cinéma, I haven't seen it yet but I heard it was not really that good. The acting was pretty efficient here above all by Michel Simon who was pretty hilarious. To conclude, I definitely liked it, it is a very well made satire and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in French movies.