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All reviews - Movies (7834) - TV Shows (10)

An average movie

Posted : 13 years, 1 month ago on 17 April 2012 07:51 (A review of Keys to Tulsa)

Originally, I wanted to see this flick because Cameron Diaz was starring in it but eventually, she just had one small scene at the beginning, if I recall correctly. Basically, it is a forgotten neo-noir movie with a decent cast (Eric Stoltz, James Spader, Deborah Kara Unger, Michael Rooker, James Coburn, Cameron Diaz). The actors were not bad but the directing was pretty average and I didn't care much about the story at all since it was too generic and not really entertaining. Diaz was in this before reaching stardom but you can't say that this movie really did help her in her career. Anyway, the same year she starred in 'My Best Friend's Wedding' and a year later in 'There's Something About Mary' and finally reached the A list. This movie is forgotten, it is indeed rather forgettable and it is not really worth a look whatsoever.


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An average movie

Posted : 13 years, 1 month ago on 16 April 2012 07:35 (A review of Just Like Heaven)

Since I always had a weak spot for romantic-comedies, I was rather eager to watch this flick. The same year, Reese Witherspoon starred in 'Walk the line' and won her oscar later on so you could say that it was back then the best time of her career. I always find her charming and she delivered a decent performance her but it was nothing she hadn't done before. The good surprise from this movie, for me, was Mark Ruffalo who's definitely one of the most underrated actors at work nowadays. He was, as usual, very good, and actually deserved a better plot than this. And this was the main issue with this movie. Indeed, the story was entertaining enough but it was so generic and damned predictable, I can't say I was blown away by the whole thing. Still, it remains a well made and charming romantic-comedy and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.


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A good movie

Posted : 13 years, 1 month ago on 15 April 2012 06:47 (A review of Surf's Up)

Back then, there were many penguin movies and whereas 'Happy Feet' and 'La marche de l'empereur' were really successful, this flick was quickly forgotten. Personally, I thought it looked pretty neat so I thought I should give a try and rent it to watch with the kids. For Sony Pictures Animation, it was their 2nd underperfoming features in a row following 'Open Season' but that's a shame because it was actually a very decent animated movie. First of all, the animation was downright gorgeous and the story was just really fun with some actually pretty impressive surf scenes. I guess, there is nowadays such an overload of animated movies maybe that's why it didn't find its audience but it is actually better than many other similar movies which were more successful at the box-office at that time. To conclude, it is really an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.


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An average movie

Posted : 13 years, 1 month ago on 15 April 2012 10:39 (A review of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

Even though ‘Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan’ has a better reputation, I actually preferred this Star Trek sequel. Not surprisingly, it turned out to be to the most successful movie of the serie until, of course, J. J. Abrams came with his reboot. Basically, the whole thing started out as a direct sequel to the previous movie as Admiral Kirk and his crew are shipping back to Earth to be judged for their 'crimes' but after 10 minutes, they just dropped the whole thing since there was a probe menacing to destroy our planet. Eventually, this plot was just an excuse to make the crew travel back in our time and, I must say, it was just really fun to see Kirk, Spock and the others wandering in our world. I also loved how arrogant and despising they were concerning their ancestors but would could blame them ? Basically, the previous Star Trek movies were rather serious but this one was just fun and I thought it was quite entertaining, even if it was still too cheesy for my taste. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was nothing really mindblowing whatsoever, it was still entertaining and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like this genre.



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An average movie

Posted : 13 years, 1 month ago on 14 April 2012 10:30 (A review of Can't Hardly Wait)

Even though this movie seemed to have a decent reputation, I wasn't expecting much from the damned thing but since there was a really nice cast involved (Jennifer Love Hewitt, Lauren Ambrose, Peter Facinelli, Seth Green, Freddy Rodríguez, Donald Faison, Jaime Pressly, Jason Segel, Eric Balfour, Selma Blair, Jenna Elfman, Melissa Joan Hart, Breckin Meyer), I really had to watch it at some point. Unfortunately, it still ended up being rather  average and borign. Actually, it was only after watching this movie that I came to the conclusion that it was maybe a parody of the genre which could explain why all the characters were so over-the-top. The only character who stood up was the one portrayed by Lauren Ambrose. Indeed, she was the only one playing it straight and I thought she was much more interesting than all these obnoxious and boring stereotypes. I always thought that Ambrose was really impressive in 'Six Feet Under' and she really deserved some better material than this movie to showcase her talent. I mean, there were here and there some good ideas and the ending was rather sweet but that was about it, I'm afraid. Anyway, to conclude, it was a rather weak High-School comedy and it is not really worth a look, except maybe you are fan of this genre.



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A very good movie

Posted : 13 years, 2 months ago on 14 April 2012 08:46 (A review of Shattered Glass)

I already saw this movie but it was such a long time ago and since I had it on DVD, I was really eager to check it out again. Back then, before I watched it the first time around, I kept hearing some really good things about this movie and I was eventually seriously impressed by the damned thing. Obviously, because of the Star Wars prequel, Hayden Christensen always had a terrible reputation but, after watching this flick, I'm not sure if it is actually deserved. Indeed, he proved here that he definitely can act as he delivered a really strong performance and the rest of the cast was pretty good as well. In fact, I'm usually not really a big fan of true stories but this one was just a fascinating. Indeed, how someone could get away with manufacturing stories for such a prestigious paper? It shows that the main character had some kind of mental disorder but, at the same time, that he was also really intelligent. You can say whatever you want about the guy but Christensen completely managed to display all the complex layers of this messed-up character, he did a terrific job and I hope some day he gets another shot with another interesting character. Anyway, to conclude, it is really an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.



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An average movie

Posted : 13 years, 2 months ago on 14 April 2012 08:28 (A review of Simpatico)

Even though the ratings for this movie were really low, since there was a really nice cast involved (Nick Nolte, Jeff Bridges, Sharon Stone, Catherine Keener, Albert Finney), I was really eager to check it out. Well, the beginning was actually rather promising with a nice film noir mood and an impressive confrontation between Nolte and Bridges but, unfortunately, the whole thing didn't hold up after all. Above all, the story was just really poorly written. I mean, Nick Nolte was a messed up guy looking for some kind of redemption, Jeff Bridges started out as a ruthless businessman but suddenly, the guy had a melt-down and all his decisions became really hard to follow, Albert Finney didn't have one single line of genuine dialogue during the whole thing and spoke only in cryptic riddles, Sharon Stone played an alcoholic and Catherine Keener tried very hard but ultimately she portrayed one of the most clueless and annoying characters I have seen for a long time. So, the characters were not really convincing or interesting and the story was rather weak as well with no real climax at the end. It's too bad since they seemed to have all the ingredients to make a terrific movie. Anyway, to conclude, I think my rating is actually really generous, it was a rather disappointing flick and I don’t think it is really worth a look. 



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An average movie

Posted : 13 years, 2 months ago on 13 April 2012 07:59 (A review of The Order)

Like everyone else, I think that Heath Ledger was a very talented actor but, honestly, not everything he did was completely awesome. For example, this was probably the worst movie he made during his short career. Indeed, three years after 'A Knight's Tale', he worked again with Brian Helgeland and Shannyn Sossamon but, this time, the end-result was pretty underwhelming and barely no one saw this flick when it was released. Basically, it is a thriller with some religio and paranormal elements. Honestly, it is not completely awful and remains watchable above all thanks to Heath Ledger who delivers a decent performance and remains really charismatic as usual. Of course, the whole thing is just preposterous but that wasn't an issue, no the issue was more that it was not really entertaining at all. I mean, I think the plot had some potential but it was so generic and rather boring to watch. To conclude, like I said before it is the most disappointing movie starring Ledger and it is not really worth a look, even if you are a fan of his work.


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A good movie

Posted : 13 years, 2 months ago on 12 April 2012 10:07 (A review of The Statement)

Since I'm a big fan of Michael Caine, I really had to check this movie. For once, he had the lead part so it was just a real treat. Furthermore, it was also the last movie directed by Norman Jewison so I was really intrigued by this flick. Basically, it is a rather unknown spy flick but, franky, when I see the low ratings, I really think it is completely underrated. Indeed, Caine was once again terrific and the rest of the cast was pretty good as well (Tilda Swinton, Jeremy Northam, Alan Bates, Charlotte Rampling, John Neville, Ciarán Hinds). I also thought it was quite interesting to see a spy flick dealing with some old people from WWII, instead of young athletic people like in the Bourne trilogy. I thought it added another dimension, another element to the suspense genre and it was a refreshing approach. Still, it remains a generic spy story with nothing really mindblowing but I remained entertained throughout the whole thing. To conclude, I really liked this movie and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Michael Caine's work.


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A good movie

Posted : 13 years, 2 months ago on 12 April 2012 05:21 (A review of Whip It)

Since I kept hearing some pretty good things about this movie, I was really eager to watch the damned thing. First of all, Drew Barrymore had some major ups and downs during her career as an actress but you can say whatever you want, she delivered a really neat directing debut. Above all, I really liked how she managed to mix teenage anxiety with a sport flick. Of course, the whole thing was still rather stereotypical and predictable but it was still well made and entertaining. First of all, you had a really strong female cast (Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristen Wiig, Zoe Bell, Eve, Drew Barrymore, Juliette Lewis) and they all delivered some solid performances. Still, Ellen Page can’t seem to move on from Juno as she keeps playing over and over again some similar characters and I hope for her she will be able to do something else in the future. Anyway, this derby roller thing (which I had never seen before) was pretty fun to watch. Above all, I really enjoyed the directing and most of the dialogues were quite hilarious. To conclude, even if the core of this movie was not original,  the execution was really good, I really liked the damned thing and it is definitely worth a look.



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