Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since the trailer was not bad, I thought that I could watch it with Nick, my step-son. I have noticed that this movie was a huge critical flop when it was released but, to be honest, it turned out to be rather hard to judge this movie for me after all. First of all, there was the fact that, after Eli Roth delivered a hard R-rated movie as it was supposed to be from the start, the studio spent more than a year completely retooling the damned thing to get a PG-13 rating which basically ruined the damned thing. The other issue was that, last weekend, I was just moving in into my new apartment and, even though I saw this movie in the afternoon, I was actually exhausted and started to really doze off during the 2nd half. Anyway, even though I have to admit that most of the story was indeed seriously derivative, it was just so cool to see Cate Blanchett, at 55 years old, playing some badass space gunslinger and, of course, she completely nailed it. Claptrap, the robot voiced by Jack Black, was also quite entertaining. Unfortunately, all the other characters involved were rather half-baked and barely entertaining. Especially for Kevin Hart, after the even more underwhelming ‘Lift’, it was the 2nd movie I have seen this year during which he tried to tackle something really different than his usual comedies and completely failed (at least, ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle’ did work though). Anyway, to conclude, my rating was probably too generous here but I don’t think I will watch the damned thing again at some point just to make sure, my love for Cate Blanchett is so strong, I think you should watch anything with her, even if it might actually be one of the worst movies of the year. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since it was starring Jessica Alba and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. To be honest, it wasn’t the worst movie I have seen recently released by Netflix (I have to admit that I have watched a lot of garbage lately) but the main thing that bothered me was that the fact the whole thing felt so empty. Indeed, for a good while, in fact, for almost the whole duration, I was wondering what the damned thing was supposed to be about. Eventually, it wasn’t a great story at all and the plot turned out to be really paper thin. Concerning Alba, it turned tout that she had to basically carry the whole thing on her shoulders. In fact, none of the other characters was developed whatsoever but there is a fair chance that it was done on purpose just to make sure that nobody could upstage her in any way. The most amazing thing about this actress is that, 20 years later, she still looks so gorgeous but, even though her character was pretty badass and had some potential, I’m afraid she wasn’t really convincing though. Is there anyway that this movie could have worked at all? I do believe that a bad director can mess up a great story and a great director can turn a lame story into a great movie. In this case, they could have gone for a really raw and/or violent approach or the main character could have been more complex but this director really did nothing at all with this material which was already not interesting in the first place. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of Jessica Alba’s seemingly endless charisma, the damned thing was pretty weak and I’m afraid it’s not really worth a look. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since there was a decent cast involved and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. In fact, I do have a weak spot for heist movies but, to be honest, I was actually surprised by how lame this movie actually turned out to be, especially since it was directed by the guy who gave us ‘The Italian Job’. I’m not a huge fan of this remake but I have to admit that it was a decent flick and it was, back then, a commercial success. On the other hand, he was also responsible for ‘Be Cool’ probably one of the least necessary and above least entertaining sequels ever made. Anyway, coming back to our main feature, right from the start, I was just so bored and one of the reasons was the fact that everything looked so fake. It reminded me of ‘Thief’, one of my favorite movies in the genre. Back then, they used an actual vault and the actual tools to break in which were supplied by real-life thieves who served as technical consultants on this film. Anyway, the damned thing was so raw and so fascinating to behold but, in this case, they kept using some supposedly ‘high-tech’ gadgets which all looked rather pathetic. It has also been a while since I have seen a movie with such ugly CGI. Another issue was the fact that all the characters were just terribly flat. I mean, I have nothing against Kevin Hart, the guy can be actually pretty funny, but he was just never convincing as some kind of mastermind thief. At least, Gugu Mbatha-Raw was, as usual, really lovely and she did what she could with this material but it’s a shame than such a talented actress keeps wasting her time with such underwhelming Netflix features (see also ‘The Cloverfield Paradox’). Anyway, to conclude, the damned thing was just terribly weak and I think you should probably avoid it. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since there was literally nothing else to see at the movie theater, I thought I might as well give it a try. Well, eventually, I have to admit that I was actually positively surprised by the damned thing. Indeed, I think I enjoyed it, on one hand, because I have nowadays such low expectations from M. Night Shyamalan and, on the other hand, because it was in fact probably the least pretentious movie he has delivered so far. The most annoying thing about Shyamalan, even with 'The Sixth Sense', is the way he always ends up his movies with a big twist which is supposed to show how really smart he is. Here, the whole thing was actually an endless succession of twists which might sound even worse but this approach turned out to be much less annoying. The fact that most of these twists were not completely ridiculous also probably helped. I mean, the concept of catching a serial-killer during a huge pop-concert might sound catchy but, to be honest, it didn’t make much sense though. To have also all this police force in uniform also triggered him almost right away and it seemed to be a rather stupid move from this supposedly super smart profiler. Another thing that I enjoyed with this movie was the fact that the main character was actually quite fascinating. Indeed, on one hand, he was actually a good father, probably a good husband as well, and, yet, he was also a bloodthirsty serial-killer. It was also pretty neat that Josh Harnett was a perfect choice for this role. Unfortunately, Shyamalan always had no idea how to develop the psychology of his characters and this movie was not exception, I'm afraid. Indeed, it would have been amazing if they could have displayed how dark his mind was while still being a kind and caring parent. Instead, Shyamalan went for a much lighter approach, even ending on a rather comical note which, I have to admit it, actually worked. Anyway, to conclude, even if it wasn't a masterpiece whatsoever, it turned out to be a solid B feature after all and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since there was a decent cast involved and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, eventually, as usual with such Christian-themed movies, the damned thing was pretty weak but I actually think it did have some potential. I have to admit that I have been raised as an atheist (you could say that my folks are pretty much 'anti-'religion) but I have always been fascinated by religion as a concept. On top of that, I do believe that the way of thinking and living displayed by Jesus was actually incredibly inspiring. Anyway, coming back on our main feature, I think they completely messed-up their approach. Indeed, even if Don Piper himself might disagree, our goal should never be about reaching heaven, it should always be about who you are and what you are doing right now with your time on this Earth. That's in fact something rather off-putting about the Christian religion, this obsession about rewarding and punishment in the after life when, in fact, it was definitely not what Jesus was preaching about. I'm sorry, I'm deviating again but, eventually, most of the duration was about the main character being in bed suffering incredible pain but the end-result was rather botched because they never managed to make you feel his agony whatsoever. To make things worse, even though I never had anything against Hayden Christensen, the guy was just really weak here and I'm afraid he didn't have the skills to play such a challenging part. Coming back on the theological side, he was given the gift of life not once but twice and, instead of cherishing this gift, he was just constantly complaining. I mean, it also meant that he was actually human but his depression was just so poorly depicted, it was actually rather hard to root for him. Anyway, to conclude, even if it wasn't a complete disaster, this movie was rather lame and you should probably avoid it, except if you really like the genre.

Nick, my step-son, was really eager to check this movie and it was pretty much our highest priority for this year. On top of that, we went to see it on his birthday which was really neat. Well, Nick, like the rest of the audience, really had a blast, that's for sure, and I have to admit that it was indeed quite entertaining. Was it great though? Not really, I'm afraid. I mean, to bring Wolverine back into the mix, even though the character had been retired after 'Logan', was a very smart marketing stunt but, unfortunately, it was pretty much the only thing that it was, a smart marketing move. Indeed, eventually, I don't think that these two characters had such great chemistry but they were not helped by the fact that they were not given much to do. Basically, for most of the duration, you get to see them wandering in some wasteland, they kept fighting and arguing with each other and that was basically it. As usual with the MCU but in fact the whole super-hero genre, they were stuck into the same plot they alway give us about saving the world from some all-mighty villain. Seriously, when will they finally come up with something new, especially now since the MCU is clearly struggling? Anyway, to bring back Wolverine, of course, they used the multiverse trope but I have to admit that it worked really well with Deadpool messed-up unhinged humor. Indeed, as a result, you get so many unexpected and left-field cameos, it was actually really neat. And, of course, even though the plot was terribly derivative and barely entertaining, even though Wolverine didn't have much added value after all, Deadpool remains such a wild and insanely fun character. Will he ever come back again? It's tricky since he doesn't fit at all in the MCU kid-friendly tone but I certainly hope so. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was nothing really revolutionary, I have to admit that the damned was really entertaining and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Of course, the idea of a shark in Paris was completely preposterous but that’s the reason why this movie mostly did succeed, the fact that the makers never took themselves seriously. As a result, it turned out to be a B feature dealing with sharks, no more and no less that, but I thought the end-result was actually fairly entertaining. While watching this movie, I was thinking about ‘Jaws’, obviously, and the fact that, because of technical issues, they barely displayed the actual shark at all but that’s what actually made the movie so effective and entertaining at the time. Now, we are 50 years later and, because of the possibilities of CGI, a mid-budget movie like this one can show as many shots of a shark that they want but, while it might be convenient for the film makers, it is actually less effective mostly because it looks still too fake. Still, I have to admit that the bombastic and chaotic ending took me by surprise and was actually pretty neat. Indeed, they really messed up the City of Love and the tone was fairly downbeat but it didn’t bother me, in the contrary. It also helped that Bérénice Bejo is a solid actress and managed to play it really straightforward, even if her character was barely developed after all but it was obviously not the point here. I also did appreciate the fact that they kept the jokes to a real bare minimum. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was nothing really amazing, it was still a decent watch though and I think it is worth a look, at least, if you really like the genre. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but the subject did sound pretty cool and, since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, I did remind me of ‘Man on Wire’, easily one of my favorite documentaries. Indeed, especially during the 3rd act, when they focused on the climbing of Merdeka 118, an insanely tall building in Kuala Lumpur, it was so similar but I didn’t bother me, in the contrary, since I loved so much this incredible movie based on Philippe Petit's fascinating daredevil endeavor. I think the biggest achievement of this movie was that, even though you will probably think first that it is a really idiotic hazardous way to spend your time, at the end, you won’t be able argue against the fact that the images and videos they deliver were actually so breathtaking. Seriously, it became so artistic at some point that it really became some kind of Art. Eventually, the only thing that bothered me were all these scenes during which they were neither climbing or prepping to climb and instead there was always some kind of drama involved. Indeed, the whole point was to see them doing some crazy sh*t, not seeing them going through some personal shenanigans, but, above all, it all seemed slightly fake to me. I mean, to caught one of these scenes by chance on camera, sure, why not? But it kept occurring other and other again and I wonder if it wasn’t all staged just to add some drama to the proceedings. Above all, I wish they spend more time showing them climbing some buildings and showing us some incredible and insane stunts. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, I really enjoyed the damned thing though and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in this subject.