
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 09:21
(A review of
Scary Movie 4)
Out of sheer curiosity, I thought I should check this one out. Oh boy! That was a big mistake.... The whole thing was just not funny or entertaining whatsoever. I'm not sure which sequels was the worst one but none of them reached the level of the 1st installment (which wasn't really a masterpiece anyway but at least, it was quite entertaining). Still, I must admit it, the opening scene with Dr. Phil and Shaquille O'Neal was actually quite hilarious so I would say this movie was the best sequel but it doesn't mean much... Once again, it was directed by David Zucker, one of those guys responsible for âAirplane!â, allegedly the best movie in the spoof genre, and 25 years later, he is directing some worthless sequels probably some of the worst movies in this genre. It is quite sad and, concerning Anna Faris, you might wonder if she will ever recover from the damage done to her career and if she will ever be taken seriously as an actress. Eventually, for some weird reasons, they decided to make yet another sequel (which I havenât seen yet) and it was eventually another flop. To conclude, at the end of the day, it is pretty bad and you should pretty much avoid it at all cost.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 09:11
(A review of
Lantana (2001))
Since I kept hearing good things about this flick (if Iâm not mistaken, it was even on the list â1001 movies you must see before you dieâ at some point) so I had some rather high expectations before watching it. Apparently, it was a massive critical success in Australia and it was then also heralded as well abroad. However, I must admit it, I was eventually rather disappointed by the whole thing. I mean, it was a good movie, no doubt about it and I really enjoyed the directing and the acting as well but, honestly, even though the story was interesting enough, it was nothing mind-blowing whatsoever in my opinion. Somehow, it was reminiscent of other multi-layered features (or hyperlink features) such as âMagnoliaâ or âBabelâ and some viewers seem to suggest that it is a very subtle feature with a lot going on in the subtext and the symbolic but, honestly, I was not entirely convinced. Personally, I thought the whole thing was mildly entertaining and interesting but, not much more than that, Iâm afraid. To conclude, even though I might not be an Australian masterpiece after all, it is still a very well made detective story and it is definitely worth a look.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 09:05
(A review of
The Upside of Anger)
I already saw this movie but since it was a while back and since I have it on DVD, I was quite eager to check it out again. First of all, it has been a while since Kevin Costner has left the A list but it's actually a pity because he can be a pretty good actor. In fact, not everything he did in the meantime was actually completely worthless and this flick was a very good example. Indeed, it is actually a rather unknown and forgotten feature but I really enjoyed it. Indeed, for once, Costner was playing a different character than his usual righteous heroes and he was a more intriguing figure, someone who might have been a hero at some point but who he is now pretty much washed-up. The lead was also played by Joan Allen, probably one of the most underrated actress at work nowadays and to round up the cast, you had some fine young actresses (Erika Christensen, Keri Russell, Alicia Witt, Evan Rachel Wood). Maybe they could have spent more time on the daughters who were eventually no really developed but it wasnât a big deal. Eventually, to conclude, the whole thing was quite spellbinding, I think this movie deserves more credit and it is definitely worth a look.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 08:58
(A review of
The Miracle Maker (2000))
Honestly, I wonder how I ended up watching this. I guess I was above all attracted by the (voice) cast but, also, even though I'm an atheist, I think religion is a fascinating subject and I always enjoyed (good) movies about it. Apparently, this movie gets a lot of love (just check the rating in Imdb) but I think it is because it is rather faithful and respectful of the material and, therefore, religious folks really loved it. Honestly, you might wonder why they chose to go with claymation but, from a technical point of view, this flick was rather well made and it was a nice watch. The fact that I always had a weak spot for claymation might have helped as well. Still, like I said before, it was rather faithful, at least, according to what I knew about the holy scripture and while it was therefore satisfying for the really religious viewers among us, I thought it was as a result rather tedious and I can't say I was blown away by the whole thing. I mean, I hoped they would show something different or something I didn't know but it was not something to expect with such a feature. To conclude, even though I donât think it was really amazing, it remains a decent religious feature and it is worth a look.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 08:50
(A review of
Two Mules for Sister Sara)
Even though I wasnât sure what to expect from this flick, a Western starring Clint Eastwood is always a treat, so I was really eager to check it out. The fact that it was directed by the great Don Siegel made it even more interesting. If Iâm not mistaken, it was the 2nd movie he made with Clint Eastwood, the first one being âCooganâs Bluffâ and they would make almost 4 movies back to back ending with their seminal classic âDirty Harryâ. However, I wasn't really convinced by the addition of Shirley MacLaine in the mix but she didn't bother me much. On the other hand, it was nice to have a strong female character in a Western for once but, somehow, it didnât connect with this one. Originally, Elizabeth Taylor was linked to play this part but, for various reasons, it didnât happen and, apparently, Shirley MacLaine didnât get along with Don Siegel and even Clint Eastwood didnât really know what to do with her. Eventually, it is not really a revolutionary flick, Eastwood basically plays the same character he has always been playing so far but it remains an entertaining Western and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are looking for a good old Western starring Clint Eastwood.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 08:25
(A review of
Clerks II)
I already saw this movie a couple of times times but since it was a while back and since I'm planning to watch 'Clerks 3' pretty soon on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out again. Since I'm a huge fan of 'Clerks', of course, I really had to see this flick when it came out. Well, eventually, this sequel was unfortunately not as good as its predecessor but it was to be expected and I stil enjoyed the damned thing. First of all, even though some might argue that this movie had a more polished professional look, I actually missed the raw look and the whole thing didn't feel as authentic as the first time. Indeed, whereas the Quick Stop felt genuine because, well, it was actually a genuine convenience store, this time around, the fast-food restaurant felt fake and it figures because it was made up for this movie. Seriously, it would have been so awesome if they could have used a real fast-food chain but it was mere wishfull thinking since there is no way that a real fast-food chain would have given their approval. Furthermore, Brian OâHalloran and Jeff Anderson have never been some great actors but the dialogues were so great with the first installment so you didnât notice or care for this lack of skills. However, 12 years later, they didnât improve as actors but, at least, Kevin Smithâs dialogues are still pretty funny and he managed to bring here and there some hilarious scenes. Eventually, as I mentioned before, in spite all these flaws, I still really enjoyed the damned thing though. Indeed, it was just awesome to see again those characters I loved so much 12 years later and even though the whole thing was maybe nothing really amazing, it is definitely worth a look and a must see for any respectable fan of Kevin Smith's work.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 08:15
(A review of
My Big Fat Greek Wedding)
Since I kept hearing good things about this flick, I thought I should eventually check it out. Indeed, even though it was a rather small independent film, and despite never holding the number one spot at the American box office, the movie went on to earn a massive $369 million. Eventually, a couple of years later, it would loose the 1st place as the highest-grossing independent film of all time, a spot taken by âThe Passion of the Christâ. To be honest, even though I thought it was pretty good, it wasn't really mind-blowing in my opinion. What I particularly enjoyed is that the romantic leads really looked like real people and not like your typical Hollywood stars like Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie. However, the story was not very original and rather predictable. Concerning Nia Vardalos, it seemed to be a big fairy tale for her, as she started this story in a one-woman play called âMy Big Fat Greek Weddingâ which was then turned into a huge success at the box-office. So , it seemed that she had a bright future ahead of her but she didnât get much success since then. Still, to conclude, it is a rather entertaining and well made romantic comedy and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 07:59
(A review of
My Super Ex-Girlfriend)
When is the last time that Ivan Reitman has directed a hit? Back in the 80âs, he has directed some major classics like âGhost Bustersâ but in the 90âs, his movies were already becoming rather underwhelming and, nowadays, his work is not really worth a look anymore. This time, the fact that Uma Thurman was involved was not much reassuring. I mean, I have a lot of respect for her but, for every good movie she makes, she makes at least 5 very average or even bad movies. This flick is a good example of how disappointing their careers have become for both of them. In this age of massive blockbusters about super-heroes, the concept was not bad at all and rather original but the end result was just so underwhelming. Indeed, at the end of the day, the story was lame, the jokes were not funny and I was bored by the whole thing. Basically, it was pretty tricky to mix your average super-hero feature with a romantic-comedy and the makers seriously failed to deliver something decent. To conclude, even though this project did have some potential, it was eventually a rather tedious comedy and I donât think is really worth a look, even if you are interested in Ivan Reitmanâs work.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 07:52
(A review of
Rumor Has It...)
Back in the 80âs, Rob Reiner was one of the most successful directors at work. I mean, just check his track-record, it is quite impressive (âThis Spinal Tapâ, âThe Sure Thingâ, âStand by Meâ, âThe Princess Brideâ, âWhen Harry Met Sally...â, âMiseryâ, âA Few Good Menâ). But then, he made âNorthâ. To be honest, I have seen this movie once and I didnât think it was that bad after all. I mean, I thought I would watch the worst movie ever made so thatâs probably why. Anyway, it was a massive flop, both financially and critically, and it seems that already 20 years later Rob Reiner has still not recovered from the damage. This flick is a pretty good example. I mean, even though it received some tepid reviews, I thought it was not bad at all and I especially enjoyed the A list cast (Kevin Costner, Jennifer Anniston, Shirly MacLaine, Mark Ruffalo, Richard Jenkins). Still, I can't say I was really fascinated by the story which felt rather convoluted to me. Of course, the whole concept was rather misguided from the start but the end-result could have been worse. To conclude, it is a rather entertaining romantic-comedy but still very routine and it doesn't really sparkle whatsoever but, somehow, I still think it is worth a look, but donât expect anything amazing.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry

Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 17 August 2011 07:45
(A review of
Half Light)
Honestly, I wasnât sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Demi Moore, I thought I might as well give it a try. Indeed, even though she was definitely on the A list back in the 90âs, somehow, it all started to slow down for her and between 1997 ('Deconstructing Harry') and 2006 ('Bobby'), she only made 3 movies. It isn't much and you may think that she decided then to focus on quality instead of quantity. Unfortunately, I'm afraid it wasnât really the case here... Indeed, one of those flicks was 'Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle' (obviously, not a real masterpiece) and later on she did this paranormal thriller. Eventually, it was not a success either, either financially or critically. Basically, the story was very average, it is one of those rather convoluted and underwhelming thrillers with the usual annoying twist ending. The fact that Demi Moore's acting was not really convincing didnât help much either. On a positive note, it was fun to see Henry Ian Cusick, one of the major actors in âLostâ, but that was a rather small compensation. To conclude, it is not a really bad movie but it is not really worth a look either.

0 comments,
Reply to this entry