Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 02:41
(A review of
Rescue Dawn)
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, Werner Herzorg is a fascinating director, I should definitely watch more of his movies and Christian Bale is definitely one of the most exciting actors at work right so, I was really excited when I heard that they would work together. And, was the end result worth it? Absolutely. In my opinion, it is probably the most accessible movie directed by Herzorg that I have seen so far, which is not a bad thing actually, and Bale gave, as usual, a really solid perfomance (once again, Christian Bale lost 55 pounds for his role and you might wonder about his sanity since he keeps losing and getting some massive weight for so many roles). Of course, the only critic you might have is that the story was not really original but it didn't really bother me and I was entertained from the beginning until the end. Even the usually obnoxious Steve Zahn didnāt bother me and, for this movie, he has delivered his best performance so far. Anyway, to conclude, I thought that it was a very good flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Werner Herzogās work.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 02:31
(A review of
This Is Spinal Tap (1984))
Since I kept hearing some really good things about this flick, I was really eager to check it out. Eventually, it was basically one of those cases when I heard about the movie for years, I got such huge expectations and this movie reached an almost mythical status in my mind. However, did the movie really live up to those expectations? Not really, Iām afraid. I mean, it was a good movie and it is definitely original (I think it was actually the very first mockumentary, a genre which has flourished since then but I think only this movie has really become a classic but I might be mistaken). So, I have to admit it, it was very well done and quite clever but, to be honest, I never thought it was really hilarious. Sure, I did smile a couple of times, yes, but did I actually laugh my ass off ? Never. Still, it was the beginning of a very prolific directing career for Rob Reiner who would be responsible for some major classics in theĀ 80āsĀ ('Misery', 'When Harry Met Sally...', 'The Princess Bride', ' Stand by Me', 'The Sure Thing'). To conclude, it is probably not my kind of humor but still, it remains a pretty good flick and it is definitely worth a look.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 02:18
(A review of
Kicks)
I didnāt even notice before but Iām actually the only one who has rated this flick so, I guess, it must be one of the most obscure movies I have seen so far. It is probably because it is a Dutch movie and Dutch movies donāt do well abroad and the fact that this movie was barely seen in the Netherlands didn't help either. Anyway, I thought it wasn't bad at all, it was actually quite ambitious and there was definitely some potential. Basically, it is pretty much like a Dutch version of 'Crash' (which was a good movie but not that great either). I did like the directing, the actors did a good job and the different stories were interesting but not very well developped, Iām afraid, and there were still too many clichĆ©s for me. The point is that, at the time, they released in Netherlands some very successful comedies about its current multicultural community (āShouf Shouf Habibiā and āHet schnitzelparadijsā) and it is pretty obvious that they wanted with this movie to surf on this wave but nobody in the Netherlands was apparently interested to see something serious about the subject. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, it remains an interesting flick and it is actually worth a look, especially if you are interested in Dutch movies.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 01:36
(A review of
Eros)
On paper, it sounded like a great project, to have 3 great masters delivering each of them a short about love and sex. Unfortunately, it turned out to be rather underwhelming after all.Ā Indeed,Ā Antonioni's segment was easliy the worst one of the bunch, Sodebergh's short was not bad but nothing really impressive and, eventually, onlyĀ Wong Kar Wai's bit did actually work.Ā
'The Dangerous Thread of Things' by Michelangelo Antonioni
In my opinion, it was easily the weakest one of them and it is a shame that it will probably be the last movie directed by Antonioni. Still, in spite of these flaws, it was rather well directed but, unfortunately, it was just way too slow and symbolic for me. I just didn't get it, I guess. One good thing though, there was a very nice naked lady for half of the duration but that's it, there was nothing much to see here, Iām afraid and my rating was actually rather generous for this segment (06/10)
'Equilibrium' by Steven Soderbergh
It was a little bit better than the previous segment but it was still nothing great though. First of all, it was beautifully shot in black and white and then you had the always awesome Robert Downer Jr. But that's about it... Basically, the whole thing tried to be funny but it was not and the story was just not really interesting. (06/10)
'The Hand' by Wong Kar Wai
At last, this one was easily the best one of these short stories. Indeed, the directing was awesome, the story was quite fascinating and indeed erotic. On top of that, Gong Li gave a really solid perfomance. (07/10)
To conclude, it is not really a must see but considering that all the shorts are directed by some of the best directors around, it is still worth a look though.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 01:13
(A review of
Mephisto)
Honestly, I had no idea what to expect from this flick but since the ratings were really good, I thought I should check it out. Indeed, it is nowadays a rather forgotten movie but I thought it was actually fascinating. In my opinion, it is one of the darkest dramas ever made about WWII I have ever seen and I thought that there was a really impressive amount of depth put in the characters, especially the main one who was quite fascinating. Indeed, the directing was very well done and, above all, Klaus Maria Brandauer gave probably the best performance of his career. Since then I have seen some other movies starring this guy but none of them really impressed me like this one. Anyway, he was really mesmerizing here, giving life to a fascinating but also flawed character. On top of that, this movie was also a very interesting meditation about Art and while watching this you might wonder, when you are dealing with Art in general, where does it start and where does it end and how far should you go in order to reach your artistic goals? To conclude, I was really positively surprised by this flick and I think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 01:08
(A review of
The Hitcher)
Since I kept hearing good things about this flick, I was really eager to watch it. To be honest, I'm not usually a big fan of those cheesy 80's action movies. I mean, some of them are decent but most of them are rather underwhelming, in my opinion. However, I have definitely a weak spot for this one. Indeed, first of all, there was the mighty Rutger Hauer in all his greatness and, only for his performance, you ought to yourself to check this one out. Obviously, the story was just really preposterous but I thought it was entertaining enough and it kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end. One of my fellow Listal friends compared this movie with Hitchcock's work in his review but that's a little bit exagerated... I mean, it is a fun piece of trash but that's it, nothing less but nothing more either and without Rutger Hauer who managed to get a lot from a very limited concept, Iām afraid the whole thing would have been pretty lame. To conclude, I thought it was a fun movie to watch and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 12:58
(A review of
The Last Picture Show)
Since I kept hearing some really good thing about this flick, I was really eager to check it out. First of all, it is thanks to this movie that Jeff Bridges' career really took off and it was just really neat to see him when he was much younger (and, apparently, already very talented). Basically, it is one of those movies during which nothing much really happen. In fact, nothing much is even told by the characters. I know, it doesnāt sound really exciting but, basically, it is way more nuanced than your usual flick and you had to carefully analyse the body language and the looks that the characters give to each other to really understand what's going on (Iām not sure I did but just to follow them was quite spellbinding). For Peter Bogdanovich, this movie was a huge breakthrough and, at the time, he was hailed as the next best thing but, even though he was quite productive in the 70ās, none of his other features managed to reach this level of awesomeness though. Anyway, to conclude, it is rather an acquired taste but I really liked it and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 6 June 2011 10:01
(A review of
Did You Hear About the Morgans?)
To be honest, I didnāt expect much from this flick but since I always had a weak spot for Hugh Grant, I thought I might as well give it a try. Indeed, I'm a big fan of Hugh Grant, I think he is awesome but Iām afraid this is easily the worst movie he has made so far (apparently, āNight Train to Veniceā might be even worse but I havenāt seen it) . Unfortunately, his career was definitely going downhill back in those days and this movie was Ā indeed really aĀ low point. Basically, the premise was rather idiotic, it was completely predictable and, the worst of all, it was not funny at all. Another major issue with this movie was probably the fact that Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker didnāt have any chemistry whatsoever. After the decent āTwo Weeks Noticeā and the really underrated āMusic and Lyricsā, it was already the 3rd movie directed by Marc Lawrence Ā and starring Hugh Grant but this movie was a huge step down from their previous work. Anyway, to conclude, the whole thing was seriously weak and I donāt think it is worth your time at all, even if you are a huge fan of Hugh Grant.
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Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 5 June 2011 10:07
(A review of
Made of Honor)
Nowadays, I have Netflix and Popcorn and not only I have since then an endless selection of movies to choose from but, as a result, I have become slightly more picky regarding the movies I watch. Before, I used to watch pretty much anything as long as it was starring one or two actors I was interested in and, as a result, I would sometimes end up watching some really obscure features. This movie was a perfect example. To be honest, before watching the damned thing, I wasn't expecting much but since I always had a weak spot for romantic comedies, I thought I should check it out. Well, unfortunately, even though Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan were both quite charming, it still turned out to be rather lame. Seriously, the concept was really weak, the characters were completely boring and uninteresting and I couldn't care less about the damned thing. Above all, I thought it was a total rip-off of āMy Best Friend's Weddingā and the whole thing was just so predictable and not really entertaining at all. To conclude, even though I have seen worse, I still donāt think it is worth a look, even if you are a huge fan of this genre.
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Posted : 13 years, 7 months ago on 4 June 2011 02:51
(A review of
Relative Strangers)
Nowadays, I watch movies mostly with Netflix and Popcorn Time and, as a result, I have become slightly more picky about what I watch. In the past, I used to watch some really random stuff just because there were a few decent actors involved and this movie was a perfect example. Indeed, I had really had no idea what what to expect from this flick but since I really have a weak spot for Ā Danny Devito and Kathy Bates, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, I think that those 2 actors are both really underrated but even them couldn't save the damned thingā¦ Seriously, the story was just really Ā average, it was not original at all and completely predictable. At least, I have to admit that Neve Campbell is a very charming actress but she was actually rather weak here. Indeed,Ā she played it way too seriously when all the other actors were over-the-top and completely satirical. Above all, the main character and his adoptive parents were rather despicable and they made the whole thing rather painfull to watch. Anyway, to conclude, I have seen worse movies in my life but it doesn't mean this one was worth a look.
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