Reviews by johanlefourbe

I already saw this movie but since it was a while back, I was quite eager to check it out again. The second time around, I watched the director's cut which last more than more than 3 hrs which was slightly disorienting as it gave me the feeling that I had forgotten most of the damned thing. Anyway, it is still quite amazing and it was much better than anything directed before or after by Wolfgang Petersen (what happened to this guy actually? He seemed to be pretty much retired nowadays). Anyhow, I always thought that there was something fascinating about movies dealing with submarines and this one is by far the best one. Indeed, since then, it has been imitated numerous times but this feature remains the reference in its genre and I will remain so for a long time. Basically, the directing was impressive and, like I said before, you could argue that Wolfgang Petersen never reached these heights again in his career. Eventually, the mood was just so intense, there was a completely nail-biting tension and I was on the edge of my seat from the beginning until the last seconds. At the end of the day, it is not only a great submarine movie, it is basically one of the best war features ever made. Anyway, to conclude, I really loved this flick, it is a classic and a must see for all movie lovers, especially if you like the genre.

Honestly, it has been a while since I have seen this flick and I should definitely re-watch it at some point whenever I get the opportunity. The point is that this flick is just a massive masterpiece and it really blew me away the first time I saw it. Basically, in my opinion, it is the ultimate psychopath movie and during the last 80 years(!), they have tried to improve the formula but they never improved on the blue print developped in this feature. The funny thing is that I have always been a little bit dismissive towards the serial killer sub-genre. Indeed, most of them, even such massive classics like ‘The Silence of The Lambs’ and ‘Seven’, are so far-fetched, so over the top, I always have a hard time to really connect with them. This one is different though. Indeed, there are no chases, no shootings, no explosions like you see in your typical US thriller. What you have instead is just a frightening and fascinating psychological study of a sick mind and I thought it was much more interesting to behold. To conclude, I think it is a great flick, a tremendous classic, and it is a must-see for any decent movie fan.

I have seen this movie a very long time ago but I was very impressed and I never have forgot it. To be honest, even though I have watched many other movies directed by Fellini, very often, it didn’t really connect with them, even some massive classics like ‘La Dolce Vita’ and ‘8 ½’. I mean, I did like them and I could see why they were considered masterpieces but they simply didn’t really blow me away. This movie is an exception though and it remains my favorite one among his work. Indeed, with this movie, you still have the poetic side of Fellini but this feature is also pretty realistic and I just loved this combination. In 2013, I went to see it again in the theater with some uncles and aunts who have formed a film club and I had a wonderful time. Unfortunately, I had a bad night sleep the night before and I could barely stay awake during the last 30 minutes but still what a great picture. This time, I was above all impressed by Giulietta Masina. I mean, Anthony Quinn was really good as well but Masina really stole the show portraying some kind of female Charles Chaplin character. To conclude, even though it is almost 60 years old, it remains a great classic, it is absolutely worth a look and a must see for any movie lover.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Reese Witherspoon, I thought I might as well give it a try. Eventually, I thought it was not bad at all. Indeed, Reese Witherspoon and Josh Brolin are both some very watchable actors and they both delivered some decent perfomances. Concerning Alessandro Nivola, I'm not so crazy about the guy, I mean, he is not really a bad actor but he never really impressed me in anything. Concerning the story, I thought it was alright and quite entertaining, even though they couldn't avoid some annoying twist at the end which was rather disappointing. Indeed, basically, it is one of those thrillers which build up a nice mood and a nice sense of mystery, pretty much like a neo-film noir but, then, at some point, they had to explain more or less what was going on and that’s when the whole thing fell apart. In fact, Roger Ebert thought it was even really underwhelming but I thought it was still fairly well made and rather enjoyable. To conclude, it was nothing really great whatsoever but I still think it is worth a look though, especially if you like the genre.

Even though it is a really obscure flick, since there was a rather nice cast, I was quite eager to check it out. Eventually, I thought that the whole thing was quite underwhelming and a big waste of time for all the talented actors involved. Indeed, the cast was pretty (Ray Liotta, LL Cool J, Mekhi Phifer, Taye Diggs, Chiwetel Ejiofor,) and they did what they could with this material but the story was just too weak, in my opinion. Indeed, basically, it is one of those very convoluted thrillers which keep you in the dark for as long as possible but then, at some point, to solve most of the issues/conflicts, they just throw one preposterous twist after the other but I stopped to care way before the end was reached. The only positive thing in this flick was maybe to discover Jolene Blalock who looked quite charming and she maybe hoped that this movie would really launch her career but since it was a huge flop, she didn’t get much attention eventually. To conclude, I have seen worse but it still remain a seriously underwhelming thriller and I don’t think it is really worth a look, even if you like the genre.

This is the very first flick directed by John McTiernan, it was the main reason why I wanted to watch this and it took me a few years to finally get my hands on it. Eventually, even though it is a really obscure flick (only a handful of users in Listal have seen it apparently), there were many things to enjoy in this movie. Indeed, the mood was pretty good, Pierce Brosnan was rather convincing and there was something quite fascinating about this concept of modern urban nomads. To be honest, I thought it was not bad at all but still nothing really amazing though. Indeed, it felt like a typical directing debut, full of interesting ideas but still really rough on the edges. A year later, McTiernan would make 'Predator', followed quickly by 'Die Hard' and 'The Hunt for Red October', all 3 movies characterized by some really focused and effective directing so you could argue that this 1st feature was some kind of warm-up for this director . To conclude, in spite of its flaw, I still think it is an interesting feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you wonder how McTiernan started his career.

Honestly, since it is a really obscure feature, I wasn’t sure what to expect from it but since Robert Carlyle and Ray Winstone were involved, I thought I might as well give it a try. Indeed, in my opinion, Carlyle and Winstone are both some reliable actors (even though it has been quite a while since I have seen anything really amazing starring Robert Carlyle) and they usually deliver some good performances. For this movie, they did a good job as well. Obviously, it remains a rather standard familly feature but thanks to those guys, it became much more enjoyable. Furthermore, it is basically a rather small production without any pretention and, as many British comedies, there is a rather depressing barren social background but I enjoyed the fact that the makers didn’t pretend that they were telling a life-changing tale. Indeed, it is a simple story about some genuine people and if you like football, or even English football, it is actually quite entertaining. To conclude, it is nothing really great or original, but I still think it is worth a look, especially if you have some young children and you want to watch something which doesn't completely bore you to death.

I have seen this a very long time ago on a French channel if I recall correctly but I thought it was pretty good. I’m pretty sure nobody outside France has heard about Jacques Perrin but the guy developed a solid reputation in his home country. His career is actually quite interesting as he started first as an actor in the 60’s with some moderate success but, suddenly, in the 80’s, he completely shifted gears and he became producer above all for animal documentaries. I think this one was the first he made and, later, he would also produced ‘Le Peuple Migrateur’ and above all ‘Microcomos’, one of the most amazing documentaries I have ever seen. Coming back to our main feature, even though it was not as amazing as ‘Microcomos’, it already used the same template which was shooting some amazing animal footage without adding some comments or narration which has always been a great approach in my opinion. As a result, you get a very interesting documentary about apes without any intrusive comments and it was actually rather fascinating. To conclude, even though it is a really obscure flick, it is actually a pretty good documentary and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Eve since I have seen ‘Exotica', I have been following Atom Egoyan’s career and, therefore, I was really eager to check this movie. It seems that Egoyan is a pretty forgotten director but he made some very interesting flicks in the 90's. Anyway, coming back to our main feature, even though this movie might not to be among his best work, there was still some quality about it. Indeed, I really loved the mood and the way it was directed. On top of that, Kevin Bacon and Colin Firth both delivered some good perfomances as well. On the other hand, I'm not so sure if Alison Lohman was the best actress for this part. I mean, she is quite talented (it is really too bad that she seems pretty much retired at only 35 years old) and very charming but she just looked so young and maybe someone more mature would have been better for this character. Furthermore, even though the story was rather spellbinding at first, later on, it kind of lost focus at some point and that was too bad. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, it is actually a decent flick and it think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Scarlett Johansson, I thought I might as well give it a try. Basically, it is one of her most obscure feature but I though it looked pretty good and the directing was decent. On top of that, Scarlett Johansson has always been a charismatic and rather talented actress. However, even though it was based on a play written by the great Oscar Wilde so you could expect something smart, witty and fun, I thought the whole thing was actually rather dull and I never really cared about the story or the characters so I can't say I really enjoyed it. I was actually surprised to discover that this flick was already the fourth screen version of this play and I really wonder what was so great about this story that required some many adaptations. On the other hand, maybe I just got unlucky and watched one of the weaker versions. Anyway, to conclude, even though it is nothing really amazing, it remains a decent periode drama and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.