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Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 01:16
(A review of Friday Night Lights)I wasnât sure what to expect from this movie but since it has a solid reputation, I was quite eager to check it out. Eventually, sure, the directing was decent and so is the acting but, honestly, there was nothing really original here. It all depends if you're a sport movie fan or not, especially (American) football. In this case, it was even dealing with high school football which is something even more culturally related. Indeed, for an European like me, it seems rather odd to see a town getting so worked up for a high school sport team. Anyway, the interesting thing with this movie is that they didnât only focus on the football but they also tried to develop the social aspect around the sport and it was fairly interesting. Still, at the end end of the day, it wasnât really as deep as the makers wanted us to believe (I mean, it was directed by Peter Berg, the guy who eventually came up with âBattleshipâ so we shouldnât ask for too much). Eventually, since this movie was fairly well received, they decided to expand it into a TV show, which I have never seen, and it managed to last 5 seasons. To conclude, even though I thought it was slightly disappointing, it was still a decent watch and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 01:04
(A review of All the Real Girls (2003))Through the years, I heard some great thing about David Gordon Green. Indeed, even though he was, at first, completely unknown to the mainstream audience, he managed to build up a really solid reputation as indie film director. The late Roger Ebert was a huge fan and even thought he could become the next best American director, no less than that. Obviously, his status completely changed after âPineapple Expressâ and the guy suddently got involved in some rather underwhelming commercial features like âYour Highnessâ or âThe Sitterâ. Anyway, with this in mind, I was really eager to check this flick and I really wanted to like the damned thing. Eventually, even though the directing was very nice and the actors did a pretty good job (Zooey Deschanel was charming as usual), to be honest, I thought that the story was neither really interesting or entertaining enough. On top of that, I had a hard time with the main actor who was able to act adequatly but I thought that he had no charisma whatsoever. To conclude, I think itâs too bad because the whole thing really had some potential but, in spite of its flaws, I still think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 12:48
(A review of This Is It)I remember it very well, when it was released, my wife was really eager to check this flick and she really loved the damned thing. Personally, I wasnât completely convinced by this movie though. I mean, sure, I have to admit that, even though I was not a huge fan of Michael Jackson, I'm definitely aware that the guy has created some amazing songs during his career. So, it helped to enjoy this movie and it was nice that see that, in spite the fact that he pretty much looked like a walking zombie, he still definitely had some musical and dancing inspiration. Still, was it really enough to make it a great movie ? I donât think so. Indeed, in my opinion, the whole thing was quite enjoyable and interesting enough but that was about it, Iâm afraid. On top of that, I always thought that it was fairly hypocritical that, for at least 20 years, everybody was focusing on his erratic behavior but as soons as the poor guy passed away, they all seem to forget about all this and suddenly they focused on his artistical merits. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was nothing really mind-blowing, I still think it was a decent watch and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you want to see a music icon doing his thing.
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 10:52
(A review of The Kingdom)Eventually, it was not bad at all, actually rather entertaining but I can't say I was really blown away by the whole thing. Basically, it all depends how you respond to it. Indeed, on one hand, this movie was very well done and it can be definitely appreciated as an action movie. What's too bad is that they didn't try to make it more than just being an action flick. I mean, they did actually try to have a deeper meaning but eventually that's where the movie failed to deliver. Instead of pushing further into this interesting direction, it seemed that the makers "chickened" out and decided to remain in their "action-movie" comfort zone. As a matter of fact, originally this film was much longer and larger in scope running approximately two and half hours and this is the cut that Peter Berg wanted to release, which featured more character development and more dramatic overtones to the story. Universal balked at the idea and forced Berg to cut down the film to its current length much to his dismay. Maybe this cut was better but I sincerely doubt it. Anyway, the directing remains pretty solid, there was a nice cast involved (Jamie Foxx , Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Jeremy Piven, Richard Jenkins, Frances Fisher, Danny Huston, Minka Kelly) and the whole thing was pretty entertaining. To conclude, even though it is nothing mind-blowing, it remains a decent action flick and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 10:39
(A review of Jane Eyre)Not so long ago, I saw another version of this story starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender. Apparently, like for some other classic books like âPride and Prejudiceâ or âThe Three Musketeersâ, they feel compelled to bring again another version of Charlotte Bronteâs book every decade. To be honest, I have never really cared for this tale but, on the other hand, I have to admit that I have never read the book so it might be actually pretty awesome. Still, all in all, I thought it was a decent watch. Indeed, there were some really interesting actors involved (Anna Paquin, Charlotte Gainsbourg, William Hurt) and the directing was fine. However, something that did bother me was the transition from Anna Paquin playing the younger version of Jane Eyre to Charlotte Gainsbourg playing the older version of this character. Indeed, I was actually quite impressed by Paquin who was not even 14 years old at the time and it was her 2nd movie following her debut with âThe Pianoâ. On the other hand, I thought that Gainsbourg played the character completely differently and I actually preferred Paquinâs take as she gave a very fierce and defiant Jane Eyre. Still, in spite of its flaws, I thought it was a decent costume drama and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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A bad movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 10:36
(A review of Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare)I had actually already saw this movie but since it was a while back and since I had it on DVD, I thought I might as well check it out again. Well, at this point, to be honest, I was just glad that this franchise was coming to an end (eventually, they will still make 3 more instalments after this one but they would be all drastically different). To be honest, I really liked âA Nightmare on Elm Streetâ but most of the sequels were just underwhelming. What bother me the most about those sequels was how the makers got lazier and lazier after each instalment and it was just really obvious with this flick. Indeed, for the first time, they didnât even try to connect this movie some way or another with the rest of the franchise (indeed, except of course for Freddy Krueger, not one single character from the previous movies was brought back). In fact, there were a couple of decent ideas like this John Doe who remained unknown throughout the whole thing but even this idea was botched. Indeed, even though he didnât know his name, somehow, he still knew pretty much everything about Freddy Krueger and he seemed to be also really acquainted with the youth from the shelter which didn't make much sense. At least, there was a very small cameo by Johnny Depp (the main reason I watched the damned thing in the first place) but I donât think the whole thing is really worth a look.Â
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 10:28
(A review of My Boss's Daughter)To be honest, I wasnât sure what to expect from this movie but since it was directed by David Zucker, I thought I might as welll give it a try. Seriously, even though the guy had a decent track record, first with his brother Jerry Zucker and Jim Abrahams (they made the massive classic âAirplane!) and then on his own (âThe Naked Gunâ), it seems that this movie was pretty much the beginning of the end for this director. Indeed, I have to admit it, the whole concept actually had some potential and it could have been something but the end-result was just very average. Indeed, the jokes were very lame and the story was not funny/interesting/captivating/entertaining at all. For Tara Reid, this movie would be a turning point and it would be pretty much the last high-profile movie she would make. For David Zucker, the very same year, he would also release the really terrible âScary Movie 3â which would pretty much finish to kill off his career in the process. Eventually, it seems that only Ashton Kutcher manange to remain unharmed from this debacle but, on the other hand, his career has never been really impressive to start with. To conclude, I have seen worse but it was still a terribly underwhelming comedy and I donât think it is worth a look whatsoever.
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 10:18
(A review of Abeltje (1998))Honestly, I wasnât expecting much from this flick but since it was directed by Ben Sombogaart , I was still eager to check it out. On top of that, this movie won the Golden Calf of the best Dutch movie of the year so I thought it should be pretty good. Well, eventually, I was amazed about how underwhelming the whole thing was. Indeed, seriously, this was the best Dutch movie released in 1999?!? Even though I have a weak spot for Dutch movies, it shows that the Dutch movie industry is actually pretty pathetic. On top of that, I'm not a big fan of Dutch children movies in general and this one was just really very average and seriously boring to behold. I donât know, maybe it was loved because it was an adaptation of a book written by Annie M.G. Schmidt, by far the most heralded Dutch children book writter and pretty much a legend in the Netherlands. Some viewers complained that this movie was actually racist with all its cultural stereotypes but, even though the whole thing was indeed pretty awkward, it still remains a rather harmless familly feature so it shouldnât be analysed too much. To conclude, I really didnât like this flick and I donât think it is worth a look, except if you really love the genre.
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A classic
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 09:28
(A review of Romeo and Juliet)Since this movie had a really solid reputation, I was really eager to check it out. Indeed, many consider this movie as being the best adaptation of this Shakespeare classic. It always thought it was rather weird and actually really embarassing that even though I have studied English at college level (I even have a Master), I have actually never read anything written by William Shakespeare. Anyway, I thought that the whole thing was inderdaad quite gorgeous and very well done. Above all, it was really neat that they, for once, used some actors that were about the same age as the characters from the original play. Still, I have to admit that I still had some trouble to really connect with the damned thing. I mean, indeed, it is apparently really faithfull to Shakespeareâs work and while this faithfullness makes it interesting, it makes it also sometimes rather tedious to watch. Basically, it is a matter of taste and even though I respect this illustrious work, I must admit that it is not really my thing. To conclude, even though I wasnât completely blown away, it remains a really solid adaptation and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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An average movie
Posted : 13 years, 10 months ago on 11 March 2011 08:48
(A review of Junebug (2005))Since I kept hearing some really great things about this flick, I was really eager to check it out and I had some rather high expectations. Indeed, according to Roger Ebert, it was apparently one of the best movies released in 2005. In fact, according to him, it was so good that it was even better than âBrokeback mountainâ so the whole thing should be pretty damned amazing. Well, I finally saw the damned thing and, to be honest, I was rather disappointed and I wasn't able to see what was so great about it. I mean, sure, it was not bad at all, the actors delivered some solid performances and I really liked the directing as well. At the end of the day, the biggest issue I had with this flick was that the story was neither really interesting, entertaining or captivating enough. On top of that, this movie was hailed for being Amy Adams' breakthrough performance, earning her first Academy Award Nomination but, to be honest, I thought she pretty much gave her typical hysterical girl act. To conclude, even though I thought it was rather disappointing, I have to admit that it was still a decent watch and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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