Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 10:26
(A review of
The Bridges of Madison County)
I already saw this movie but since it was a while back and since I have it on DVD, I thought I might as well check it again. Following his two great movies āUnforgivenā and āA Perfect Worldā, with his next directing effort, Clint Eastwood displayed again that he was a major director we should all reckon with and he displayed that he also could direct basically anything. Indeed, apparently, even romantic features become masterpieces with him. It is something I always enjoyed with Eastwood as a director, his versatility and, if you give it a close look, you will notice that he has done movies in almost every single genre you could think of. This time around, it was basically a rather simple love story but the way it was told was so striking and pure at the same time, it was quite mind-blowing to behold. Of course, to have those two acting giants, Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood, playing this couple was also a masterstroke and they were both great in this. Indeed, together, they created a very touching and believable couple and one of the best romantic tales I have ever seen. With this feature, Clint Eastwood showed that he was actually one of the most sensitive directors out there and his understated directing style never worked better than here. Anyway, to conclude, I really loved this flick, it is one of the best romances I have seen and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 10:17
(A review of
Leaving Las Vegas)
To be honest, it has been a while since I have seen this flick and I should definitely re-watch it at some point. Anyway, like anyone else, I have noticed that the critics against Nicolas Cage have been drastically increasing during the last 10 years and, for a very long time, I was actually defending the guy. However, I have to admit it, the situation concerning his career is nowadays pretty much dramatic as he keeps showing up in some really dubious projects. Still, there was a time when he was a really inspired and inspiring actor and he even managed to win an Academy award for his work in this great movie. Ā Indeed, you can say whatever you want about the guy but, he gave here a great performance, easily one of the best in his career. Concerning Elisabeth Shue, she was praised and she also pretty much gave the best performance of her career but, to be honest, she probably looked too good to be a believable prostitute but that was a minor issue. Anyway, even though I have seen many movies dealing with drugs and junkies, I havenāt see so many movies dealing with alcoholism but this film gave a really dark and unforgettable view on this affliction. To conclude, it was a really heartbreaking and depressing story and I think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you finally want to see a good movie starring Nicolas Cage.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 10:09
(A review of
12 Monkeys (1995))
This movie is probably Terry Gilliam's most successful feature, at least financially speaking. Fortunately, it happens to be a really good movie as well. If I remember it correctly, I saw it twice when it came out and I thought the whole thing was just spellbinding. Like most of the movies dealing with time travel, many things didn't make much sense but Gilliam didn't even try to rationalize what was going on whereas lesser movies would spend a terrible amount of time trying to convince you that the whole thing is actually making any sense. Since then, I have also seen 'La JetĆ©e', the short movie which has inspired this flick and together, they are some awesome companion pieces. It is also a proof that a remake can be really interesting when treated properly, even though Iām not sure if this movie should be called a remake, it is actually much too reducing. So, the directing was pretty impressive but the acting was really good too. Indeed, Brad Pitt and Bruce Willis both show that they have some range delivering some of their best performances. To conclude, I think it is a fascinating story, my favorite movie directed by Terry Gilliam, and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Gilliam's work.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 09:56
(A review of
Smoke (1995))
I remember it very well, I saw this movie when it was released and, actually, it would be pretty neat to re-watch it again after all these years. Anyway, back in the 90's, Harvey Keitel made a major come-back, mostly thanks to āReservoir Dogsā, and he was one the most interesting actors around. Unfortunately, in the 2000's, he went back to minor movies... Anyway, in this movie, Keitel, like the rest of the cast, was really good. This movie was also the very first time that I saw William Hurt and the guy really impressed me. What I didnāt know then, is that Hurt was actually one of the most heralded actors of the 80ās, a status he lost at the beginning of the 90ās but never managed to get back. After watching this movie, I have been following his work ever since and I think the guy is actually really underrated nowadays. Coming back to our main feature, the directing was very good and the story was quite fascinating. Indeed, at the time, Paul Auster was one of the most acclaimed writers in the world and it was just amazing to see his spellbinding way to tell a story in a movie like this one. To conclude, even though it is pretty much forgotten nowadays, I think it is a really good movie and it is definitely worth a look.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 09:46
(A review of
Casino)
I remember very well, I saw this one when it came out. I was about 15-16 years old back then and I thought it was pretty good but it didn't really blow me away. However, I rewatched it again 15 years later and, this time, it really hit me. Indeed, this time, I thought it was really awesome. I guess the only flaw it has is that he came out after 'The Godfather' and, above all, 'Goodfellas'. Indeed, I guess many people dismiss it as yet another gangster flick directed by Scorsese, starring again Robert de Niro and Joe Pesci. Actually, it is something rather different. First of all, this time around, De Niro has the lead and delivers an impressive performance, as usual. I was also impressed by Sharon Stone who a gave also solid performance but, unfortunately, it is probably the only movie she made during her whole career that I really appreciated (ok, 'Total Recall' was really awesome but she just had a small part). What a shame that Scorsese and De Niro don't make anymore movies together... Anyway, there is here some great directing, great acting and a fascinating story. To conclude, I think it is a great flick, one of the most underated ones directed by Scorsese and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 09:05
(A review of
Deception)
I wasnāt really sure what to expect from this flick but since there was a nice cast involved, I thought I might as well check it out. Eventually, even though the whole thing had some potential, it turned out to be a seriously disappointing thriller. I mean, I did like the directing, there was a really nice nĆ©o-noir mood and the cast was impressive (Ewan McGregor, Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Natasha Henstridge, Charlotte Rampling, Maggie Q) but, unfortunately, the story was rather lame. The plot was just so convoluted and I went on and on and on.... Ā I just hate it when a movie ends with 3 different twists ! It's a real shame considering the cast and I really liked the tone of the movie but the story was so average and disappointing. The whole concept about this sex club was actually really neat but it was ruining by everything else, by the fact that the main character would fall in love in one of this women but, above all, by this con which was just so underwhelming and far-fetched. To conclude, even though it really had some potential, at the end of the day, it was just an average thriller and it is not really worth a look.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 2 February 2011 08:07
(A review of
Death Race)
To be honest, I wasnāt really expecting much from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Jason Statham, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, eventually, I wasn't really sure what to make out of this movie. First of all, I have to confess that I havenāt seen the original version starring starring David Carradine, Sylvester Stallone but maybe it was a blessing as it allowed me to enjoy more this remake. Anyway, on one hand, the whole thing was completely preposterous and rather stupid but, on the other hand, I thought it was rather well done and you probably shouldnāt take the whole thing too seriously. Concerning Jason Statham, I didnāt have yet an overdose of seeing him constantly playing the same character over and over again and I thought he was pretty cool in this flick. Concerning Natalie Martinez, sure, she didnāt need to deliver a strong performance but she certainly looked gorgeous and I was always surprised that she didnāt become more famous after showing up in this movie (since then, I saw her only in ā[Link removed - login to see]ā which isnāt much considering that she made this movie almost 10 years ago). Anyway, to conclude, even though it was nothing really amazing, I have to admit that it turned out to be a decent watch and I think it is actually worth a look, especially if you like the genre. Ā
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 1 February 2011 03:25
(A review of
Michael Collins)
It has been a while since I have seen this flick and maybe I should check it out again at some point. To be honest, I have to confess that I didnāt even know who was Michael Collins before watching this movie and I was mostly eager to check it out because it was directed by Neil Jordan and starring Liam Neeson. Anyway, I thought that Neil Jordan delivered a very interesting movie here with a great performance by Liam Neeson. Sure, Iām happy for the guy that he has developed a new fan base with his action flicks but I think those movies are actually a waste of his dramatic talent. As I mentioned before, I was completely unaware of this historical figure before watching this flick so I'm not sure if the story was really accurate but I thought it was a captivating page of history. You could argue that the whole thing was really straightforward but it didnāt bother me at all. To conclude, even though it might not have been a real masterpiece, I thought it was a rather spellbinding biopic and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre or if you are interested by the subject.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 1 February 2011 03:15
(A review of
Fly Away Home)
Honestly, Iām not sure how I ended up watching this movie in the first place but it was eventually a very nice surprise. Indeed, in my opinion, most of the children movies are actually rather worthless and a big waste of time, even for the kids. Still, from time to time, there are some exceptions and this movie is one of them. The funny thing is that the plot shouldnāt have been appealing, as it really sounded like some many underwhelming family features involving animals. Of course, it sounds rather ridiculous to let go a young girl flying with some geese but, somehow, this one worked (it might even be the best in this genre) and I really cared about the characters and what they were going through. Somehow, the directing was above the movies in this genre and they managed to avoid making it too mushy. Furthermore, Jeff Daniels (a really versatile and underrated actor) and Anna Paquin delivered some solid performances. As a side note, 10 years later, Anna Paquin and Jeff Daniels would become lover in āThe Squid and The Whaleā which is pretty awkward since they played father and daughter in this movie. To conclude, it is a very good movie and it is definitely worth a look, as much for the kids and the grown-ups.
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Posted : 13 years, 11 months ago on 1 February 2011 03:11
(A review of
The English Patient (1996))
I already saw this movie but since it was a while back and since I had it on DVD, I was quite eager to check it out again. To be honest, when I first heard of this movie, I thought it would be a terribly cheesy romantic feature. On top of that, it seemed to be another shameless attempt from the Weinstein brothers to sweep the Oscars, an attempt which was this time successful since it managed to win 9 Academy Awards including the Best Picture. So, with this in mind, I had my doubts at first but, eventually, I have to admit it, I really loved the damned thing. Basically,Ā it is one of the very best romantic features I have ever seen. Indeed, the directing was just really strong and it is one of the few movies I have seen in which the back-and-forth in time actually worked and really enhanced the whole story. Furthermore, all the actors involved were perfectly cast and they gave some of the best performances in their respective careers, especially Ralph Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas and Juliette Binoche. There were still a couple of weak scenes which were just too cheesy involving Juliette Binoche and Naveen Andrews but these were some really minor flaws. Anyway, to conclude, even though this movie seems to be overlooked nowadays, it is actually a really strong romantic drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.
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