Reviews by johanlefourbe

It is a rather obscure flick so I wasn’t really sure what to expect from it but since there was a really solid cast, I was really eager to check it out. Indeed, I think that both Mark Ruffalo and Joaquin Phoenix are some of the most interesting actors at work nowadays and the fact they were both involved in this feature made me really curious about the damned thing. On top of that, the rest of the cast was also quite interesting (Jennifer Connelly, Mira Sorvino, Elle Fanning).  Eventually,  all the actors delivered some solid performance and the directing was efficient but, unfortunately, the story was decent enough but nothing really amazing, I’m afraid. The point is that the characters and their emotions felt really genuine, especially thanks to the actors involved but the whole thing never really managed to convince me that it was such a  fascinating tale. Basically, at the end of the days, sure, it was a tragic tale, absolutely, but I don’t know, it felt too generic and pedestrian to really impress me. Anyway, all in all, I thought I was a decent drama and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

It is a rather obscure flick so I wasn’t really sure what to expect from it but since I have a weak spot for Robin Williams , I thought I might as well check it out. Well, eventually, I must admit that I was at first really surprised by the damned thing. Indeed, for most of the movie, I thought it was actually quite spellbinding to behold. Indeed, the performances were really good, especially from Robin Williams who gave here one of his best performances and the story was really impressive (It was in fact based on some true events, apparently). Unfortunately, I thought that this interesting material was rather poorly handled,  the whole thing felt terribly gimmicky and I personally think that the twist didn't work out at all. Indeed, during the beginning of the movie, Pete Logand was played by Rory Culkin but, suddenly, you realize that the boy never existed and was invented by Toni Collette’s character. Sure, you can argue that you actually get to see who Robin Williams was thinking to have on the other line but it just didn’t work for me as this trick was just seriously misguiding in my opinion. Indeed, it’s just too easy to show someone on the screen, then remove him completely and finally claim that the whole thing was so clever in fooling the viewer when, in fact, it was just really weak and lazy. It's too bad because it really had some potential but, in spite of these flaws, I still think it is definitely worth a look though.

Nowadays, the raunchy comedies are really popular, they make a lof of money at the box-office and you could say that this movie somehow started this trend. In fact, it was even the highest grossing R rated comedy released so far. Anyway, even though I really loved the concept of 'wedding crashing', I thought that the whole thing was really misguiding. Indeed, even though it was supposed to be about some guy crashing some weddings, in fact, they really spent maybe 15 minutes actually doing that and the rest of the movie was just some average and rather predictable romantic comedy. It’s just too bad because those first 15 minutes were just awesome. Indeed, Vince Vaughn (who used to be really funny back in those days) and Owen Wilson were pitch perfect and they were quite hilarious. Unfortunately, from the moment those guys get hooked up with Rachel McAdams and Isla Fisher, it all goes down from here and, instead of a wild raunchy comedy as it was sold, it became something entirely different and rather disappointing. To conclude, even though the whole thing really some some potential and could have been really awesome, it was still fairly entertaining and I guess it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Basically, there was a time when I would go to a video game shop (which is now closed) and I would buy there on a regular basis 5 DVDs for 5 euros and, sometimes, since I would be missing 1 DVD, I would pick up pretty much anything at random just to reach 5 movies. Anyway, following this amazing process, I ended up watching some rather obscure movies and this one was definitely one of them. Anyway, even though I had no idea what to expect from this flick, since I have a weak spot for Elijah Wood, I thought I might as well check it out. Indeed, I have noticed that ever since 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy (which was amazing and a deserved success), I haven't seen much of Elijah Wood and it was really nice to see him again. I have to admit that it was also quite refreshing to see Chris Klein finally trying something else than his usual underwhelming comedies. Still, even though it was a decent watch, the end result was rather mixed. Basically. the story was not bad but it was not really amazing and the directing was rather weak as well. To conclude, I think it really had some potential but, in spite of its flaws, I still think it is worth a look. 

[Link removed - login to see][Link removed - login to see]3 years after ‘Highlander II: The Quickening’ which was a massive critical failure and is still considered as one of the worst sequels ever made even 25 years later, they decided to give it a another try with this franchise. Well, obviously, it wasn’t really good, I’m afraid and, to enjoy this, it all depends where you stand concerning the Highlander legacy. Indeed, if you are a fan, it is pretty much a must see but , otherwise, it will probably bore you to death. Basically, the whole idea was to move forward with this mythology, completely ignoring ‘Highlander II: The Quickening’. The funny thing is that, even though it was supposed to be an improvement on the previous installment, it didn’t really work after all. Indeed, it was still pretty much a flop and the ratings for this movie were pretty much just as underwhelming as the previous installment. 6 years later, they would come up with another sequel this time starring both Christopher Lambert as Connor MacLeod and Adrian Paul as Duncan MacLeod which all sounded pretty cool but it was yet all rather disappointing again. Anyway, to conclude, this installment might have been an improvement on the second one but it was still a rather lame movie and I’m sure I can recommend it.

Even though it is a rather obscure feature, since I always had a weak spot for Michael Cimino’s work, I was quite eager to check it out. Obviously, ever since  the massive debacle with ‘Heaven's Gate’,  Cimino always had a rather abysmal reputation but I still think he is a very interesting director so I always wanted to see this movie. Eventually, I have to admit that it was nothing really amazing but, in my opinion, the directing was solid and there were some beautiful shots at the beginning. Above all,  it was really neat to see Anthony Hopkins just a year before he became famous with ‘The Silence of Lambs’ and Mickey Rourke when he still looked decent and I thought that they gave some very good performances. Unfortunately the story just didn’t work very well. Indeed, it was at first intriguing but, pretty soon, it became a huge mess and, as a result, the whole thing was eventually rather disappointing. To conclude, it’s too bad because the whole thing had some potential but, in spite of its flaws, I still think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in the actors involved or in this director. 

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it has a solid reputation, I was quite eager to check it out. After watching the damned thing, to be honest, since it is such a 80's classic, I was actually expecting something more from this movie. I guess I'm not a big fan of those 80's classic comedies. Indeed, I wasn’t already a huge fan of ‘Animal House’ but it was at least better than this flick. I mean, sure,  it was sometimes amusing, I’ll give you that, but most of the time I thought it was just lame and boring. Eventually, 20 years later, somehow, the nerds became some possible lead characters, thanks above all to all the successful R rated comedies delivered by Judd Apatow and it was something that this movie and its sequels never actually managed to achieve. Indeed, in spite of its catchy title, this movie actually failed to make the nerds look and sound cool. Anyway, to conclude, I didn’t like it much and I don’t think it is really worth a look  but if you are a fan of this genre, you might end up enjoying it more than I did.

Al Pacino is (or at least was) a great actor, it has always been a treat to see him in anything and he was the main reason why I wanted to watch this flick. The rest of the cast (Alicia Witt, Leelee Sobieski, Amy Brenneman, Deborah Kara Unger) was also pretty interesting so, all in all, I thought it was a decent watch but I have to admit that the story was nothing special and it was even rather preposterous in fact, especially towards the end. To be honest, the more I think about it, the more I believe that, if I would re-watch this flick nowadays, I’m pretty sure I would actually lower my rating. Indeed, the whole thing was nothing really amazing and I think I have been terribly generous the first time around. Anyway, a year later, Al Pacino will make another movie with director Jon Avnet but, this time, it would be also starring Robert De Niro so, there was a really cool buzz before its release but, eventually, it turned out to be rather underwhelming as well. To conclude, even though it was a rather weak effort for Al Pacino, I thought it was fairly entertaining but you shouldn’t expect anything really amazing before watching it.