Reviews by johanlefourbe

Back in the 90's, I was a huge fan of Abel Ferrara so I was really eager to check this movie out. Unfortunately, Ferrara doesn't really make very good movies anymore... But this one is definitely worth a look! First of all, there was an impressive cast (Christoher Walken, Benicio del Toro, Chris Penn, Annabella Sciorra, Isabella Rossellini, Vincent Gallo, Gretchen Mol) and the directing was rather amazing. For once with this director, the story was actually rather accessible and, in the 2000's, his movies would become increasingly murky and obscure and barely watchable. His next project would be 'The Blackout' which did get some buzz because it was involving Claudia Schiffer and Béatrice Dalle. Well, in spite of the fact that Dalle did a lot of coke, got caught by the police and is now as a result banned for ever from the USA, nothing really interesting happened with this movie and it was in fact really weak and boring. Instead, I would suggest to watch this dark crime story which was may be more straightforward but it was much more rewarding to watch, I'll guarantee you that. To conclude, I really loved this movie and you should definitely check this one out, especially if you are interested in Abel Ferrara 's work.

Back in the 90's, Val Kilmer was a respected actor but not so much anymore but I still have a weak spot for him. I have noticed that this flick is nowadays pretty much forgotten but I thought it was actually pretty good and it displays easily one of Val Kilmer's best performances (to be honest, it has been a while since I have seen it so it might need a re-watch). In my opinion, this movie provided a very interesting mix of a realistic and gripping police story with some indian mysticism and, as a result, I thought that the story was really fascinating (In fact, it was loosely based on some similar events take took place in 70’s). You also get an interesting glimpse on what it could be to live in an Indian reservation and the outlook was not really positive. At the end of the day, the plot was rather straightforward but Michael Apted managed to create some interesting characters living in a believable world and therefore the whole thing was very intruiguing to behold. To conclude, I really liked this movie a lot, it had a lot of impact when I saw it at very young age, I believe it is an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look.

I don't know why exactly but I really wanted to see this flick already for a while. As a matter of fact, I'm usually not really a big fan of true stories but this one was based on a fascinating story. I don’t know, maybe it has to do with the fact that, while I was a kid, I used to watch ‘Hogan’s heroes’ and it was just really weird and kind of mesmerizing to see the life of this actor who turned out to be a major sex-addict in real life. Furthermore, I always had a weak spot for Greg Kinnear and he delivered a really impressive performance in this flick. The always dependable Willem Dafoe was, as usual, very good and they made up a very intriguing duo. Maybe I’m just another pervert but It think it was a very interesting study on sexual addiction and how destructive it can be. Eventually, this movie didn’t get much love (except for good Old Roger Ebert who also loved it like I did) but I think it’s a shame and it certainly deserves more credit. Anyway, to conclude, in my opinion, this movie is an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look.

Even though it has been a while since Kevin Spacey has done anything really mind-blowing, I always had a weak spot for this actor and he was above all the reason why I ended up watching this obscure flick with a rather weird title. Indeed, in the 90's, Spacey was considered one of the best actors around and I definitely agree with this statement. This movie which must be one of the most obscure he has made was actually released the same year as ‘American Beauty’, arguably his finest work. Anyway, despite this rather lame title, I thought it was actually rather fascinating and Spacey gave, once again, an amazing performance. In my opinion, this movie is basically the proof that you can make a spellbinding feature about almost any subject. Indeed, it is basically a movie taking place solely in one hotel room and it involves 3 salesmen. That’s it, no impressive special effects, no huge action set-pieces and no metaphysical life-changing story and, yet, the whole thing was quite spellbinding to behold. The point is that it deals with some flawed and 3 dimensional characters and it is such a rare thing nowadays to find some really interesting characters. Anyway, it is an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Kevin Spacey’s work.

I have noticed that this movie never got much love and it is pretty much forgotten nowadays but I think it is actually quite a shame. To be honest, it has been a while since I have seen it (in fact, I’m pretty sure I saw it in the movie theater when it was released) but I should definitely check it out again when I have the opportunity. Anyway, in my opinion, I think it is in fact one of the best serial killer movies ever made. Personally, I always had some mixed feelings about the genre because most of them, even the classics like ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ or ‘Seven’, are seriously over-the-tope and, therefore, I always find difficult to really connect with those movies. This movie was however an exception. Of course, it was based on a true story but, above all, I thought it was very realistic. It has been a while that Spike Lee released a very interesting movie but he is actually a very good director and, this time, and he knew exactly what is doing with this flick. To conclude, I think it is an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

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, even though I tend to be rather critical towards thrillers, I have to admit that I really loved this movie. I mean, sure, it is probably not one of the best movies in this genre but, in my opinion, it is actually pretty much flawless. Indeed, how the tension was built up, how the main character was completely powerless and sees his life going down the drain... In fact, I have never though of it before but the plot is actually pretty similar to ‘The Fugitive’. Indeed, you have Harrison Ford was once again framed for the murder of a woman and he has to manage somehow to prove his innocence. Pretty much like with ‘The Fugitive’, I have to admit that the climax was not perfect but, for once, it didn’t really bother me and the whole thing was more about building up the tension and the mesmerizing mood. Furthermore, Harrison Ford who was at the top of his game at the time was just perfect in this part. To conclude, it is a rather forgotten gem but I think it is definitely worth a look.

Since I'm a huge fan of Harrison Ford, I definitely had to watch this movie at some point. It was the second time in a row that Ford worked with Peter Weir. Indeed, just a year before, they released ' Witness' which was critically lauded and a box-office success. This flick didn't become such a big hit, it has even become one of the more obscure movies starring Harrison Ford and there is actually a lot of discussion around this flick. Some think it's really bad (Roger Ebert for example), some other think it is really good. Personally, I'm part of the second group and I think it is one of the best perfomances by Harrison Ford. Indeed, this time, he portrays a really messed up guy, in my opinion, one of the most balanced characters he has ever portrayed, and I thought it was quite fascinating to watch. This guy is, at the same time, really intelligent but he can be also a really a-hole especially when you see how he treats his family. Personally, I have always been fascinated by such deeply flawed characters but, I guess, many viewers found him really despicable (which I can understand) and therefore didn't care for the movie itself. To conclude, in my opinion, it is a rather forgotten and underrated gem but I think it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are interested in Harrison Ford's work.

Honestly, it has been a while since I have seen this movie but I really loved it at the time and I think it has been terribly overlooked through the years (pretty much like ‘The Matador’, another brilliant movie starring Brosnan which is really underrated in my opinion). Indeed, Pierce Brosnan obviously became very famous thanks to James Bond but if you wonder if he is able to actually act, you should definitely check this movie. Indeed, even though Brosnan was once again playing a spy, it was definitely a different kind of spy this time and the end-result was quite spellbinding to behold. Geoffrey Rush, another dependable actor, was also really good and, together, they made for a great sleazy and murky duo. To top the cast, you had Jamie Lee Curtis to play the femme fatale between those 2 guys and she was much more interesting than the usual bimbos that you might get instead. Eventually, I thought it was a fascinating story with some very good directing, in fact I even think it might be John Boorman’s best movie and it was even better than ‘Point Blank’, ‘Deliverance’ or ‘Excalibur’. To conclude, I think it is really an underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

As you may have noticed, I tend to be really critical concerning thrillers in general. Indeed, even though many are entertaining, the modern thrillers tend to really get on my nerves with their ridiculous plots and annoying twists. However, there are a few exceptions and this movie is definitely one of them. Indeed, I saw this flick something like 20 years ago and, back then, I was really blown away by the whole thing. It is rather surprising because there is actually a completely over-the-top story and a preposterous twist (the very things I usually despise in your typical thriller) but, somehow, this time, I found it completely captivating and it used to be actually one of my favorite movies. Back then, I had never seen a thriller with such unbelievable twits and it really blew me away. Imagine if Hitchcok made a movie in the 90's, it might have looked like this one... Back then, the Italian actress Greta Scacchi was a hot item in Hollywood and was just mesmerizing in this flick. Tom Berenger was also at the pick of his career and did a pretty good job too. The whole thing was also directed by Wolfgang Petersen which never made a similar flick before or after in his career. To conclude, in my opinion, it is a forgotten and underrated gem and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.