Reviews by johanlefourbe

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was directed by [Link removed - login to see][Link removed - login to see] and Emeric Pressburger, I was quite eager to check it out. Well, to be honest, I thought it was rather difficult to judge this movie. Indeed, it is not a really visual movie, instead, most of the story is told through the dialogues. Unfortunately, I did see it on the BBC without subtitles and I have to admit that I did struggle to follow everything they were talking about. Anyway, it was one of the last movies Powell and Pressburger made together and, back then, well, they were not at the top of their game anymore, I’m afraid. Still, it was actually well received when it was released and it was even a box-office hit at the time. I mean, from a technical point of view, it was well made and probably historically accurate (if you are into war ships, you will really dig this movie). I also did appreciate the fact that they didn’t add some annoying and unnecessary sub-plots. Still, all the characters involved were rather uncharismatic and I wonder if they couldn’t have found a way to better developed them. Eventually, even if it was probably the most famous naval battle that took place during WWII, I’m not so sure if it was such a fascinating story after all but maybe I would appreciate it more if I see it again with some subtitles this time around. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of it flaws, it was still a decent watch and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre or if you are interested in Powell and Pressburger’s work. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Sandra Bullock and since it was on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it was a decent attempt from Bullock to show up in a dark(er) drama and she did give a solid performance. The story also had some potential and the only thing that really prevented the damned thing from being actually really good was some rather sloppy writing. For example, at some point, the main character went to her childhood house and, somehow, the new resident was actually a fancy lawyer who would help her out which did seem to be really too convenient. The fact that he was married with a black woman wasn't really relevant with the rest of the story and it seemed to be simply an excuse so they could add the great Viola Davis to the cast. I also didn’t care much about the sub-plots involving these 2 vengeful brothers. Obviously, they were added to the mix to add a thriller vibe and above all a climatic cathartic ending but I don’t think it was necessary at all. Furthermore, why did they suddenly switch brothers to proceed with this vendetta? What was the added value? Finally, it was pretty obvious that Ruth probably killed this cop by accident but they kept this information for as long as possible and it turned out that she didn’t kill him after all but it wasn’t a strong choice, narratively speaking. Indeed, it turned the main character into a complete victim but what if she did actually kill this cop? After 20 years spent in prison, wouldn’t she still deserve a 2nd chance and wouldn’t she deserve to be reunited with her little sister? In my opinion, this approach would have been even more interesting. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was still a decent drama though and I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Sandra Bullock’s work. 

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since there was a decent cast involved, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, if it wouldn’t have been for Alec Baldwin, I'm afraid the damned thing would have been borderline unwatchable. Indeed, right from the start, the first 15 mins were just so clunky, it was just rather painful to watch. Sure, I get it, they had to find a way to make these 2 characters meet each other and the community service gimmick was actually not such a bad idea. However, it was probably the most smug, pathetic and generic rich couple I have seen. It also made Demi Moore’s character look so completely stupid. I mean, within 2 mins, it was pretty obvious that McDermott’s character was not only a criminal but, above all, a major douchebag so it was rather bewildering that she would still cling to her marriage. That was also another issue with this movie, the fact that Demi Moore never managed to make her character really interesting or charismatic enough. Seriously, why would Bill Oakland fall for her? What did she have to offer that was so irresistible? At least, Alec Baldwin’s character was not only handsome but he was witty and really smart so it wasn’t surprising that many women would fall for his charms. Eventually, I think Baldwin did deliver a solid performance as he was believable enough as a blind and fairly depressed man. However, he played the only character who was slightly interesting, all the other ones were just barely developed and rather tedious to behold. Anyway, to conclude, I think I was actually rather generous with my rating here, the damned thing was really weak and I don’t think it is really worth a look. 

When I first heard of this movie, I thought the concept did sound really cool and, even if it turned out to be a flop at the box-office, I still wanted to check it out. Indeed, I loved the idea of Jake La Motta facing Rocky Balboa, even if they were both around 70 years old each. And, to my surprise, even though the critics completely dismissed this movie when it was released, I thought it actually was not so bad at all after all. Sure, the story was fairly generic and completely predictable but, in my opinion, these 2 boxers, their rivalry, how they ended up in this spot, all these elements were all fairly well developed and actually really entertaining. Even the minor characters such as the one played by Kim Basinger, Jon Bernthal, Alan Arkin and Kevin Hart worked fine. The only exception would be Frankie Brite played by [Link removed - login to see][Link removed - login to see] who had so very little impact on the story that he could and probably should have been removed. Eventually, the only thing that didn’t really work was the tone. Indeed, they went for some comedy and they even leaned towards parody which was a rather misguided choice. Eventually, it is hardly surprising since it was directed by Peter Segal, a guy with a not really impressive track-record (for example, he was behind 3 Adam Sandler features among other things). In fact, with such a director onboard, it could have been so much worse. Still, even without going for a dark gritty drama, with such intriguing characters, if they would have gone with a slightly more serious approach, it could have been actually pretty good. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it turned out to be actually a decent watch and I think it is actually worth a look, especially if you are eager to see a confrontation between Jake La Motta and Rocky Balboa.

I wasn’t expecting much from this flick but since it was starring Bruce Willis, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, for once, Willis didn’t show up for an awful cheap-ass action flick, this time, he got involved with an awful Chinese propaganda war film but, to be honest, the end-result wasn’t much better, I’m afraid. It’s too bad because the story of what happened in Chongqing during WWII was actually interesting but the whole approach was actually so misguided. Indeed, they gave us so many characters, all seriously underwhelming, and they were all involved in some random tedious sub-plots. At least, Bruce Willis did show up for more scenes than he usually do in his direct-to-VOD work (indeed, even if he is always displayed prominently on all the promotional material, he usually shows up for only a couple of scenes) but his performance was still pretty pathetic though. On the other hand, you might wonder why they did put Adrien Brody on the poster since he had only a couple of scenes. Maybe it had to with the fact that the original cut ran over 5 hours so many storylines were probably drastically shortened in the process (Bingbing Fan for example did end up with only with 9 seconds of screentime with a completely random scene at the beginning of this film). Anyway, the whole thing was pretty much an unwatchable mess. Indeed, it featured some of the least convincing and ugly CGI I have seen in a very long time (I have to admit that the numerous explosions were actually well done and quite horrifying to behold but that was pretty much the only thing working with this movie). Even the editing was borderline amateurish with no proper transition between many scenes. Anyway, to conclude, it was a poorly made and, above all, really boring Chinese propaganda feature and you should probably avoid it. 

I didn’t care much about ‘Ouija’ but since this prequel was directed by Mike Flanagan and since it seemed to have a decent reputation, I was quite eager to check it out. To be honest, I didn’t remember much about ‘Ouija’, except that it was pretty lame. I was in fact pretty sure that there was basically no connection between the two movies. It’s only afterwards that I discovered that it was actually taking place in the same house and some of the characters were even actually returning. Anyway, Flanagan did a fine job here, even if he didn’t focus too much on the Ouija board after all. Indeed, in fact, it could have been easily removed and the whole story would still have worked. Anyway, the mood was neat, the end-result was actually pretty creepy and I have to admit that, even if I wasn’t scared sh*tless, I was definitely pretty spooked though. On top of that, even if the characters were not very developed, the Zanders were charismatic enough and I actually cared about what they were going through. Flanagan also uses very often the same actors with all his movies and miniseries (Elizabeth Reaser, Lulu Wilson, Henry Thomas, Kate Siegel) and they were all fine here. Even Annalise Basso, who wasn’t a Flanagan regular, did deliver a solid performance. Eventually, the only thing that didn’t really work out for me was when they tried to explain what was actually going on (which had eventually nothing to do with the Ouija board) which was rather convoluted and not really interesting. However, it was still rather impressive how much Flanagan managed to achieve with some seemingly hopeless material, especially if you would compare his work to the borderline abysmal previous instalment in this franchise. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was maybe not a homerun, it was still a solid horror feature and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

I already saw this movie but since it was already available on Disney+, I thought I might as well re-watch it. Well, the first time around, with such a promising title, with such a cool director involved, I was pretty excited but, unfortunately, to be honest, the whole thing turned out to be a rather overhyped MCU feature after all. On top that, it was one of those rare blockbusters which could have been slightly longer though. As a result, even worse than the dream introduction which was rather generic, how this monster suddenly showed up a block away from a wedding Strange was attending was narratively pretty weak. Above all, after all, there was not much ‘Multiverse’ and not enough ‘Madness’ for my taste. Indeed, they basically visited only 2 other multiverses and one of them was already on the brink of obliteration. The one they spent most of their time was eventually not explored whatsoever which felt like a missed opportunity but I wish they kept on going in this journey and showed us some really wild places in the process. Eventually, you can only wonder what Scott Derrickson would have done if he would have stayed on board and it’s unfortunate that he wasn’t allowed to turn it into an actual horror film, the reason why he left this project. I thought it was also rather odd that there was basically no link whatsoever with the previous MCU movies, especially with the last Spider-Man instalment. Instead, they linked it with ‘What if…?’ and, above all, with ‘WandaVision’ which means that you basically HAVE to get Disney+, otherwise, good luck to keep track with the continuity in the MCU from now on. At least, I did appreciate that they gave us a villain who didn’t want to obliterate half of our population for once and Doctor Strange is still a pretty cool character. Furthermore, I have to admit that I did appreciate this movie more the 2^nd time around. Anyway, to conclude, even though it could have been so much better, it was still a decent watch though and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you are fan of the MCU.

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since it was directed by Anne Fontaine, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, it turned out to be a decent portrayal of a young boy (and man) struggling with his homosexuality within an intolerant and hostile environment. In fact, the impact was so huge that the poor guy was still pretty much lost, even after finding some kindred spirits. Eventually, it was a good reminder that, even if we are supposedly living a in a ‘modern’ and ‘progressive’ society, many gay kids still fall in a total vacuum with no support whatsoever which must be so heart-breaking and terrifying. Furthermore, Finnegan Oldfield and Jules Porier both gave some solid performances of the same character at different stages of his life. Still, the whole thing did remind me of a Dutch movie I saw recently during which a young woman was reminiscing about her tragic youth and both movies had basically the same issue. Indeed, to make it all more complicated or sophisticated than it actually was, they went for a mixed-up chronology which is such a lazy and overused gimmick. To make things worse, in this case, in the scenes when Marvin was older, the guy didn’t do much, except sulking by himself in some corners. As a result, you might wonder why so many people seem to be interested in him as he did nothing really fascinating. I mean, I have to admit you could sense that there was something boiling inside him which did result in his successful play but, in my opinion, Anne Fontaine never really managed to really translate it to the screen. Anyway, to conclude, even if it was maybe not really ground-breaking, it was still a solid drama and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre or if you are interested in this subject.