All Is Lost - To be discovered - 9*/10

All Is Lost is a bold movie. Just a few words, one actor and a lot of salt water. Great visuals, solid score, and good acting.

To be discovered if you're ready to see something simple.
9*/10

A Good Old Fashioned Orgy - Funny and well made - 7*/10

A Good Old Fashioned Orgy is not perfect, but it's funny with a well built scenario and no plot gimmick, even if at some point you'd think they're going to use a well worn one. It's easy to enjoy, the humor is a bit juvenile, but nothing exaggerated.

Sit back, relax and enjoy.
7*/10

The Beaver - A stark mix of silly notions and deep drama - 7*/10

The Beaver is not for everyone. It's a bleak vision of depression and family life. It has some silliness and a few laughs in it, but it doesn't last and some of the events are even pretty dark. A few scenes are darn touching, though.

Don't watch it for levity and you'll be fine.
7*/10

The Counselor - To discover and savor - 9*/10

The Counselor is like a puzzle where the pieces are intriguing and some are beautifully well crafted. You can appreciate each part and wonder where they will take you, but the big picture takes a while to be revealed and the beauty of it is not complete until the end. Great acting, especially on the part of Cameron Diaz and Javier Bardem, as well as, to a lesser extent, Brad Pitt and Penélope Cruz.

A must see if you're not a faint of heart or a sensible soul.
9*/10

Thanks for Sharing - Fun and drama rolled into one - 8*/10

Thanks for Sharing is one of those movie who brilliantly meshes together a few good laughs and some drama in a whole lot of very human situations. It's a bit raw at time, and I could have done without even the tiny bits of praying, but it's excellent as a whole. Very touching.

The cast is full of stars: Mark Ruffalo, Tim Robbins, Gwyneth Paltrow and Pink.

A must see, for everyone.
8*/10

Don Jon - Much better quality than it looks like - 9*/10

Don Jon is not at all what the previews would make it. Joseph Gordon-Levitt surpassed himself not only as an actor, but by adding to his belt writer and director with such punch. Scarlett Johansson is just incredible in her role. She completely pulls off a powerful character. The rest of cast, including Julianne Moore and Tony Danza is almost as stellar.

The story is definitively offbeat, nothing like it out there for sure, but that's partly why it's so captivating. The scenario is well paced, interesting and full of details.

A must see. Just don't take the characters too seriously.
9*/10

The Fifth Estate - It gives you an idea - 6*/10

The Fifth Estate is to be viewed with a large grain of salt as any real life retelling movie. Its biggest flaw is that it tries to be really edgy, but only achieves annoyance. The camera moves/shots are weak and the editing too tight. It does instill some nice tension, but that's more due to acting and a nice scenario than anything else.

If you want to learn a bit of interesting history without having to do the work.
6*/10

Colombiana - Great action, poor story - 5*/10

Colombiana really starts badly, with poor acting. The story itself is worthless, with few good actors, Zoe Saldana being one of the rare saving graces. The action, though, is impeccable and impressive with clockwork clarity and execution.

If you want to see solid action with a killer leading lady.
5*/10

Flight - Better than I thought - 7*/10

Flight starts solidly, and trails off. It lacks a bit of depth in the sentimental areas, probably because you can't really feel the characters very well. However, the story is interesting and offers some nice final twists.

7*/10

Enough Said - A different kind of romance - 7*/10

Enough Said will catch your attention with its quirks. Slowly, it will draw you in with the unusual tidbits it throws in its scenario. It might not be a revolution in the genre, but its fresh enough and good enough to be worth watching.

For those looking for a different kind of romance.
7*/10

Captain Phillips - Very good for its genre - 8*/10

Captain Phillips is a very good hostage movie. Excellent tension. Not your run-of-the-mill predictable scenario. Tom Hanks is perfect in the last scene. Barkhad Abdi is close to magnificent as the captain of the bad guys. Scary. I didn't think they'd make such a good film out of this story.

If you like flicks that are all about the mood, psychological nightmare, if you're a fan of Hanks, then this is for you.
8*/10

Machete Kills - Toned down, less funny - 4*/10

Machete Kills really fails to keep the original idea alive. First off, the images are clean and modern, instead of the scratched effects used to simulate old b-movies type productions. Second, the story seems to take itself seriously at time. Third, we actually now have an action hero instead of anti-hero. Fourth, sex is much softer. It all ads up to a big disappointment.

Not worth seeing unless you're a really big fan of Robert Rodriguez or Machete.
4*/10

LOL - Watchable is its best quality - 5*/10

LOL has very little content. The best moment of the movie wasn't even capitalized on. It's watchable, but not much more than that.

Just barely entertaining.
5*/10

Eat Pray Love - It could have been much more - 7*/10

Eat Pray Love falls short of what it could have achieved. You know what you're supposed to take from this movie, the cinematic is great, the photography quite powerful, but it cuts corner everywhere else and takes the easy paths in the story.

For the romantics.
7*/10

Machete - Great style and violent action - 6*/10

Machete by Robert Rodriguez rides the edge between parody of and homage to B/exploitation movies. Only by laughing a bit about them can you truly praise them, because what people loved about them was the fact that they didn't necessarily try to make perfect films, but really wanted to entertain us by appealing to our baser interests.

For those who love B/exploitation flicks or the style of Robert Rodriguez.
6*/10

Ghost in the Shell - A solid intro to the menga world - 8*/10

Ghost in the Shell is a relatively old manga, but still very watchable. It has a captivating score and a strong intrigue. The story explore the definition of self, consciousness and life through AI, at least a future version of it, at the time of singularity.

For sci-fi enthusiasts who wish to explore manga.
8*/10

Gravity - Simple, short, yet perfect - 10*/10

Gravity is a very simple movie, but the ambience, the sound, the images, and the attention to details puts you right in the story. The photography is astounding. The score brilliant and chilling. I didn't think they could really make a full film on the subject. They proved me wrong. It's a tight, gripping suspense with lots of action. The 3D is simple, almost invisible, and well done, even if it's probably not needed.

A must see for everyone. See it in IMAX, it's really worth it.
10*/10

The American - Slow but strong - 8*/10

The American starts weakly, you just don't feel the character or the setup. However, the strength of this movie lies in its mood. The photography is beautiful, the setting simple and real, with a nice slow score. I loved the sex scene. It felt powerful, and was really erotic, short, to the point, nothing over done.

If you want to see something good, moody, slow.
8*/10

The Next Three Days - Good tension and good entertainment - 7*/10

The Next Three Days is a good variation on the theme, a mix of escape and revenge flick, with a number of realistic situations and reactions. No ordinary guy turning into a super hero or ex-assassin-super-spy. Its biggest attraction is the tension that the scenario builds, it will get you to the edge of your seat and keep you there.

For those who like escape or righteous movies.
7*/10

Crazy, Stupid, Love. - Refreshing story with nice twists - 7*/10

Crazy, Stupid, Love. starts as a basic falling apart and picking yourself up romantic flick. However, there's a number of elements that slightly add to the story at the beginning, and which spin the scenario in a different direction about midway through. You're left with something fresh and interesting that will make you think.

For some laughs, a heart warming story, and a nice entertaining time.
7*/10

It's a Disaster - On the fringe for better laughs - 7*/10

It's a Disaster starts as a standard relationship comedy, but as it progresses, oddities crop up pushing it further and further away from stereotypical character designs and story. It grows on you so slowly that you won't realize it and be totally engrossed by the end, which is just perfect.

For a good time and something different.
7*/10

2 Guns - Not the equal of the actors used - 6*/10

2 Guns is a lot of action, a lot of double cross and surprises. The story, however, doesn't have any depth, and neither do the characters. The result is rather flat, even if we're given two great actors.

For Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg fans, or those in need testosterone enhanced action.
6*/10

Rush - Very solid film, incredible mindset - 9*/10

Rush by Ron Howard starts slow, it takes a little while to get settled in the drivers' mindset, but once you're in... oh my! The races are extremely well filmed, the score is great, the story is very interesting and gets particularly poignant in the second half.

You don't have to be a fan of racing, Hunt or Lauda to really enjoy this.
9*/10


Note: I tried the D-Box system (seat that gives you motion effects) for the first time and it was breaking my concentration most of the time, but for the final races, it was great. I had to go see the film again without motion effects to really appreciate it to its real value. I think that MFX is a bit like 3D, if it's well done, it's a bonus, else it's a distraction. I was so distracted by it that I originally gave the movie a 7. I changed it to a 8, then went to see it again, and rechanged to a well deserved 9.