mercredi 29 juin 2016

The Neon Demon — Macabre beautiful abstract drama — 9*/10

  • Overall: Few will appreciate the beauty and the art, but that's okay.
  • Known actors: Elle Fanning, Jena Malone, Bella Heathcote and Abbey Lee.
  • Cameos: Keanu Reeves and Christina Hendricks.
  • Style: Part surrealist and abstract, part critique, all drama.
  • Pacing: Very slow.
  • Intro: Excellent mood setter.
  • Story: Pulls at your guts, makes you look sideways and surprises you all along. Deep down, you know it's right.
  • Ending: The kind that's an ending but not an ending. Great.
  • Epilogue: None. The mark of a good movie.
  • Dialogs: Few, realistic and bleak.
  • Characters: Transcendent. Razor-sharp personalities that are bound for drama.
  • Acting: Solid. Harsh. Just. They were all perfect for their role, but I'd like to point out that Reeves was never more right on.
  • Visuals: Pretty astounding, captivating, abstract.
  • Score: Captivating.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt1974419/
  • Who is it for? Those who like abstract or surrealist art film like what David Lynch can do.

I don't know if this is a movie to see in theatre, though. Most seem to go see it thinking it's a horror movie and they laugh at few very inappropriate moments breaking the mood. Also, some leave during the presentation. Still, it's nice to see it on the big screen, the mood is incredible. You be the judge.


mardi 28 juin 2016

Central Intelligence — First, it's going to make you laugh and then it's going to get lost — 5*/10

  • Overall: First part, good. Second part, boring.
  • Known actors: Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart.
  • Cameos: Jason Bateman and Aaron Paul.
  • Style: Silly action comedy with a moral.
  • Intro: Funny, touching and morally positive, but not overly creative and full of stereotypes.
  • Story: The first half is kind of good, because you're setting up the characters and it's fun. The second part is boring because the intrigue and pursuit are weak.
  • Ending: It falls flat.
  • Epilogue: I'm not sure what to make of it and then there's an epilogue to the epilogue. WTF.
  • Dialogs: Simple. Lots of high pitch craziness from Hart.
  • Characters: Love the Stone character. I think they went with: let's try to make maximum ridicule look cool. Hilarious and cool. The rest are not worth mentioning.
  • Acting: Okay, I guess.
  • Visuals: Meh.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt1489889/
  • Who is it for? Limited to Johnson and Hart fans, no one else.


Tanguy — Pour rire d'une situation qui n'en finit plus — 8*/10

Vraiment drôle, de solides dialogues, les personnages sont très bien montés ainsi que rendus par les comédien(ne)s et les différentes options que la situation offre sont pleinement explorées. À voir si vous voulez rigoler.

Attention, le personnage principal vous apportera bien des frustrations.


Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274155/


mardi 21 juin 2016

Maggie's Plan — Quiet funny oddball intellectual female comedy — 8*/10

  • Overall: Quirky, funny, quiet, a bit intellectual and well made. Not for everyone.
  • Known actors: Greta Gerwig, Julianne Moore, Ethan Hawke, Maya Rudolph and Bill Hader.
  • Cameos: Wallace Shawn.
  • Setting: Well-off professionals.
  • Style: Oddball comedy with a very casual tone and somewhat realistic ambitions. About romantic relationship, but not really romantic. Make no mistake, though, this movie is about women, for women, by women, even if it fails the Bechdel Test.
  • Intro: Awkward and a bit flawed. Although it does set the movie right, I think it's a bit much.
  • Story: The main idea is very interesting and the execution by the female characters is great.
  • Ending: Interesting, but not really novel.
  • Epilogue: Could have seriously dropped it, especially after the last dialog. At least they didn't go beyond the last shot which would have been a complete sell out.
  • Dialogs: Witty, quirky.
  • Characters: Greatly built with a sense of caricature that is not too strong. Superb mix of personalities without plunging into archetypes.
  • Acting: Solid. Although I've never been a fan of Gerwig, she's well suited for the role. Moore is surprising, her role is somewhat of a departure from her usual ones.
  • Costumes: The female costumes are right on the dot.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt3471098/
  • Who is it for? Those looking for simple, funny and slightly intellectual.


lundi 20 juin 2016

Finding Dory — Excellent funny adventure that punctures our credulity — 8*/10

  • Overall: Very entertaining, beautiful and well-made. Not as good as the first one with a lot of gimmicks to make the scenario work.
  • Setting: Lots of details. Colorful.
  • Style: Comical adventure with a strong sentimental undertone.
  • Pacing: Rather quick, but not overly so.
  • Intro: Very interesting and touching. It's nice to get a good background story.
  • Story: Full of life and wild escapades. However, it's not as good as the first one (read my review here). Not because it's more of the same since it did innovate somewhat, but rather because the most actions were stretching our credulity. While you could believe in the original that what's happening might be possible, it's not true anymore. That breaks the mold.
  • Ending: A bit over the top.
  • Epilogue: Nice. Stay until the end of the credit for more.
  • Dialogs: Snappy and funny.
  • Characters: Excellent choices. Nicely evolved, well developed and with a few crazy new ones. However, Marlin's persona is a bit weaker in this chapter.
  • Acting: Solid.
  • Known actors: Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy.
  • Cameos: Sigourney Weaver and Bill Hader.
  • Visuals: Beautiful.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt2277860/
  • Who is it for? Anyone, kids and adults. As an adult, better if you've seen the first one.


jeudi 16 juin 2016

Warcraft — A fantasy flick that's much better than could have been hoped for — 7*/10

  • Overall: Lots of solid action, beautiful fantastic world, a number of logical flaws, but nicely entertaining.
  • Setting: An imaginary fantasy universe that requires explaining during the flick which can muddle the understandability.
  • Style: Epic war.
  • Intro: Love the expecting couple.
  • Story: Although it's fairly simple in its broad strokes, it has many very involved details, mainly back story elements. A few very simple love story and no humor at all.
  • Ending: Well done.
  • Epilogue: A bit overlong, because they really wanted to open wide the door for sequels. It could have been much shorter and still convey it all. There was no need to spell it out that clearly.
  • Dialogs: Simple, but with a lot of new concepts coming from that universe that need to be explained which made some dialogs heavier and less intelligible.
  • Characters: Very interesting, if stereotypical and simple for the most part. You can see the video game roots here.
  • Acting: Nice.
  • Known actors: Clancy Brown.
  • Visuals: Gorgeous. Totally unrealistic, but that's part of fantasy.
  • Special Effects: Solid for the most part, although there were a few small but visible mistake.
  • Costumes: They all wear full plates?
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0803096/
  • Who is it for? Those looking for a large fantasy epic story.

I have to admit I have never played Warcraft or WOW, so I have no idea if this flick respect the universe they came from.



mercredi 15 juin 2016

Love & Friendship — 18th-century British comedy with intense dialogs — 8*/10

  • Story: Interesting, very funny, complex, circumvoluted. Lots of details. Extremely well built.
  • Setting: British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century.
  • Style: Pure Jane Austen, comic version.
  • Dialogs: Complex and quick. At first, it's difficult to get used to it, especially since some of them do not enunciate. After a while, you get into the rhythm. It then gets funny and witty, although you still miss some of the quips and underhanded remarks because dialogs are speeding along.
  • Characters: All the character presentation at first is just annoying and distracting. Too fast to remember any of them. Cheap gimmick for those who don't know how to seamlessly integrate character presentations in the scenario. Most of them are very well built and very interesting. Great interaction between them.
  • Acting: Solid.
  • Known actors: Kate Beckinsale, Tom Bennett and Stephen Fry.
  • Visuals: Beautiful.
  • Costumes: Superb.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt3068194/
  • Entertainment value: Solid.
  • Who is it for? Those who love that period or Austen fans.


mardi 14 juin 2016

Now You See Me 2 — Just not the equal of the first one — 6*/10

  • Story: It's a mess of things. Good action and some very nice tricks, but instead of wowing us with a superb show that stand on its own, it's full of annoying details that do not really help the story. The original (read my review here) should have been left alone. This chapter is full of flaws, logical or otherwise, and a bunch of them are cheap sequel gimmicks, most of which are predictable at that.
  • Pacing: Quick, sustained. Very enjoyable.
  • Ending: Just too much and yet not enough.
  • Epilogue: Where the big reveal is and where it gets boring.
  • Dialogs: Nice, but peppered with stupid stuff.
  • Characters: The twin brother, seriously? Need I say more?
  • Acting: Solid for the most part.
  • Known actors: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Lizzy Caplan, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and Daniel Radcliffe.
  • Visuals: Very nice.
  • Special Effects: Great.
  • Music: Great.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt3110958/
  • Entertainment value: Not bad.
  • Who is it for? Not those who love the first one like me, but only those who can't help wanting to satisfy their curiosity, like me.


jeudi 9 juin 2016

Me Before You — A great romantic flick — 8*/10

  • Story: Sweet, touching, inspiring, interesting, captivating, funny, quirky. When it comes to romance, it has it all, even a touch of realism, if a very small one, within that almost fairy tale.
  • Setting: Rich. Very rich.
  • Ending: Solid, if you don't take into consideration the epilogue.
  • Epilogue: Superfluous. Had to give the average viewer something sweet.
  • Dialogs: Witty, interesting.
  • Characters: Well built and nicely felt, if somewhat simple.
  • Acting: Solid.
  • Known actors: Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin and Charles Dance.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt2674426/
  • Entertainment value: Very good.
  • Who is it for? Those looking for a romance with a few tears.


Into the Forest — A very different and personal look at the end of civilization — 9*/10

  • Story: Captivating. Realistic emotional reactions and sequence of events. Sweet, with bits of intense drama that do not overwhelm the film. Several unusual turns. Always presenting differently what we see commonly.
  • Setting: A tiny bit into the future. Not your average family.
  • Style: It doesn't get stuck on any event or little things, it's about exploring a different way of experiencing that scenario.
  • Pacing: Excellent mood building. Long term progression.
  • Ending: Perfect. Just perfect.
  • Epilogue: None. Not trying to buy into the masses.
  • Dialogs: Great.
  • Characters: Sound and extremely well developed. Great depth and some complexity.
  • Acting: Amazing.
  • Known actors: Ellen Page and Evan Rachel Wood.
  • Visuals: Beautiful, breathtaking at times.
  • Sound: Great soundscape.
  • Synopsis & information:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2625810/
  • Entertainment value: Great, if you like movies about the mood.
  • Who is it for? A must see, but not a crowd pleaser.


mardi 7 juin 2016

Casse-tête chinois — Suite intéressante et très divertissante — 7*/10

La suite de L'auberge espagnole (lisez ma critique ici) emprunte le même ton que l'original, mais avec une dimension un peu plus mature, ce qui est tout à fait approprié. J'ai préféré le premier chapitre, plus d'énergie, de meilleures idées. Cela dit, ce film demeure très divertissant.

Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt1937118/


lundi 6 juin 2016

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping — A parody that's totally silly — 7*/10

  • Story: A crazy caricature of pop music stardom. It's funny and it doesn't take itself seriously at all. 
  • Style: Goofy, silly, juvenile and way out there parody, in the unsubtle style of Lonely Island which derives from the good old SNL style.
  • Characters: Shallow and hilarious.
  • Acting: Solid in its own style.
  • Known actors: Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, Akiva Schaffer, Sarah Silverman, Tim Meadows.
  • Cameos:  Justin Timberlake, Maya Rudolph, Joan Cusack, Imogen Poots, Martin Sheen, Jimmy Fallon, Bill Hader, Will Forte, 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Kevin Nealon, Snoop Dogg, Michael Bolton, Ringo Starr, 50 Cent and Mariah Carey.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt3960412/
  • Entertainment value: Good, much more if you like the style.
  • Who is it for? Those looking for something really silly as well as Samberg or Loney Island fans.


jeudi 2 juin 2016

Alice Through the Looking Glass — A worthy sequel — 8*/10

  • Story: The beginning is quite jarring if you haven't just watched the first chapter, but then going through all the important events is pretty interesting. There's only one big flaw and it is very disturbing, but fortunately passes quickly.
  • Style: Tim Burton's vision is well preserved, but it doesn't have his full flair. A producer is not a director.
  • Ending: A bit weak, especially compared to the rest.
  • Dialogs: Love how they stuck closely to the characters styles.
  • Characters: The addition of Time is well thought out.
  • Acting: Pretty good.
  • Known actors: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Sacha Baron Cohen, Rhys Ifans and Lindsay Duncan.
  • Cameos: Alan Rickman, Michael Sheen and Timothy Spall.
  • Visuals: Extremely beautiful and sometimes breathtaking.
  • Special Effects: Perfect.
  • Costumes: Great. Little detail: the lipstick on the red queen is sometimes messed up, as it was once for the white queen.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt2567026/
  • Entertainment value: Solid.
  • Who is it for? A must, I think, for those who have seen the first chapter, even though it's not as good.


X-Men: Apocalypse — A solid super-hero flick — 8*/10

  • Story: Interesting backstory, well developed plot, solid high voltage action and even a few jokes.
  • Characters: I don't like it when the mess around with the comic book version of a hero or villain, and I like it even less when they change or contradict already released movies. Consistency makes for a better experience. Beyond that, the characters are your basic hero/villain types.
  • Acting: Good, for the most part.
  • Known actors: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Rose Byrne and Sophie Turner.
  • Special Effects: Strong and beautiful.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt3385516/
  • Entertainment value: Solid.
  • Who is it for? Anyone looking for action or super heroes.


mercredi 1 juin 2016

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising — Mostly a miss for this comedy — 5*/10

  • Story: I like that they give this sequel (read my review of the first chapter here) a feminist undertone, but these antics weren't very imaginative and the story felt stale, even though some of the jokes were funny.
  • Known actors: Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, Zac Efron, Chloë Grace Moretz
  • Cameos: Lisa Kudrow, Selena Gomez, Dave Franco and Kelsey Grammer.
  • Synopsis & informationhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt4438848/
  • Entertainment value: Minimal.
  • Who is it for? Those without a brain or those wanting to see the sequel.