40 Days and 40 Nights — Pretty funny standard romantic comedy — 6*/10

• Overall: Everything about sex and relationship in there is bullshit, but the situations are pretty funny.
• Who is it for? Those who are used to the standard model of relationship and want to laugh.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0243736/
• Known actors: Josh Hartnett.
• Cameos: Stanley Anderson.
• Setting: Too hip, too posh, too many hot girls.
• Style: Romantic comedy with silly juvenile stuff and impossible situations.
• Intro: Nice. Really puts you into context.
• Story: In that stupid cookie cutter way, it all makes sense and is pretty interesting, because you're always wondering what's going to happen next and how it is going to end.
• Ending: Nice twist with a predictable final.
• Dialogs: Interesting. Witty at times. Easy.
• Characters: Shallow, but not too stereotypical.
• Acting: Good. Even great for the main ones.
• Visuals: Nice.

L'auberge espagnole — Un mélange de vies drôle et captivant — 8*/10

Un joyeux mélange de vie et de relations qui nous amène à rire et à réfléchir. Tout arrive un peu n'importe comment, arrangé par la main bienveillante du scénariste. Les gens sont beaux, la vie est simple, mais tumultueuse. On se laisse porter, on est transporté, on est captivé. Certains plans au début sont louches, un vers la fin aussi, mais on s'en fout. Un film que tout un chacun devrait voir.

Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0283900/

Québec-Montréal — Assez simple, mais riche en dénouements — 8*/10

Québec-Montréal découd une série de relations qui font le trajet entre ces deux pôles québécois. Vous rirez, vous serez embarrassés, et même surpris. Ce film ne vous laissera pas de marbre. Chacune des situations comporte son lot de remise en question et de positionnement, à moins que vous ne décidiez de prendre le tout au premier degré. À votre choix.

Pour rire et peut-être même cogiter.
8*/10

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind - Tough raw psychotic show - 7*/10

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is not for everybody because it  feels like a delusion. Great acting coupled an interesting story keeps you watching, but almost with revulsion.

For those who like twisted minds.
7*/10

Minority Report — Be transported to our near future for a action driven ride — 9*/10

Minority Report by Steven Spielberg is by now an iconic science-fiction movie for its vision of all the little things that could become part of our daily life.

The good. Excellent concepts and ideas included in the future we're presented. Nice special effects that still hold well today. Very interesting story. A scenario with a great pace. Captivating intrigue. Solid suspense. Lots of action. Some touching drama. Perfect ending.

The actors. Tom Cruise is the only actor who's performance is worth mentioning here. The rest of the cast is no more than adequate.

The bad. No interface would ever require so much body gesture to work. It's a completely ineffective method. Sean's videos do not have the feel of true family home videos, although the 3D effect is well imagined even going as far as including imperfections.

The ugly. Nothing.

The result. Excellent sci-fi entertainment for all.

9*/10

The Bourne Identity — Tremendous spy action but all in a very human scale — 9*/10

The Bourne Identity made a splash when it came out and quickly became a reference. The action tries to stay realistic while giving a powerful adrenaline ride to the audience. What makes this spy flick interesting is that the main character is hyper-precise, an unstoppable machine, the settings are unglamorous, and the protagonists and their motivation simple to understand.

That being said, the story itself is not simple, it's very captivating, and the main idea extremely interesting. The characters have a certain depth to them, and even though their psychological profile is not complex, it is well done. The camera work is incredible. The theme song is good. The action and editing are tight, and the details all work out logically.

Matt Damon definitely plays one of his best role and gets you right into Bourne's skin. Franka Potente is just right as his lead female, You want to slap Chris Cooper's character, almost from the very start. Julia Stiles has a small role but at the time, it was a mature one for her. And Brian Cox wraps it up quite nicely, while the rest of the crew doesn't disappoint a single time.

Now, the few little points I found that did work for me. The night sea shots look like a set. Terrible. Fortunately, you only see a few. The dictator is a bit over the top. And finally, the car would never have made it down those steps in driving condition, but that's a common movie mistake. The cars in chases continue to run whatever happens to them. Bottom line, those are all minor problems that you see only after watching the film many times.

This is one of the great action flicks. Don't miss it.

9*/10

Die Another Day — Villains threatening the world, 007 to the rescue — 7*/10

Die Another Day is probably the best James Bond with Pierce Brosnan. It was an anniversary piece containing many cameos of past incarnations in the form of gadgets or scenes. Halle Berry plays a great and strong Bond girl. Rosamund Pike is not so bad either. Personally, I thought she was a good fit for her ice cold role. I think John Cleese as Q is totally hilarious, love it. Judi Dench is my favorite M.

The scope of the story was large enough to equal the best before it, so I gave it a slightly higher mark for that reason. Lots of one liners, including a one liner joke on one liners. Seduction, high stake, car chases, lots of fights and action. The scenario was interesting, if unimaginative. Of course, any Bond movie tries to fit the mold to rake in as many viewer as possible, and in that respect, it hit a bulls-eye.

If you want to see a good Bond movie, it's for you.

7*/10

About a Boy — What it means to be an island and what relationships are for — 9*/10

About a Boy is a charming movie about responsibilities or the lack thereof. It's a low key narrative where a boy has to deal with some realities of life he's not ready for, and where a man is confronted by reality and must connect with it.

Hugh Grant, as usual, has its way with words, but his volume is pretty moderate this time around. Opposite him is Nicholas Hoult as the boy. Their character are very disparate if not entirely opposite, and they play this duality pretty well, one strengthening and helping the other finding some basic truths of life.

All the acting is solid, to the point where you want to slap some sense into Toni Collette's depressive persona. The editing gives us a great pacing, and the story is engrossing and, even if it stays pretty simple, brings a couple of new things to the table, as well as some well worn out ideas. The "lie" makes an apparition, but is dealt with in an incredibly mature way. The environment is rich, the important characters deep, the soundtrack sensible, and you'll chuckle a good number of times.

I highly recommend, except if you're looking for action or if you want to avoid sentimentality.

9*/10

Two Weeks Notice — A romantic comedy about opposites who work together without clashing — 7*/10

Two Weeks Notice is a conventional story done in an unconventional way. The two characters are total opposite and yet, no real clashes happens. The movie even refrained from doing an over exaggerated introduction of them. They both are presented in strong terms, yes, but not over done.

If you can't stand easy witty wordy humor like Hugh Grant so charmingly display in this piece, something he excels at, you better not watch it. It's those dialogs that propel this movie forward. He does it in an unpretentious earnest way, which is why Lucy Kelson (Sandra Bullock) ends up working for him.

The story is simple, the photography very good, and nothing is out of place. This film doesn't reinvent the genre, but it's a very well built offspring.

See it for good entertainment.

7*/10

The Lord of the Rings — An epic trilogy for all, a must for fantasy lovers — 8*/10

The Lord of the Rings trilogy is comprised of The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King.

At over 9h of playing time, it is not for the faint of heart. Even I, who has lived and breathed medieval fantasy for over 20 years do not listen to it in a single sitting. This Holiday Season, I even took three nights to watch it, and took breaks mid-movie, at the change of disk, to have a bite.

That being said, it is absolutely worth it. You'll get immersed in and transported to the universe of Tolkien to live a most epic of saga. The visuals are breath taking, the story gripping, and the characters well played.

Now, the special effects are aging a bit, not enough to lessen the experience, but noticeable. Some still look extremely good, like the Nazguls, the Balrog, the orcs, and the oliphants.

You might find the dialogs are a bit over sentimental at time, but they never fail to bring a tear when drama is near.

The single faceted Legolas seems to be the extent of what Orlando Bloom can play, but the tween girls love that elf. On the other hand, Vigo Mortensen's performance of the brooding scruffy Aragorn is excellent, and probably the best performance of the lot. Women of all ages fall that ranger. Close second to him, is Gollum.

My favorite chapter? The Moria. I've always been fascinated by it, and it's extremely well rendered.

All in all, it's a must see, a landmark of our time.

8*/10