Blade Runner 2049 — It's simply mind-blowing, see it — 10*/10

I don't understand how critics can give it a bad review. Unless you don't like long movies or anything to do with sci-fi, you have to at least be entertained.

In this master piece by Denis Villeneuve, produced by Ridley Scott, mood is everything. Yes, there are long scenes where few things happen, but so what, it's delicious if you stop to enjoy it.

It's close to perfection. Just see it. In IMAX, because the sound and the visual are spectacular. Avoid 3D.

Harrison Ford, Ryan Gosling, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Ana de Armas and Jared Leto.

Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1856101/

A Cure for Wellness — An old-style horror crafted in a modern way — 8*/10

It's a horror film only as far as there are a few horrifying things, mostly psychological. It does, however, have an old horror type feel to it, like something you know is there, without getting any real evidence of it, ever.

The structure of the flick is amazing, incredible craft. It is captivating, even though at some point it falls flat, using too well-traveled roads, but it picks up again for a solid ending. Slow. Not for everyone. Excellent work by Gore Verbinski.

Celia Imrie.

Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4731136/

Tout en haut du monde — Un film d'animation pour les adultes au coeur d'enfant — 8*/10

Un film qui vous plongera de manière immersive dans une grande aventure. Son style de dessin particulier et très beau, ainsi que ces moments où on nous donne le temps de penser vous transporteront aisément. Les personnages sont attachants, l'histoire bien pensée et la fin courageuse.

Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262345/

Eyes Wide Shut — Another dramatic masterpiece by Stanley Kubrick — 10*/10

• Overall: To most, it will look like an erotic drama when in reality it's a critique of the rampant conservative ideologies that everyone is running after.
• Who is it for? Those ready to be catapulted, slowly. Everyone should at least give it a try.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120663/
• Known actors: Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Sydney Pollack, Rade Serbedzija, Vinessa Shaw and Leelee Sobieski.
• Setting: Opulent society.
• Style: Dramatic and stark with a slow-developing intrigue and a simmering suspense.
• Pacing: Slow. It feels like pulling out a strong and healthy tooth while under local anesthesia.
• Intro: Very smooth and with a solid dose of reality within a posh environment.
• Story: It's like going down the rabbit hole with Alice, things get crazier and crazier and only a good slap in the face can end it all. Reality can be scary to those who keep their eyes shut so tightly and Stanley Kubrick proves it here.
• Ending: What better ending is there than 'fuck'? Genius.
• Dialogs: Strong, realistic.
• Characters: Deep and well thought out.
• Acting: Superb. Perfect.
• Visuals: Beautiful.
• Score: Somber and mood enhancing.

The Lady in the Van — Sad, funny, touching all mixed up in a dry manner — 7*/10

• Story: Interesting, touching, a bit sad, with some good laughs. Very unusual.
• Style: Intellectual, dry at times. Low key and ordinary looking, what you'd expect from a biographical flick.
• Pacing: Somewhat slow. Nothing exciting happening, just life going about its business.
• Ending: Imaginative and comical.
• Dialogs: Funny, witty.
• Characters: Well developed and far from what we normally get.
• Acting: Solid.
• Known actors: Maggie Smith and Jim Broadbent.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3722070/
• Entertainment value: Good.
• Who is it for? Those looking for something based on real events with a mix of sadness and dry laughter.

Tracks — A mind boggling trek of simple beauty — 9*/10

• Scenario: The story of an impossible journey that forces self understanding by the meticulous survey of limits. Slow, yet captivating, it also pushes the viewer to explore along. This movie surprises and is full of simple details.
• Known actors: Mia Wasikowska and Adam Driver.
• Visual & sound: Superb, no question about it.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2167266/
• Who is it for? Those who can appreciate quality at a slow pace.

Mr. Holmes — That's a side of the coin that was really worth exploring — 8*/10

• Scenario: Very interesting, captivating in some regards, and human. This is not about crime solving and certainly not an action ride, it's really about relationships. It's slow mix of sweet, touching, sad, and funny.
• Known actors: Ian McKellen (almost perfect as Holmes) and Laura Linney (who you can't deny has an incredibly solid grip on her role with masterful subtlety).
• Visual & sound: Soft and embracing. Great sets full of details.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3168230/
• Who is it for? Anyone not looking for high octane, but in need of quality screen time.

Ex Machina — A quiet sci-fi that raises questions about AI — 8*/10

• Scenario: This an other version of the creation of AI. It doesn't bring any new ideas to the table, but it does throw an interesting spin on it or rather an interesting point of view and it raises interesting ethical and philosophical questions about the endeavor. The development of the story is slow, however it does take you where it wants to bring you at a good pace. There's only one big reveal and a single turn around moment, but I'll give them props for the ending, even though it's nothing big, just out of the ordinary.
• Dialogs: Interesting.
• Characters: Simple, lacking depth.
• Actors: Good work in general.
• Photography: Very nice.
• Sound: Nice music and score.
• Special effects: Perfect.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0470752/
• Who is it for? Those looking for a quiet or intellectual sci-fi or AI fans.

Martha Marcy May Marlene — A slow psychological drama the captivates — 9*/10

• Scenario: Heavy but entrancing. It revolves a lot around the psychological state of the main character and slowly gets us to understand where she's at right now and why. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it doesn't really matter. Excellent ending.
• Dialogs: Excellent.
• Characters: Very well developed, you can really feel them.
• Actors: Excellent work on the part of everyone. Cast members include Elizabeth Olsen.
• Photography: Very still, but it conveys the right sensation. Solid.
• Sound: Simple but beautiful music and score.
• Special effects: None.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1441326/
• Who is it for? Those who like psychological drama.

Siberian Education — Strong moody Russian tale of woe and respect — 8*/10

• Scenario: Incredible tale, told in a slow but very powerful way, with many interesting turns and unusual choices. Superb mood, dramatic, poignant and riveting, if you go beyond the first quarter that is. Some synopsis present this as a gangster's tale, which is also an alternative English title for the production, but it has nothing to do with what such a spin brings to mind. On the contrary, it's almost a social or anthropological study. Excellent.
• Dialogs: Very strong.
• Characters: A bit too simple. The boys are even drawn line for line from the overused archetypes we see in every boy's club.
• Actors: Great work on the part of everyone. Cast members include John Malkovich, Peter Stormare and Eleanor Tomlinson.
• Photography: Excellent visuals.
• Sound: Solid music and score, but there was a few places where the ADR, or voice over, was poorly made. Also, the fact that the actors are speaking English with a Russian accent is annoying and it takes a long time for it to stop being bothersome.
• Special effects: None.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1697064/
• Who is it for? Those looking for a different or moody drama.

Sound of My Voice — It's a slow developing intrigue that turns into a solid mind fuck — 7*/10

• Scenario: It's realistic and slow moving. Actually, not much happens. It's a true intrigue in the sense that you're always trying to guess what is really happening, from the first scene to the last. It leaves everything on the table at the end, and it doesn't try to close any loop, which is something that all great movies should aspire to. Overall, an excellent mind fuck.
• Dialogs: Solid and very realistic.
• Characters: Well built.
• Actors: Excellent work on the part of everyone. Cast members include Brit Marling.
• Photography: Nice, nothing extraordinary.
• Sound: Nice.
• Special effects: None.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1748207/
• Who is it for? Those looking for a true enigma without any need for action.

Twixt — A gothic intrigue to be watched with a very open mind — 7*/10

• Scenario: The story is sometime difficult to follow because there are many pieces to the puzzle and they only come together slowly. It becomes very intriguing as the events unfold, but took me more than half the film before finally getting behind this unusual vision of Francis Ford Coppola.
• Dialogs: Realistic, sometime cryptic.
• Characters: Some are well developed, others are pretty thin.
• Actors: Good work. Cast members include Val Kilmer, Bruce Dern, Elle Fanning and David Paymer.
• Photography: Good, but sometimes jerky to heighten mystery.
• Sound: Solid music and score.
• Special effects: They feel low budget and I don't know if it's done on purpose to give the movie a special voice. They're not so bad as to completely distract from the performance.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1756851/
• Who is it for? Those wanting to discover something very different or fans of Francis Ford Coppola.

Clouds of Sils Maria — Pause in your life and take the time to watch this — 9*/10

• Scenario: This is about the passage of time and coming to grips with it. It's about how history repeats itself. This script has no conclusion, only some subtle revelations. You keep expecting things to happen, but they do not. Like in real life, things are not explained, they are not clear, they can be frustrating and sometimes you just get lost. It is a movie to reflect, not to be entertained.
• Dialogs: Realistic and very intelligent.
• Characters: Deep and well developed. No archetypes here.
• Actors: Excellent work on the part of everyone. Cast members include Juliette Binoche, Kristen Stewart and Chloë Grace Moretz.
• Photography: Beautiful.
• Sound: Solid music and score.
• Special effects: None.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2452254/
• Who is it for? Those who do not mind thinking when watching or after having watched a movie.

Only Lovers Left Alive — Extremely low key but still delicious vampire movie — 9*/10

• Scenario: Very slow development, as low key as it gets, no action at all, but you get to feel everything down to the smallest particle, which, in a way, is how these vampires go through life. The result is much better than what the synopsis might entail.
• Dialogs: Simple, elegant and right with the tone.
• Characters: Grounded, as real as you can make those, and with a lot of depth.
• Actors: Beautiful work on the part of everyone. Cast members include Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska, Anton Yelchin, Jeffrey Wright, and John Hurt.
• Photography: Smooth camera work, amazingly detailed and well thought out sets and decors.
• Sound: Perfect music and score, very moody.
• Special effects: None.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1714915/
• Who is it for? Anyone who likes a slow developing and moody movie or vampire aficionados who don't mind the lack of action. A must discover.

Cloud Atlas — A beautiful exposé for those with enough patience — 8*/10

• Story: Needs a little bit of getting used to because of the way its told and all the disparate timeframes; it can get a bit confusing. Overall, it's very touching and pleasing. I loved the future ones, pre and post apocalyptic, but I'm biased toward those.
• Characters: The plethora of them is definitively a big bite to chew on, but after an hour, you get a solid enough grasp to enjoy their different depth.
• Dialogs: Interesting, slightly poetic, and pleasant. They will often tickle your brains, the contained philosophy.
• Scenario: You need to be able to enjoy slow developing scenarios to fully appreciate. Nonetheless, it is a mix of action, passion and contemplation that is totally satisfying.
• Actors: Quite an ensemble! Great work, although it was a bit difficult to process them in their different roles, especially when they switched between nice characters and reprehensible ones. Here's the list of notable ones: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Sturgess, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Grant, Hugo Weaving, Doona Bae, Ben Whishaw, Keith David, James D'Arcy, and Jim Broadbent.
• Photography: Excellent, beautiful.
• Special effects: Perfect.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1371111/
• Who is it for? Those who don't mind long movies with some slowness to them. Those like to have a mixture of different story. Those who like as much scenarios that are in the past as well as in the future.

A great piece by the Wachowskis.

Hateship Loveship — Appreciable if you're up for it — 6*/10

• Story: Definitively not your usual romance. It even takes half the movie to get anywhere. The novelty of it all makes this flick.
• Characters: Mostly downtrodden, but well built.
• Dialogs: Simple and realistic.
• Scenario: Slow pace. You need to be able to sustain nothing happening for a while in order to appreciate it.
• Actors: Good acting all around. My hat to Kristen Wiig a nice main role. Guy Pearce gave us a solid performance, right on the dot. I'm not sure what to say about Nick Nolte, but it might be just that his physical health impaired his performance.
• Photography: Gritty, but well done.
• Special effects: None.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2463512/
• Who is it for? Those who like offbeat flicks and novelty on a slow beat and a small budget. You can hope for any action or laughter.

Goats — offbeat, slow moving, low key and plain different — 7*/10

Goats is a no story movie. You catch a youngster at some point in his life, follow him for a while and then drop him off at another non-defining moment. This film has integrity and realism in a offbeat kind of way. The characters are funky, but they are all with a certain level of grey instead of black and white, with inaptitudes of real persons. The acting is good and the scenario takes unusual turns, going most of the time against the grain of standard Hollywood hacking. However, it's low key, without much happening. It's to be appreciated for its novelty and its touch of silliness.

If you're looking for something different.
7*/10

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

Maps to the Stars — Self-centered people locked in the Hollywood clockwork — 8*/10

Maps to the Stars doesn't make it easy to understand the story and reveals it little by little. It's confusing at first, but becomes quickly engrossing. The plot is twisted and not just a little insane. The acting is great and the ending surprising, but it leaves you with a sense of something missing, as if it was too easy.

Well worth the watch if you don't mind psychotic.
8*/10

Boyhood — Discover his life one step at a time — 9*/10

Boyhood is not a drama, not a family piece, it's just multiple excerpts from the life of a boy, nothing fancy, just well told. There are no artificial plot pieces, the scenario doesn't follow a story model, the acting is superb, and the unfolding events are captivating even if they don't have an overall cohesive narrative track. It's one of those movie where you keep waiting for "it" and "it" never shows up. The end will leave you with a smile.

A must for everyone, unless you need action.
9*/10