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Simone Barbès ou la vertu (1980)
Falls Apart After the First Segment
You know how some books and films introduce an interesting scenario and/or set of characters- and then follow the "wrong one"? This is one of those.
Personally, I was intrigued by the character of Martine and the set-up of her and Simone as usherettes (if that's the word) checking tickets at a porno cinema and dealing with the various clientele. At the end of this segment, Simone gets to the end of her shift and I was looking forward to what would happen next. Sadly, the film follows Simone out of the theatre and we never see Martine again. And pretty much nothing happens thereafter.
Don't waste your time.
Alien: Romulus (2024)
Must be Difficult Being Out-acted by a Dead Guy
For context - I went to see Alien when it came out, at the then-largest screen in England (Odeon Leicester Square, if I remember correctly) with a bunch of colleagues, and we were all blown away. I lost track for a while, only seeing Aliens on DVD many years later (disappointing, over-hyped by Terminator-fuelled Cameron fanboys I thought) and I've still not seen Alien 3 or any of the others prior to Prometheus.
For some reason - possibly the presence of Noomi Rapace - I decided to see Prometheus and really enjoyed it - good actors and acting, plus a cohesive story that extended the lore in (I thought) an interesting way. This naturally led me to view Covenant, and blimey was that a disappointment - no Noomi, terrible story and some really poor CGI.
I'm really quite glad therefore that this is a return to the core storyline and somewhat-grungy effects that made the original so compelling. The story is however "just OK" even though the way that the tension ratchets and the scares develop is quite well-handled. The main issue for me was the apparent "YA" target of the whole cast and the lack of character in most of them. Was I watching "Maze Runner" rather than "Firefly"?, I started to think... Indeed, as the backstory "developed" I was seriously considering leaving after about 25 minutes owing to lack of engagement with this teen crew.
However, to give credit to Cailee and the director, I did gradually start to care about some of them - but not that much! I can't help feeling that, even with the same script (corny callbacks included) the whole thing would have been much more satisfying with more proper actors on board. They'd then be less likely to be out-acted by a guy who's been dead for 4 years!
Rupture (2016)
What Was Lesley Manville Doing in This?
Was her agent on holiday and an intern said "yes" before checking out the part? Or is the director a mate and she was just doing him a favour? In any case, she is so under-used that perhaps all of her scenes were shot in an afternoon and she didn't mind the outing...
However, Noomi is great and committed as usual - it's just a shame that the film is really a bit ho-hum. Perhaps the kind of thing I'd have been happy to see on late-night TV many years ago, but expectations are a bit higher now. There is an interesting premiss but (as others have noted) they could have done more with it, and there are some definite loose ends (e.g. Her son??)
Not awful, but not really recommended unless you are a Rapace completist.
French Exit (2020)
It's the Cat...
... that will decide what you think of this.
For some, clearly (from various reviews here) this tips the film over into absurdity and "ruins it". For me, though, together with the "witch", he lifts this out of the ordinary into something much more interesting. Not that it's a great film, mind you, but up until this point I was struggling to care about the characters and their (frankly self-imposed) situation. Together with the gradual and pointless accumulation of hangers-on in the Paris apartment, it seemed from there on to be relishing the farcical aspects of the story, which was then quite fun. Perhaps there was also supposed to be some grand message about the value of family over money but we don't need a film to tell us that.
Entertaining, if you can get past the first 30 minutes.
Party 7 (2000)
I guess you have to be Japanese...
... to find this funny.
Although there are some nice cinematographic touches, such as the design of the "Captain Banana" costume and the voyeur room in the hotel, this doesn't really make up for the general chaos. Although it would be unfair to call this "plotless" - as there *is* a central underlying narrative to what is going on - I gradually felt overwhelmed by slapstick and the pointlessness of much of the "action".
After about an hour I therefore started to fast-forward as I decided that life is too short to spend any more of it on drivel like this. I had previously been somewhat intrigued by the title and cult reputation around "Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl" and had been meaning to check it out - but after this I certainly won't be doing that!
You have been warned...
Tillsammans (2000)
Too Many Irritating Characters
There's some good and interesting stuff here, but too often I was reminded that I didn't want to spend any more time with one or other of the characters - leaving me of course to conclude that being trapped in a small commune with some of them would be one version of Hell.
I note that Moodyson has returned to this group with "Together 99" - so I certainly won't be watching that - but I may continue to check out some of his other stuff, having enjoyed others in the past.
If politics is "your thing" (it's not mine) then you may find some philosophising of interest in here, but otherwise this isn't really recommended.
Gimme Danger (2016)
Lovingly Done
Focusing mainly on the Stooges, and pretty much bypassing Iggy's solo career, I can't really imagine this being done better.
JJ is clearly a fan and has assembled some key interviews (including people no longer with us) alongside fascinating archive footage, interleaved with a lengthy session with Iggy himself, who is - as usual - witty, charming and articulate.
In passing, he mentions drumming for the Shangri-Las (I don't think I knew this) and talks of the plans to have the Stooges (supporting the MC5) playing at the 1968 Democratic Convention...! This conjures up some bizarre images although perhaps at the time it all felt normal?
Very entertaining.
Legend (2015)
Tom Hardy was Made for This
Somewhat belatedly catching up with this, as I think I'd heard it was not that great, but I was very impressed. Not that the Kemps' film was bad, but I think I prefer this one.
The era is very well-observed and nicely balances the truly dark edge of their rule (and perhaps the darker one of the Richardsons) with the very real fascination that both the aristocratic and street-level communities had for them. I've read both "The Profession of Violence" (on which this is based) and "Rough Justice" (about Charlie Richardson and his gang) and this films rings true to them - in particular that the police were happy to collude in their reign as long as civilians were mostly untouched (and they got their cut), but were forced to act once it spilled over into cold-blooded murder in public.
Having also seen and loved Hardy as Alfie Solomons in "Peaky Blinders" I must say that I recognised a fair bit of similarity between that performance and how he plays Ronnie here - but the man is just a star.
Recommended.
How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town (2015)
More Entertaining than Expected
This was fed to me via Plex and, to be honest, I was slightly put off by the title and only watched it because it starred Jewel Staite, who was so good in Firefly and Serenity.
However, once I got into it, I found the variety of characters mostly endearing and the development fairly entertaining. It's not "laugh-out-loud" funny but there's a fair bit of humour along the way. Plus some poignancy - without the overdose of sentimentality that one might expect from a USA equivalent.
To call the plot "implausible" would be a radical understatement but to their credit, the cast go with it and give it (albeit mostly don't show) their all.
Worth a look.
The Bikeriders (2023)
Not The Loveless
Having only recently seen The Loveless, I must say that I would recommend that over this for its overall effect. Not that this is a bad film, but there's a pretty low action to mood/dialogue quotient. Thus if you don't like Hardy, or Butler, or Comer then I suspect that you'll really struggle - but IMHO they're all pretty good here - albeit Butler isn't really given much to do except smoke and look broodingly beautiful. Jodie is great as usual. If you like Shannon and some of the other "name" actors here then you'll probably just be frustrated that they aren't given much to do.
Assuming that this is somewhat true to life (as it used to be), my overriding feeling was of the pointlessness of it all. There were hints of the seductive nature of being free of commitments and out on the open road on a powerful bike - but not enough to convince me. I just felt sorry for Johnny's wife and other extended community members - they're losing time with their families, and for what? It's not like this club was out solving the world's problems.
On a separate note, I think the goodfellas comparisons are just lazy - this has a voiceover - so what?
Meanwhile, there was just me and one other guy in yesterday's matinee screening of this - so I expect it to be deemed a box office failure pretty quickly - although time may be kind to its reputation as a "pretty good" biker pic.
Wo bu shi Pan Jin Lian (2016)
Lovely Cinematography, but...
... this is *way* too long for the slight storyline. From about half-way through I was just hoping for it to end.
To be fair, I'm not a fan of courtroom drama so - even though none of this plays out in an actual courtroom - I belatedly realised that the same "individual versus the system" tropes would be at play and I would (did) lose patience. It was a nice touch though to see some of the officials blaming themselves rather than the victim, for a change.
Individual scenes I'm sure would have had Christopher Doyle and Peter Greenaway swooning with the setup and colour balance but for me, these (and the presence of the wonderful Fan Bing Bing) were nowhere near enough to maintain interest.
I'm sure - as a foreigner - I missed or didn't appreciate many of the subtle cultural nuances, but neither do I feel that I learned anything. Never mind.
Day of the Woman (1978)
Genuinely Nasty
I've seen a number (but by no means all) of the original "video nasties" but this is the first where I've been tempted to stop watching as it was - indeed - pretty nasty!
However, once it gets beyond the original violations then the plot really gets going and, as the original title says, the central character regains her agency and delivers the most comprehensive and appropriate (in the circumstances) payoff. Kudos to Camille Keaton for fully committing to the part - including significant time spent nude.
I'm not a big fan of the "psycho hillbilly" genre but this has an admirable attempt at nuance with the "damaged by Vietnam" allusions and the fact that it was apparently influenced by a real-life incident experienced by the director. (I did also for a while wonder whether it was all in her head - as a visual playout of the book that she was writing, perhaps like Betty Blue - but I suspect that that's not a correct reading...)
So - I can see why many hated it, and why some regard it as a "feminist masterpiece" - and certainly why it's interesting enough to be thought-provoking even 45 years later.
Worth a look - but not for the squeamish.
The Mechanic (2011)
I think I've Sussed The Stath's Gameplan...
... he's becoming Nic Cage!
Viz:
a) Always working
b) Always himself yet fully embodying the part
c) Self aware
d) Knows how to use humour
e) Astute in picking parts in new titles and remakes where you end up thinking "it had to be him"
Long may he reign.
Meanwhile, if you haven't seen this or the Charles Bronson original, the set-up is the basic "best in the business" contract killer thing, which it does well if you accept the central conceit. Where this one falls down somewhat (IMHO) is in the Ben Foster character - he looks like a scrawny runt and yet we are to believe that with a few short weeks (?) of training he's at Statham's level and can take out another rival "mechanic" who's about three times his size - in single combat, no less. For me, he also failed to garner any sympathy for his situation - which I'm sure was intended.
But the Stath delivers, as always...
Red Shoe Diaries (1992)
Absolute Drivel
The related TV series isn't high art, but blimey this is awful and Duchovny must be embarrassed by its continued availability.
As someone else has noted, the central female character doesn't seem to have the necessary allure to make even one (let alone both) of these guys lust after her so fatefully. This isn't anywhere near the main implausible element of the plot, however, and it would be giving it too much credit to waste time listing them.
If you're into buff guys doing shirtless 1-on-1 basketball then I guess you may get more out of it than I did - and you are very welcome to that, but even as hetero erotica this is woeful, IMHO.
Vampire Diary (2006)
Shame About the Sound Design
This is one of these films where - often - the dialogue is spoken in some kind of breathless whisper, such that one needs the volume turned up to hear what's being said; and then - CRASH - in comes the music at now-deafening volume. This is very irritating.
It also has a "found footage" approach (despite being 8 years after Blair Witch, when I thought we'd all calmed down a bit..) - which is OK but occasionally distracting.
Having said that, it's not awful. The story, acting and cinematography could be worse and there's some nice use of English locations, which adds to the quasi-authentic context.
If you're in the market for modern lesbian vampire fare though, I'd recommend something like "Theresa and Allison" over this.
L'origine du mal (2022)
Origin of Title?
I've been pondering the title of this film - which is perhaps open to interpretation. For what it's worth, given that all the offspring of the patriarch seem to be twisted in some way, and his new wife is clearly on a mission to annoy him as much as possible, I conclude that it is a cautionary tale aimed at men who do nothing but work to accumulate wealth, and womanise along the way. I could be way off of course.
Thus, although the central character of the (non-) daughter appears to be *the* most amoral of the set, in some respects it's a close run thing. Laure Calamy plays her in a deliciously ambiguous way, leading us at various points to believe her, sympathise and be horrified at her selfish and callous actions. It takes an actor of skill to maintain our sympathy throughout this.
The rest of the cast (except perhaps the youngest daughter) are also quite impressive and, apart from the occasional implausibility, the plot is pretty good.
Worth a look.
Un poison violent (2010)
Nicely Haunting
At one level, this is a typical French coming-of-age film, with a religious theme and a small-town-in-the-country context.
However, there are also some nice quirks which a) set it apart from the norm and b) made me realise about half-way through that I'd seen it years ago without really knowing what I was watching but perhaps glad to find a French film among the dross on some hotel TV. The young Clara Augarde well handles the central role and its various emotional tones and there are also nice turns from the tortured priest and the lecherous grandfather.
Worth a look but don't expect tons of action.
No profanar el sueño de los muertos (1974)
Not the "Classic" I Expected
Firstly, I must say that I am generally much more interested in 1970s horror (euro- and otherwise) than I am in the more recent stuff, despite the ongoing contribution to the genre of better technical special effects. Therefore, I was really quite disappointed by this... "OK" story, "OK" acting (mostly), "OK" effects, etc.... but nothing that seemed deserving of the reputation. The gory bits are indeed gory, but the zombies themselves didn't seem that scary.
Coming a couple of years after "The Flesh and Blood Show", "The Blood on Satan's Claw" and others, I don't think this earns its place in that kind of canon.
Darling (2015)
Lowest of Low Budgets
Small cast, not much dialogue, black and white, ideas stolen from many other films - they certainly didn't push the boat out on this one.
I must say though that it looks pretty stylish and the woman in the central performance gives it her all. Hopefully it will help her with the CV - although I'm not sure that the Director will benefit likewise.
I'm not really up on the state of horror these days (and if the abomination that was 2018's "The Nun" is anything to go by, I may be doing myself a favour...) but the real issue here IMHO is that, despite the enhanced technology that allows gory dismemberments (for example) to be more convincingly rendered than in earlier decades, I very rarely got rid of the "I've seen this all before" feeling.
Le pacte des loups (2001)
Great Stuff
This is the kind of mash-up film that, until you see it, you didn't know how much you needed. With similarities to Underworld, The Musketeers, Versailles and other more recent fare, I did start to wonder who-influenced-whom and/or whether I just like this kind of well-made hokum?
Basically, the cinematography is great, the fight scenes are impressive and even the creature is well done (and revealed gradually, as befits the genre...). The acting is also well above expectations. I'm already thinking of giving it a second viewing, despite the 500+ other things in my watchlist.
Very much recommended.
Eva nera (1976)
Be Warned...
... this contains real footage of a snake being skinned, chopped up and then cooked, plus live mice being fed to the snakes that form the centre of the plot (by the seemingly unconcerned lead actress). While this is set in Hong Kong and thus pretty normal for the time and the context, this left a nasty aftertaste.
Sadly, to compound the issue, the rest of the film is not that great either. Sleazy characters and an unsatisfying plot add a general by-the-numbers air to the proceedings and (for me) it didn't have any erotic frission either - not that that would have made up for the animal cruelty.
One of those films I am regretting having seen...
Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)
Well, at Least I Finished It...
... which is more than I can say for my attempts at "Citizen Kane", which this has recently replaced as the "greatest film of all time" in the latest Sight & Sound 10-year poll.
At one level, I can see why it's rated by so many critics and directors, and the voyeur-level intensity of focus on some of Jeanne's mundane daily tasks does get to a mood that might otherwise be out of reach. It did verge on the boring at times though.
Another (contemporary?) issue I had with it was the attitude of the son. Whilst not explicitly "ungrateful", he does seem basically useless round the house and not really to be contributing anything. Maybe because he looked about 30, rather than the 17-ish I guess he's supposed to be, I found this a bit of a problem. Was this deliberately overplayed as a contributing factor to the denouement? Or not? I'm not sure.
Sort-of glad I've now seen it - but I won't be recommending it to anyone.
Kûki ningyô (2009)
Surprisingly Sweet and Philosophical
I think I recall this film being released and not being sure about it (given the topic), but as it has recently shown up on BFI Subscription I thought it worth a look - and I'm pleased I tried it.
Once past the initial premiss, I found the main character's commitment to the role and (particularly) the handling of the various emotional highs and lows to be very impressive. Her "owner" and "boyfriend" were also nicely played and fully along for the quietly wild ride. By turns sweet, funny and sad, and ending up profoundly philosophical this went to some surprising places.
Very much recommended.
Zombeavers (2014)
Mostly, You Get What You Expect...
... if you decide to watch a film called "zombeavers"!
Although personally I was disappointed to have the guys turn up so soon, and for the neighbours not to feature more strongly, the balance of action to filler was not bad. The quality of the actors of course varies but some are clearly having a lot of fun with the ridiculous dialogue (the neighbour husband in particular).
There's also a couple of instances (no spoilers) where it gets nastier than expected, which added to the novelty. After a while, though, I did start to feel that it had overstayed its welcome - but the ending was OK.
The beavers are fun though.
O Lucky Man! (1973)
Hasn't Aged Well
I recall a schoolfriend of mine - also a graduate of an underage viewing of A Clockwork Orange and The Exorcist - going to see this when it came out, and quite enjoying it. However, it's never really been a priority for me and even now it was a bit of a whim to catch it, prompted by the appearance on BFI Player - i.e. Currently free to subscribers.
It would be rather boring - and probably a bit unfair - to list the ways in which this 50-odd years old film veers into "unacceptability" but, for me, it oscillated between engaging, boring and excruciating a bit too often. I watch a lot of 1970s films and, unlike the best of the Italian Poliziotteschi (for example), the unfocused ire at the state of society on display here seems dated and obvious. And at nearly three hours long it does go on a bit... on topics that Monty Python covered in minutes.
Interesting to see some good actors in action, but I wouldn't recommend it.