Bill Burr: I'm Sorry You Feel That Way (2014)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Jay Karas

Cast: Bill Burr

Running time: 80 minutes

This Netflix original comedy special gives us the American comedian Bill Burr on stage, in front of an audience, doing what he does best: Make people laugh. For over an hour, Burr goes discusses a myriad of subject matters and the flow is always seamless.

I really dug the fact that this show was shot in black and white, giving it a more rustic feel. I love the old style of comedy, back when everything could fly. In his set, Burr made a point of discussing all those groups that seem to get offended by anything and everything nowadays. Since that is something that bothers me too, I really identified with that. I also appreciated the fact that Bill Burr does not take himself seriously. He will even poke fun at himself, and that is always endearing with comedians.  

If you’re easily offended, I would not recommend this particular title to you. If that is not a problem, well, this is a must-see.

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Paradise Road (1997)

Genre: Historical / Drama

Directed by: Bruce Beresford

Cast: Glenn Close, Frances McDormand, Pauline Collins

Running time: 122 minutes

Based on true events, Paradise Road tells the story of a group of women who are made prisoner in a Japanese internment camp during World War II. To better survive the daily hardships of their precarious situation, they decide to create a vocal orchestra and perform music that will garner them more and more attention.

With a loaded cast and a compelling story to tell, Paradise Road is a very good movie. As you can imagine, as the story takes place in an internment camp during a war, some scenes can be hard to take. The filmmakers did not shy away from the hard realities of it, all the while not going overboard with it. This is not a film about blood and death, but one about resilience and survival.

I must admit that having well-known actresses perform foreign accents can sometimes take you away from the story for a bit. It was really the case here with Frances McDormand playing an Irish doctor. Once I got over the initial shock, I could still appreciate her performance, as well as everyone else’s; not a bad one to mention. Overall, this was a very good movie.

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They Live (1988)

Genre: Science-fiction / Comedy

Directed by: John Carpenter

Cast: Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster

Running time: 94 minutes

An anonymous and unemployed drifter arrives to Los Angeles on foot carrying his baggage on his back. After finding a construction job, he befriends a fellow coworker, who will help him find some lodging in a nearby shanty town. Soon after his arrival, the usually-mild and calm drifter will find out, through the use of special sunglasses, that the ruling class is composed of aliens hiding among the masses under the appearance of humans and he will decide to join a group in the fight against them.

I have long been a fan of pro wrestling and of Roddy Piper, so I had seen this satirical science-fiction film a long time ago, but I had failed to take it for all it was worth as a boy. Now a grown man, I decided to give this particular title another look, and I was glad I did. What a fun movie; no wonder it has gained such a cult following over the years.

Sure, the acting is not great and there are some plot holes or creative shortcuts. However, there is also a very good message about the impact of propaganda on the masses in this movie. What I like most is that, in delivering his political message, John Carpenter does not take himself seriously. They Live manages to remain light and fun in spite of having something to say about society.

This cult classic deserves to be seen at least once, if not more.   

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Infinitely Polar Bear (2014)

Genre: Drama / Comedy

Directed by: Maya Forbes

Cast: Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky

Running time: 90 minutes

Cam Stuart is a man dealing with bipolar disorder in the Boston of the late 70’s. After another breakdown leaves him without a job, his wife Maggie decides to go to New York for 18 months to get her M.B.A. and then provide for them, leaving their two daughters with him. At first unsure about his ability to properly fulfill his role as a temporarily single parent, Cam decides to accept the task nonetheless, and it will prove to be quite the challenge for this unstable man.

Mark Ruffalo, who was nominated for Best Actor at the Golden Globes for the role of Cam Stuart, was absolutely fantastic here. He brings this character to life in such a way that you have no problem believing it. I could even recognize the traits of the bipolar people I have known in my life.

Infinitely Polar Bear offers a realistic look at things, without sugar-coating or extreme dramatization. The kids react as normal children would in such a situation, and we see a father doing the best he can with his particular health circumstances while his wife is working hard at providing a future for all of them. The main character is very flawed, as are all humans, but we see the love of this man behind the affliction.

This is a film to see.

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Full House (1987-1995)

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Still Alice (2014)

Genre: Drama

Directed by: Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland

Cast: Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin, Kristen Stewart

Running time: 101 minutes

Based on the 2007 Lisa Genova novel of the same name, this 2014 independent drama tells the story of Alice Howland, a 50 year old linguistic professor at Columbia. Her husband and she both have successful careers, and their three kids are venturing on their own in life. After showing signs of memory loss and speech issues, Alice sees a neurologist, who diagnoses her with early onset familial Alzheimer’s disease. This brilliant woman will slowly fade away as her family does its best to support.

Julianne Moore is absolutely brilliant as Alice Howland and she carries this film to greatness on her back. She makes it feel so real that you forget it is an actress at work and you start feeling the plight of that ailing woman and her family. There are many very talented actors on the cast of this film, but Moore blows them all out of the water.

Still Alice is a very poignant drama that doesn’t go overboard into tear-jerking mode. The tone is just right. I also dug the way the movie was shot and cut. They never dwell on any scene, moving forward at a good pace. That is a fitting choice by the moviemakers, since, with Alzheimer’s Disease, Alice Howland’s life is fading fast around her and the story is told through her eyes. Great moviemaking and solid acting makes this one a must-see.

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The House on the Edge of the Park (1980)

Genre: Horror

Directed by: Ruggero Deodato

Cast: David A. Hess, Annie Belle, Christian Borromeo

Running time: 91 minutes

Alex is a serial rapist and killer. When the film starts, he is driving alongside a beautiful woman. After exchanging a few looks with her, he cuts her off, forcing her to stop. He gets out of his car, jumps in hers and proceeds to rape and strangle her to death. A while later, Alex is closing for the night the garage where he works as a mechanic with his friend Ricky, as he gets ready to go out to a disco and “boogie”. A black Cadillac drives in, with a yuppie couple inside. The man, Tom, gets out and tells Alex that something is wrong with the car. In a hurry to party, Alex tries to get them to leave, but Ricky decides to take a look. He finds a loose wire and fixes the problem in a matter of seconds. Tom says that they are going to a friend’s house for a party and that they are glad the issue is fixed. Alex asks Tom if Ricky and he can join them, and the yuppie man agrees. Before leaving, Alex fetches a blade from his locker, with the clear intent of doing some damage at the party, but his past might be catching up with him when he gets there.

The House on the Edge of the Park is an English-language Italian exploitation film. It is gritty and dirty, with plenty of nudity

and violence. If that sort of thing bothers you, stay away. The acting is quite cheesy, but that is to be expected with the genre. As for the story, I must admit I found it far-fetched to see how much of a predicament people would be willing to put themselves through for the sake of the “perfect revenge”.

The main actor, David Hess, was quite convincing. He had played a similar role in Wes Craven’s The Last House on the Left, a much better exploitation film. The House on the Edge of the Park pales in comparison. While the Craven classic pulled you in as a spectator, this one made it more difficult to root for any of the characters.

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The Aristocrats (2005)

Genre: Documentary

Directed by: Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza

Running time: 88 minutes

This is a documentary about an infamous dirty joke that has become very popular among comedians over the years. While rarely told on stage, loads of comedians have shared their own versions of The Aristocrats joke with their peers, constantly trying to outdo each other.

The premise is always the same: A man walks into a talent agent’s office trying to sell a stage act he performs with his family. The talent agent asks for a description of said act, and that is when the fun begins. The object of the joke teller is to stretch out this descriptive part as much as he or she can, all the while being as vulgar as possible. Most versions will involve acts of violence, incest, pedophilia, zoophilia, necrophilia, scatology or other things of that genre. After the long and colorful description is done, the talent agent, either disgusted or amazed, will ask how the man calls this stage act, and the punchline is: The Aristocrats.

Through this almost 90 minutes documentary, we hear excerpts of different versions that have been told through the years. Multiple comedians, male or female, also share their views on that infamous joke, which was supposedly Johnny Carson’s favorite. It was particularly nice to hear from George Carlin and Robin Williams, two great ones that I appreciated so very much and that I still miss today.

The most famous telling of The Aristocrats remains the one from Gilbert Gottfried. In the Comedy Central roast for Hugh Heffner, that was shot shortly after the 9/11 events, Gottfried told a joke related to the tragedy, and people started booing and screaming that it was too soon. So, the comedian started telling his own version of the infamous joke, causing quite the reaction.

Overall, The Aristocrats is a very entertaining documentary that is not for the faint of heart. The subject matter is filled with vulgarity. If you can take it, you will love it. I sure did.

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Just Friends (2005)

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Directed by: Roger Kumble

Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Amy Smart, Anna Faris

Running time: 94 minutes

Back in high school, Chris Brander was a fat unpopular kid with a retainer and his best friend was beautiful Jamie Palamino, on whom he had a secret crush. After graduation, he decided it was time to declare his love for Jamie, but plans backfired and he got humiliated by his whole graduation class. Ten years later, he has moved from New Jersey to LA, has lost the excess weight and has become a womanizer who concentrates of superficial matters when it comes to relationships. As part of his job as a record producer, he is sent to accompany a pop icon on a trip to Paris to ensure that everything runs smoothly. Unfortunately, a fire forces the plane to land down near Chris’ hometown. He brings the starlet home to his mother’s house, where he will have to finally deal with the past from which he ran away.

This is your typical run-of-the-mill romantic comedy with the beautiful people getting together in the end in spite of all the obstacles. The good kid who has become a bad man gets reformed; you see the drill. Felt like my story up until the weight loss part came in, though I did end up with a beautiful woman. Yay me! Anyways, Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart are not atrocious here, but they are nothing special either. Chris Klein and Anna Faris, on the other hand, are horribly over-the-top. With Faris, it is not that surprising.

Overall, Just Friends is a very predictable romantic comedy, and the acting is not good enough to save it. The humor also usually falls flat, so that doesn’t help either. If I were you, I would not bother with this one; there are better titles in this genre.

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Série noire (2014-2016)

Genre: TV / Franco / Comedy

Distribution: François Létourneau, Vincent-Guillaume Otis, Édith Cochrane

Nombre de saisons: 2

Denis Rondeau et Patrick Bouchard sont deux scénaristes qui se voient contraints d’écrire une deuxième saison de leur série télévisée La Loi de la justice, qui a connu un certain succès en région malgré des critiques unanimement mauvaises dans les médias. Afin de s’inspirer dans l’écriture de cette nouvelle mouture, les deux hommes décident de se lancer dans diverses aventures dans le but de mieux comprendre le monde du crime et de la justice, mais ils se verront rapidement dépassés par les événements.

J’ai beaucoup apprécié le ton caustique de Série noire. Les mots y sont souvent crus, ce qui a déplu à bien des chroniqueurs (et surtout chroniqueuses). Il faut admettre que plusieurs expressions ont été réutilisées à outrance par la suite, montrant à quel point cette œuvre télévisuelle a été marquante en peu de temps. Les propos et l’action surprennent et maintiennent en haleine, car on ne sait jamais à quoi s’attendre.

J’ai aussi grandement aimé l’utilisation de la musique et de l’ambiance générale (noirceur, neige, etc.) pour donner un ton particulier à cette série. On ne peut s’empêcher non plus de s’attacher aux personnages de Série noire, qui sont tous hyper bien définis. Et que dire de la narration faite par Bernard Derome? Tout un contre-emploi pour l’ancien lecteur de nouvelles.

La seule faute que je peux trouver à Série noire est que j’en aurais pris plus. Toutefois, les auteurs, François Létourneau et Jean-François Rivard, semblent avoir fait le tour de l’histoire.

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The Central Park Five (2012)

Genre: Documentary

Directed by: Ken Burns

Running time: 119 minutes

In 1989, Trisha Meili, a Caucasian investment banker in New York City, was jogging in Central Park when she was attacked, brutally beaten and savagely raped. Shortly after, five black teenagers were arrested and accused of committing the crime. Armed with video confessions obtained through what they still say was coercion, the prosecution had the boys convicted and sent to jail. In 2001, a convicted serial rapist and murderer Matias Reyes confessed to the crime involving the Central Park jogger and the convictions from over a decade later were vacated.

I felt like the filmmakers did an awesome job of placing the events of the Central Park jogger case in its proper context. Racial tensions were a major issue back then, as they still are in certain places. And the treatment of black people by the police and the issues of profiling have been dealt with many times before. Knowing what we know today, it was particularly interesting to see some footage of Donald Trump commenting on the issue at the time of the crime.

The Central Park Five is a very informative documentary that pulls you in and makes you feel for the ordeal these young boys have gone through. Well worth it.

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La championne (1990)

La championne (1990)

Genre: Franco / Drame

Réalisateur: Elisabeta Bostan

Distribution: Izabela Moldovan, Mircea Diaconu, Carmen Galin

Running time: 92 minutes

Ce film canado-roumain produit pour la série des Contes pour tous de Roch Demers raconte l’histoire de Corina, une jeune fille roumaine qui rêve de devenir gymnaste. Elle s’inscrit avec son amie Marie à la célèbre école de Deva, mais, comme sa passion dépasse largement son talent naturel au tout début, elle devra mettre un bon lot d’efforts pour réussir dans ce sport très compétitif.

Suite aux succès olympiques de la coqueluche Nadia Comaneci, beaucoup de jeunes filles ont rêvé de devenir gymnaste, et ma tendre épouse était du nombre dans sa jeunesse. Ce film était donc son préféré quand elle était petite, et nous avons décidé de le regarder ensemble.

Somme toute, c’est un charmant petit film sur la persévérance devant ses rêves, malgré les obstacles. Cela dit, le jeu des acteurs est parfois horrible et le doublage vers le français pas très bien fait. Pour les nostalgiques seulement.

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