Je voudrais qu'on m'efface (2021)

 Genre: TV / Franco / Drama
Distribution: Sarah-Maxine Rozefort, Malik Gervais-Aubourg, Jean-Nicolas Verreault
Nombre de saisons: 1

 

Quatre enfants de trois familles différentes vivant dans le même immeuble à logements de Montréal, qui s’apprête à être vendu pour faire de la place à un projet de construction majeur, vivent de sérieuses problématiques dans leurs vies quotidiennes et à l’école en raison de leurs situations familiales précaires.

Très bonne série étalée sur huit épisodes. Le jeu des acteurs, même les plus jeunes, est fort crédible, et le scénario est très bien ficelé. Somme toute, un petit bijou qui vaut le détour, même si la fin semblait un peu rapide et trop parfaite.

Rating: ««««

Beginners (2010)

 Genre: Romantic Comedy / Drama
Directed by: Mike Mills
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Mélanie Laurent
Running Time: 105 minutes

 

As he starts a new relationship with a French actress he met at a costume party, Oliver looks back on the last moments of the life of his father, who, at the age of 75, after losing his wife, came out of the closet and was then diagnosed with terminal cancer.

This is a very compelling story of humans living their human lives. The pace is slow, but the screenplay is well done, the characters are well defined and the actors do a solid job. Overall, this is a very good film. It dragged in a few spots, but I was quite touched by this one.

Rating: ««««

Ghostbusters (2006)

Genre: Comedy
Directed by: Paul Feig
Cast: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones
Running Time: 116 minutes

 

A group of four New York women interested in the supernatural, with their incompetent male assistant, form a ghost hunting business to rid their city of malevolent forces terrorizing it.

This was a reboot of the original franchise. I might get labeled as a misogynist for saying so, but I hated this movie. I like McCarthy and Wiig, but the material they were given here was subpar. The filmmakers were probably too busy cashing in on the girl-power aspect to bother create some good stuff for these talented women to perform on screen. It felt like an overly long SNL skit, with very lame one-dimensional characters. The only good thing about this film is that it ended.

Rating: «

Spider-Man (2002)

Genre: Superhero
Directed by: Sam Raimi
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Willem Dafoe, Kirsten Dunst
Running Time: 121 minutes

 

Peter Parker is a nerdy and socially-inept high school student. A spider bite suffered during a school trip to the museum gives him superpowers overnight. After his uncle Ben is murdered by an armed robber, Peter decides to become Spider-man, a superhero. Then, he has to contend with disgruntled scientist and businessman Norman Osborn, the father of his best friend, and his alter ego, Green Goblin.

I remember seeing this one when it first came out. I enjoyed it more then than now. It is still fun and entertaining, but, compared to the most recent superhero offerings, it pales. The main cast is mostly solid, but the supporting cast is weak here. The storyline is compelling, though some of the stuff feels overly sappy. Kirsten Dunst in a wet shirt, on the other hand, is still nice.

Rating: «««

The Devil's Rejects (2005)

 Genre: Comedy / Horror
Directed by: Rob Zombie
Cast: Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie
Running Time: 109 minutes

 

Following the horrific sacrifices perpetrated by the Firefly family in and around its secluded farmhouse, as depicted in House of 1,000 Corpses, Sheriff John Quincey Wydell makes a personal matter of finding and eliminating Captain Spaulding and his degenerate family.

This is the second film in the Firefly family trilogy directed by singer/filmmaker Rob Zombie. While I enjoyed the first one very much, this one is even better. The acting is better and the story is better panned out. While gruesome in its horror, the black comedy aspect of the film was well done too. I loved the dialogue a whole lot.

Rating: «««««

An American Crime (2007)

 Genre: Drama
Directed by: Tommy O’Haver
Cast: Elliot Page, Catherine Keener, Hayley McFarland
Running Time: 98 minutes

 

This film is based on the true story of sisters Sylvia and Jenny Likens, the daughters of carnival workers, who were left by their parents in the care of Gertrude Baniszewski, a poor woman with multiple jobs for little amounts of money. Gertrude Baniszewski saw two more children in her house as an opportunity for more money, but Sylvia soon became the target of horrible abuse at the hands of her caretaker and the rest of the family.

This film has a TV movie feel, but the acting makes it a lot better than you would expect from that genre. Elliot Page and Catherine Keener are both very solid in their respective roles. They carry this film on their shoulders. In spite of the TV movie feel, the director sets an atmosphere that is so heavy, in large part due to the subject matter. Some scenes are hard to take, when you realize this really happened. Thankfully, not everything is explicitly shot. The twist at the end was a ray of hope in a bleak setting. A mean trick that was if you do not know the endgame.

Rating: ««««

Chaos (2021)

 Genre: TV / Franco / Drama
Distribution: Simon Morin, Pascal Buissières, Carla Turcotte
Nombre de saisons: 1

 

INVO est un chanteur de renommée internationale qui revient finir sa tournée chez lui, à Montréal, au bar Santorini. Le soir de ce dernier spectacle de la tournée, une grave explosion tue quelques personnes et en blesse plusieurs autres. Pendant que les survivants et les membres de leur famille se remettent du choc, les autorités tenter de déterminer qui était derrière ce crime.

Honnêtement, je n’ai pas trouvé cette série hyper accrocheuse. Je me suis rendu à la fin par habitude et parce que je savais que c’était court. Je voulais voir le dénouement, qui a offert une belle surprise. Le chemin pour s’y rendre a été cahoteux. Le scénario contenait une tonne de choses qui ne faisaient aucun sens, les noms d’endroits et de personnages sonnaient faux, comme si on avait voulu se la jouer « cool », et le jeu était souvent trop gros.

Rating: ««

Antwone Fisher (2002)

 Genre: Biographical / Drama
Directed by: Denzel Washington
Cast: Derek Luke, Denzel Washington, Joy Bryant
Running Time: 120 minutes

 

This film is based on the true story of Antwone Fisher, a man whose rough childhood came to a head while he was a serviceman in the US Navy. After getting into a fight with a colleague, Fisher is sent to psychiatrist Dr. Jerome Davenport, who will try to help the young man get to the root of his issues.

This was Denzel Washington’s directorial debut, and he did a solid job. And, as usual, his acting was great too. The rest of the cast did quite well too to tell this touching story. I was hooked from start to finish, I was moved. A great movie.

Rating: «««««

Friends: The Reunion (2021)

Genre: Documentary
Directed by: Ben Winston
Cast: Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry
Running Time: 104 minutes

 

In a reunion special hosted by James Corden, the cast members of the sitcom Friends got together again, on set, to discuss the show with each other, with the creators of the show and with various other guests.

This reunion special had more meat on the bone than the Fresh Prince one, but it might have had to many. First off, seeing James Corden is never a fun experience. And there were too many pointless guests just to get a reaction. I wished they would have focused more on the main cast members, and a few special guests. The parts with the main six just talking were awesome.

Rating: «««

Ghostbusters II (1989)

Genre: Comedy
Directed by: Ivan Reitman
Cast: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver
Running Time: 108 minutes

 Five years after saving New York City from its supernatural enemy, The Ghostbusters have been sued for the property damage and then have disbanded. But, with another ghostly threat on the horizon, they have to spring back into action.

While most critics will not agree with my tastes, I much preferred this sequel to the first film. I fought the script more interesting and the lines funnier. While it is still silly to me and while supernatural material has not become my cup of tea, this was still to me. I enjoyed it for what it was.

Rating: «««

The Comeback Trail (2020)

 Genre: Comedy
Directed by: George Gallo
Cast: Robert De Niro, Tommy Lee Jones, Morgan Freeman
Running Time: 104 minutes

 

Max Barber is a grindhouse movie producer who is heavily indebted to the mob. Hoping to save his skin and his company, he starts producing a Western with a suicidal aging movie star, hoping to kill the actor off and cash in on the insurance money.

It is nice to see so many talented actors of yesteryear still working it and having fun together on screen, with some younger talent in the mix. This is a fun little movie, with a nice comedic storyline. It is nothing extraordinary, but it not bad either. It is a good piece of entertainment while it lasts.

Rating: «««

The Flowers of War (2011)

Genre: Historical / Drama
Directed by: Zhang Yimou
Cast: Christian Bale, Ni Ni, Zhang Xinyi
Running Time: 146 minutes

 

Inspired by the true events of the attack on the Chinese city of Nanking by the Japanese Army, in 1937, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, this film tells the story of John Miller, an American mortician that takes refuge in a Nanking church with a group of young escapees, mostly girls, and a group of prostitutes. Acting as a priest, Miller tries his best to protect the other people in the church from the Japanese.

In spite of the fact that this movie relied a whole lot on young inexperienced actors and actresses, the acting here was superb. Beyond the language barrier, the emotions carried through. Christian Bale, as usual, is absolutely convincing as John Miller. This is a very difficult film to take. The war scenes are well done. The violence of some of the acts perpetrated are shocking. This film stayed with me long after it was done. I even had to take a break at one point to catch my emotional breath.

I could nitpick and find faults here, but, really, I love this film for what it is.

 Rating: «««««

Rolling Stone: Life and Death of Brian Jones (2019)

Genre: Documentary
Directed by: Danny Garcia
Cast: Terry O’Neill, Zouzou, Dick Taylor 

Running Time: 96 minutes

 

Former founding member of the blues/rock band The Rolling Stones, Brian Jones, lived quite the life before he was found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool, in 1969, at the age of 27. This documentary looks at the talented but troubled man’s life and at the mysterious circumstances surrounding his passing. Various people who knew him and who studied the case discuss the matter, but surviving members of the band were not involved.

As a huge Rolling Stones fan, I was quite interested in this documentary. I found it compelling. It rehashed some of the stuff that was well known, but it also dug a little deeper in some matters. Overall, I quite enjoyed it.

Rating: ««««

Ghostbusters (1984)

Genre: Comedy
Directed by: Ivan Reitman
Cast: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver
Running Time: 105 minutes

 

A group of three parapsychology professors at Columbia University start noticing that some paranormal activity is happening around New York City, so they form the Ghostbusters, a specialized team whose mission is to battle these ghostly presences.

As a movie buff, I felt it was weird that I had never seen this particular film. It just was not my thing. Maybe I am not the right public for it. I love most of the cast involved, but I am not big on the paranormal thing. I found the humor here silly and unfunny. I dig Bill Murray. Here, he basically played his usual schtick, but without the jokes. I also appreciate Aykroyd. Though many associate him with this particular title, he will always be Elwood Blues in my book. Rick Moranis made me chuckled a few times, but I was pretty bored with Ghostbusters.

Overall, I know this is considered a classic. It is simply not one I intend to revisit over and over.

Rating: ««

Super Size Me 2: Holy Chicken! (2017)

 Genre: Documentary
Directed by: Morgan Spurlock
Cast: Morgan Spurlock
Running Time: 93 minutes

 

Over a decade after making his first film on the fast food industry and more precisely McDonald’s, Morgan Spurlock is back. Now, he digs into how the fast food industry evolved to look more virtuous than it actually is. In the process, the filmmaker gets involved in the poultry business and opens his own chicken fast food restaurant.

This is a fascinating documentary. While the subject matter is not one that I am particularly interested it, Spurlock manages to make it something I want to keep on watching. With a good dose of humor and humanity, he pulls you in. He gets a little preachy at times, but it is a documentary, so an agenda comes with that. Overall, a good follow-up to the first film.

Rating: ««««