Trap (2024)

Genre: Thriller
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Cast: Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Night Shyamalan
Time: 105 minutes

 

Cooper Adams is a firefighter, but, unbeknownst to his family, he is also a serial killer the authorities call The Butcher. As they try to catch the dangerous criminal whose identity they are unsure of, they set a trap at a concert where he will be with his teenage daughter. Now, Cooper has to find a way to leave the arena where the concert is held, with his daughter and without being caught by the cops.

This psychological thriller rests heavily on the shoulders of Josh Hartnett, who is excellent in the lead role. Unfortunately, most of the supporting cast is not as solid. The premise itself is cool, but a little bit gets lost in the delivery, through plot holes and a desire to be too cool for school. Some of the tongue-in-cheek humor made me laugh, but it felt like Shyamalan was trying a little too hard at times.

Rating: «««

Fried Green Tomatoes (1991)

Genre: Drama / Comedy
Directed by: Jon Avnet
Cast: Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker
Time: 130 minutes

 

Evelyn Couch is a timid housewife living a life she considers pretty boring. While visiting her husband’s aunt in a nursing home, she strikes a conversation with an old woman named Ninny Threadgoode. The senior lady starts telling stories to Evelyn about people that were in her life in the past. Evelyn becomes so enthralled by these strangers’ lives that she comes out of her shell in her own life.

Resting on the shoulders of such a talented cast and of a very competent director, this film makes a for a very compelling tale about love, friendship, loss, racism and so many other topics. Everybody is pretty good here. Mary-Louise Parker’s southern accent threw me off a bit, but, otherwise, this was a good film.

Rating: ««««

Twister (1996)

Genre: Drama / Action
Directed by: Jan de Bont
Cast: Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Cary Elwes
Time: 113 minutes

 

Two rival groups of storm chasers are on a trek to deploy an innovative tornado research device in the midst of an outbreak in Oklahoma. In one group, there are Jo Harding and her estranged husband Bill. Bill has reoriented his career to become a weatherman and met another woman. He is back so Jo can sign the divorce papers, but he gets sucked into the action with his former team and his ex-wife.

As far as the action is concerned, Twister is a fun film. The pace is fast and relentless. There is not much time spent on character development, so you end up with one dimensional characters. That being said, this is an entertaining film on a slow night when one is looking to shut off his brain for a moment.

Rating: «««

Nos Belles-Soeurs (2024)

Genre: Franco / Musical
Réalisation: René Richard Cyr
Distribution: Geneviève Schmidt, Guylaine Tremblay, Anne-Élisabeth Bossé
Durée: 102 minutes

 

Dans un quartier modeste de Montréal, dans les années 1960, la ménagère Germaine Lauzon se voit l’heureuse gagnante d’un million de timbres qui lui permettront d’avoir gratuitement, par l’entremise d’un catalogue, tous les électroménagers, les meubles, les vêtements et les autres accessoires dont elle a toujours rêvé. Elle invite sa fille, sa sœur et ses voisines à l’aider à coller tous les timbres dans les livrets de commande, mais, lors de cette soirée de femmes, la jalousie s’installe et le tout tourne au vinaigre.

Ce film est inspiré de la pièce de théâtre Les Belles-Sœurs, de Michel Tremblay. La comédie musicale qui en a découlé a d’abord été faite sur scène, et la voilà maintenant au grand écran. C’est un film fort réussi, mené par un réalisateur efficace et une distribution d’acteurs et d’actrices de talent. Ce film repose largement sur le dos des personnages féminins, et chaque femme tire son épingle du jeu dans ce travail d’ensemble.

Même si l’histoire se déroule dans les années 1960, elle demeure tellement d’actualité encore aujourd’hui. La jalousie par rapport à l’argent demeure un fléau de notre société. J’ai beaucoup aimé ce film, même si les comédies musicales ne sont habituellement pas ma tasse de thé.

Rating: ««««

Grown Ups (2010)

Genre: Comedy
Directed by: Dennis Dugan
Cast: Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, Rob Schneider
Time: 102 minutes

 

A group of five guys who were best friends and members of the basketball team back in school reunite many years later at the funeral of their former coach. Along with their respective families, they get together at the lake house where, 32 years before, they celebrated their big basketball win.

This is a sweet and fun comedy that has its comedic moments and that offers a decent message. I think that the bigger issue resides in the fact that, with such a loaded cast, most people were expecting a lot more in the side-splitting laughter department. In the end, it was a bit of a disappointment in that regard.

Rating: «««

Super (2010)

Genre: Comedy / Superhero
Directed by: James Gunn
Cast: Rainn Wilson, Elliot Page, Liv Tyler, Kevin Bacon
Time: 96 minutes

 

Frank Darbo is a short-order cook who has never had much luck in his life. When his wife, a recovering addict, leaves him for a drug dealer named Jacques, Frank decides to create a superhero character called the Crimson Bolt for himself to fight crime and get her back. The problem is that he has no special powers, so he needs a weapon.

I absolutely love the comedic tone of this film. It is dark humor, and I dig it. The characters are well defined, and the acting is pretty solid. It was easy to get emotionally involved in the story and to care to see what happened next. I loved how there was a happy ending, but not your typical Hollywoodian one.

Rating: ««««

Marquis de Sade's Justine (1969)

Genre: Drama
Directed by: Jesus Franco
Cast: Romina Power, Maria Rohm, Klaus Rohm
Time: 124 minutes

 

Locked up in the Bastilles, the Marquis de Sade is haunted by the vision of the story of Justine and her sister. So, he narrates the story as he writes it, in his cell. Justine and her sister Juliette have to leave their convent after their father’s passing. They arrive at a brothel, where they are informed that they have to work as prostitutes if they want lodging. Juliette accepts, but Justine leaves, wanting to preserve her virtuous existence. While Juliette profits greatly from her life of sin and bad deeds, Justine finds herself going from place to place subjected to all kinds of abuse.

This is a great illustration of the decadence of that Marquis de Sade’s work. The costumes and the decors are great, and the story is a compelling one, but the acitng is over-the-top in such a way that it is laughable. I always found Franco’s work entertaining, but it sure is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Rating: «««