The Return of James Battle (2004) User Reviews

Nice aliens, shame about the rest!

[BA_Harrison · 5/10 · 25 May 2006]

Atomik Circus is a crazy mix of comedy, musical, sci-fi and horror which, despite some great effects and a good deal of imagination, ultimately fails due to a poorly developed script and some bad pacing. The movie takes so long in introducing its offbeat characters that an hour passes before anything very interesting happens; by then, there isn't enough time left to develop a decent plot or even fit in a satisfying ending.

Jason Flemyng play James Battle, a stuntman who is jailed when a disastrous motorcycle jump results in the destruction of the Sam Paradiso bar, owned by Bosco, influential citizen of Skotlett, a backwater town inhabited mostly by weirdos—but also by Concia (Vanessa Paradis), Bosco's daughter and girlfriend of James.

Enter sleazy impresario Alan Chiasse (Benoit Poelvoorde) who pretends to be interested in promoting Concia's musical career, but who is really only interested in getting into her pants. As Alan is trying his best to seduce Concia, James is doing his utmost to reach his woman, having busted out of prison.

When James finally arrives at Skotlett, he not only finds his girl being pawed at by sleaze-bag Alan, but he also discovers that the town is under attack from face sucking tentacled creatures from another dimension.

The film only really gets going at this point, and it is here that we witness some great CGI monsters and lashings of gore, as the Lovecraftian beasts dismember and decapitate the helpless inhabitants of Skotlett. If the first 60 minutes had contained some of this crazy OTT action, I would have no hesitation in recommending Atomik Circus to fans of bizarre cinema; however, no amount of gore in the closing moments can make up for the tedious and disjointed first hour.

And the ending is just downright bizarre....

Half good, half bad, half insane

[udar55 · 5/10 · 26 November 2005]

That's a lot of halves! This is just your average sci-fi/musical/comedy/gore/action French film! A very bizarre mix of different things that doesn't completely gel but has some interesting moments. Jason Flyming and Vanessa Paradis (that's Mrs. Johnny Depp to you) star as two lovers who are being kept apart by a angry father in a dusty small town that is getting ready to run their annual talent show competition. Then aliens attack. You can tell the directors were trying to go for that "all out" approach like a Peter Jackson flick, but they never fully succeed. The singing dog is nice though. Benoît Poelvoorde (the hit-man from MAN BITES DOG) co-stars as a sleazy talent agent and perhaps gives the best performance.

Even if you like this type of stuff, you still may not like it.

[ElijahCSkuggs · 6/10 · 20 September 2008]

Story revolves around an escaped, die-hard romantic stuntman, a small-town singer, a sleazy businessman, a slow-witted villager who hurts his dog so he can hear it sing, and oh yeah, an alien invasion. Honestly this sounds like a pretty sweet flick. But for some reason, it just doesn't succeed in any particular area.

Atomik Circus features some good acting, especially by the dude who was the lead in Man Bites Dog, Benoit Poelvoorde. He was actually pretty memorable as the sleazy businessman who ends up suffering from an alien bite. Also, I had no clue Jason Flemyng could speak French. He didn't have really long lines, so maybe he just jumped on board because it seemed like an easy and fun role....that was probably it.

The movie had a weird vibe that reminded me of the movie Undead. Probably because it had a similar style, especially with the blood and gore. Atomik Circus had a real cooky vibe that felt like it was trying too hard to amuse the viewer. At times I was amused, by the over-the-top violence, but never really by anything jokey. The dude with the missing face, that completely fell flat.

Atomik Circus is a weird flick, and I can see many people enjoying it, and many people hating it. I'm in the middle ground because there were some good things about it, but overall it just kinda felt like a jumbled mess. Definitely a unique genre hybrid though, that's for sure. 5.5 outta 10

the deepest you can dig in the worst

[loops666 · 2/10 · 7 November 2005]

Well ... seeing it you can think that there will be something, you're saying to yourself there has to be something ... There is no! let's put it another way. You probably felt on one of those fantastic TV movies one day, the Z series ones, when you are so desperate that you are even watching it! This movie is worst than those. It looks like they tried to make one of them, but they missed the point! If they can be good sometimes, it's because they're thinking seriously of themselves and this create this unique ambiance.

Nothing like that in there.

To put a long story short, save your time, read TV magazine, DO SOMETHING ELSE! but if you really have to, then keep the remote nearby.

Yours truly ;)

worst film ever seen

[ironic0n · 2/10 · 6 September 2005]

maybe later i'll chill out and be able to judge more objectively - but with a fresh impression of just seen movie - it is definitely the worst i have ever seen. and such an impression worths sharing. any plot doesn't exist at all acting appearances are absent. including that of Vanessa Paradis - the one actress who could rise expectations. as a fiction movie, it does not meet expectations of spectacularity (do i spell right?) it makes farce of all genres, referred to it: nor horror, neither sci-fi, comedy nor adventure. the film is not one of them, rather a grotesque of itself.

may be for one exception of musical appearance of an original singer - and that's what gives to 'atomik circus' not a negative evaluation or 1(awful) but 2/10

Aliens invade a small bayou town in a not very good film that has only the monsters and some sick humor to recommend it

[dbborroughs · 3/10 · 6 May 2007]

Loser stuntman shows up at a Beef Pie Festival to jump 40 oil cans and falls in love with the organizers daughter. When the stunt goes wrong he's sent away for 130 years. Breaking out of prison he heads back to his lady love, just in time for the next Festival and an alien invasion.

Quirky and one of a kind, this riff on the sort of films that started Peter Jackson on his road to the Oscars is a love it or hate it proposition. I damn near hate the film. No where near as good as anything Jackson ever turned out, its a game attempt at something different but falls as flat as road kill. Its odd and off beat for no real reason other than to be odd and off beat (all of the characters are "characters" and have little connection to reality). At times fitfully funny, often in a cruel way, this film just seems to just want to break taboos and be strange. There are numerous musical sequences, which while fine seem to go on too long. Worse I really didn't like anyone.

The real reason to see the film is the aliens. Mostly seen as floating blips with tentacles, these are lean mean killing machines. Heads fly, blood splatters and bad jokes are cracked (I liked the conversation about how one victims face was sucked off). These are wild and wanton beasties and are almost worth the price of a rental. Unfortunately they really don't show up until the last half hour, by which point you may have turned off the movie and put on a Golden Girls rerun.

I can't recommend this film to anyone except tolerant gore hounds and monster lovers who are advised to keep the remote handy for frequent fast forwarding. Everyone else is advised to rent a Peter Jackson film instead.

3 out of 10 for the monsters and a few cruel jokes that work

a real jambalaya mix

[arsenick · 7/10 · 4 August 2005]

A former comment spoke about a jambalaya about this movie, and I think it summarizes well this UFO (Unidentified Filmed Object). The acting is wonderful and it holds the entire movie: Marielle, Flemyng, Paradis, Poolevoerde, Venantino Venantini (unexpected in this part)and also Bouli Flanners(the fat chip cop)and all the third knives of this drama. From the funny-sex-gore movies lovers, It will be very delightful. Even if some shots switching from one genre to the other (from the Belgian-french surreal movie to the Italian Z to the US Cajun gore wonder through the Spanish funny and colored fantasy) inside the same movie are not perfect and need several seconds of adaptation, this masterpiece of nonsense needs to be seen at least once, twice etc...

finally, the shooting is perfect and unexpected.

Enjoy your watching this...thing.

Pretty bad

[grantss · 3/10 · 18 November 2020]

A French alien-drama, which immediately tells you it's probably not going to be good, as French dramas tend to be random and highly pretentious. And lo, behold, it was so: Atomik Circus is craptacular. A random, pointless mess.

Started off interestingly enough but once the aliens arrive, the movie spins out of control.

Avoid.

the UFO (Unidentified Filming Object) of 2004?

[dbdumonteil · 6/10 · 7 July 2006]

This work could be the strongest contender for this title. It's incredible that the Poiraud brothers were able to find a bucketful of producers to finance their hare-brained project. Maybe because they feared to see where all the millions of Euros had gone, they didn't want to see the finished product before it opened in France in the summer 2004 and one could add in particular conditions. There were neither screenings for the specialized press in cinema nor trailers on the telly or at the movies. Personally, I remember very well when I went to see "Spider-Man 2" (2004) at the theaters. In the corridor leading to the room, I noticed a cover of the film but I didn't pay much attention at all about it. I didn't have the single inkling of the contents of the Poiraud's product. Anyway, their work was bound to disappear from the French theaters after a few weeks of screening. Commercial suicide in all its splendor which can be easily explained. How can you expect to make audiences flock to an amorphous story? At a pinch, the most curious ones might have been interested to have a look at it...

I must admit that it's not that much bad. Okay, anyone who will label this movie as a masterwork will be a liar and at first sight one would like to hammer "Atomik Circus: Le Retour De James Bataille" and to relegate it to purgatory but there are some valuable plus sides one can save from this wreckage. About the title: is it a misnomer? Given the various ingredients the Poiraud brothers put in their dish, one could agree that it's a real circus they have concocted. And what about James Bataille? Actually, one doesn't see him for nearly the half of the movie. He has just a few lines to say and the moments during which he has the meatiest part of his role finds itself at the end of the movie, especially during a fight. It is funny when one knows that Bataille means "fight" in French.

The outset of the film takes us to Skotlett, a lost dump where one wouldn't want to spend one's holidays populated with inhabitants with a redneck mentality. The tail end showcases a desert landscape which seems directly taken from "Planet of the Apes" (1968) or even a part of "Capricorn One" (1978), Peter Hyams' best effort. Between the two, two different subplots. On the one hand, Conchia (Vanessa Paradis) who is eager to take a chance in music. She's spotted by an unscrupulous manager Alan Chiasse (Benoît Poelvoorde) who's more interested in her look than her potential as an artist. On the other hand, James Bataille (Jason Fleyming) who strives to come back to Skotlett to find again her fiancée Conchia. Two conventional subplots which culminate with an invasion of aliens and it's virtually a rehash of the sci-fi of the fifties crossed with horror (there's blood galore and ripped bodies). If one plays the Poiraud brothers' game, if one accepts this unlikely mix of distinct cinematographic genres in a preposterous story, if one accepts this hustle of the narrative conventions, not taken seriously "Atomik Circus" is rather fun to watch. While reading the two subplots, one could detect something conventional in them but the directors try to thwart it through the unexpected like the alien invasion for instance. Also conventional is the final fight between Bataille and Chiasse transformed in an alien. You probably guessed the winner but the story isn't over and the predictable side of what follows is defused by an unexpected twist in the tail end.

These qualities mustn't make the lover forget that there are negative points in the Poiraud brothers'UFO. First, problems of rhythm: sluggish at the outset but wild with the carnage caused by the aliens. Then, two-bit tricks to bridge some steps of the story are difficult to swallow and the Poiraud brothers aren't virtuosos of the camera at all. There is a lot of hand-held camera, an amateur side and sometimes they botch the job. Same remark for a scenario which is sometimes ill-conceived. (The first draft encompassed many other things which weren't tapped during the shooting).

But if you're tired of walking safely in the landscape of French cinema, watch this mix of "Romeo and Juliet" and "Mars Attacks" (1996) as the press kit deemed it. It could have gained with a little more of attention and control. One last thing: the actors had fun by overplaying their characters who are real puppets. The cast includes Jean-Pierre Marielle who agreed to replace the sadly regretted Jean Yanne and I wonder what he would have done with his part. All of them said they really enjoyed the shooting and the vibe of the film and the set. You might also enjoy this film if you follow some of the possible instructions I mentioned earlier.

A must avoid - except for the few nice lines from B. Poelvoorde

[gilos · 1/10 · 21 July 2004]

This definitely stroke below my lowest move fan's expectations. Aliens strike a remote country village during a song contest. Vanessa Paradis is the village's only music talent and daughter of the bartender. Her convict boyfriend is in town after escaping from prison, so is Benoit Poelvoorde as a funky impresario on a business trip. Aliens strike and everybody dies in a pseudo-arty style, where gore meets spaghetti western. The girl and the convict land another dimension (sic) and the credits finally appear. Do yourself a favor and avoid this one. All you will miss are the few funny lines of B. Poelvoorde who once again demonstrates natural comedic talent - although not hugely different from past performances e.g. Podium, Le Vélo,...

I love it!

[johngalakdavis · 10/10 · 10 October 2005]

I just want to put some positive words about this film on IMDb because I really love it. Maybe it's not a real horror film. It's maybe just a real comedy... But I think it's a funny love story. Characters look like they come from comics, very caricatured, they don't have to speak, you know why they are here. They are all very humouristic, especially the owner of Toby.

The first time I watch it I didn't appreciate that much because shocked by the cut heads but quickly I wanted to watch another time and now I really like it.

You should try the original version, no other way to appreciate!

wonderful insanity

[LARSONRD · 7/10 · 18 January 2007]

Energetic and frequently mind-blowing excursion into manic cinema, this is a thoroughly enjoyable cross-genre science fiction tale – starts out as a love story between a backwoods wannabe rock starlet Concia (Vanessa Paradis, who has a face worth staring at for decades - damn you Johnny Depp!!) and a down-on-his-luck motorcycle stunt performer James (Brit actor Jason Flemyng); but her dad (respected French actor Jean-Pierre Marielle; aka the murdered professor from DA VINCI CODE) frames him for an accident and he goes to jail; but he escapes to try and be reunited with her. Meanwhile, face-sucking aliens land and begin decimating the populace, while in James' absence a chauvinistic entrepreneur claiming to be big in the music business tries to woo Concia with promises of stardom, while all manner of strange and warped townspeople have various activities and agendas of their own. It all explodes into an immense action climax. Filmed with hyper energy, most of its low budget spent on pretty convincing CGI effects for the aliens (I mean, they even have a mechanical dog instead of a real dog!), it's a thoroughly wonderful cinematic insanity, with something astonishing, humorous, disturbing, or very appealing at every turn.

BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD movie, BAAAAAAAAAAD

[bsinc · 2/10 · 19 November 2004]

In a nutshell - yet another french movie that has no clue as to what humor is and in frustration just exaggerates every possible thing to the point where it gets old and sh***y in less that 0.4 seconds. From a comment on IMDb I actually got the impression that similarly done movies in the 80's were actually a zhanra of its own. Spare me the explanation, please! It was one of the 5 movies I saw at the Horror Film Festival in San Sebastian this year and it was definitely the worst one. You basically just want it to end as soon as possible because it's actually just to annoying to watch. No sense or grasp of logical event timing in the movie at all, just throwing bits by bits of more and more crazy and crappy stuff at the viewer, just bad. Recommend - to people you don't like very much or if you want to impress someone with your bad taste in movies. 2/10

French Alien Rock 'n' Roll Romeo & Juliet

[ciaranok · 8/10 · 1 August 2004]

An underground French treat. A stuntman is imprisoned for accidental destruction of his fiancée's father's bar. He escapes and searches desperately for his sweetheart. A couple of things get in his way. For a start starfish-like creatures decapitate drunk revellers and face-sucking aliens abound.

This was a trip! A french take on Bayou hospitality and fight for survival had me reeling hysterically whilst the leads had me enraptured. James Fleyming speaking french like a pro! Vanessa Paradis acting naturally and singing cool tunes that created a frenetic ambiance. The jambalayic melting pot of film genres was superb.

An interesting piece of what Europe can add to the Sci-Fi genre

[KalEl · 8/10 · 16 December 2004]

I discovered this picture at a surprise showing on 2004's Sitges Film Festival, and it was a very appealing surprise. As I was completely blank about what was I going to see, it all started strange (an astronaut? But then, no, this is not an astronaut story...), then the story started to develop in very familiar tones (to me, a Spanish viewer, it echoed a mix of Alex de la Iglesia, Santiago Segura and Karra Elejalde) with the sci-fi and horror touch slowly advancing as a secondary storyline. That was one of the best ideas for the movie: not making the fantastic part the main one, but showing how a very used cinema topic (the alien invasion) affected the everyday life of a lost in the swamp "village" (although it could have been any of your back country small villages, any Western country you live in). The end was strange (there is were I got the idea of Atomik Circus being perhaps an European comic book, because both the name and the ending is very typical of European short sci-fi comic books), but the Lovecraftian reference was bot inspired and unexpected, and I loved it. All in all, an 8 (some of the acting was a bit so-so), and an enjoyable movie.

just a pure delight

[valerie-chevrot · 10/10 · 3 August 2004]

The finest genre-blend ever. An insane (in the best sense of this word) sci-fi / comedy / gore / (and more ) B movie. Both strong visual mastery and amazing human character in every shots. It is something totally new even if a lot of components are very familiar (jut like Tarantino's kill bill).

The highly inventive rock'n roll soundtrack is gorgeous. This film is so creative that you could discover new pleasures even after 100 screening...

It is just a pure delight from the first to the last frame.

*Not* the new family oriented comedy with B. Poelvoorde

[ambydupuis · 8/10 · 11 August 2004]

Well the only problem of this movie is the marketing campaign, it has been sold as the latest comedy in town, and it is one of the first gore Z-rated movie in a very long time.

Compare it to Bad Taste, any horror flick from the 50's, or eventually to a Troma movie (there is nothing like lesbian-vampire-sex scene in this one). If you like those things, you'll agree that while this movie does not renew the genre and is only a sort of modern version of those oldies, we haven't seen this kind of things since the mid-eighties.

Amazing that someone financed this stuff in 2004 (but rumors say that producers signed the contract based on the actors and did not read the first drafts...)

10/10 !

love or hate movie

[tristan-57 · 10/10 · 8 March 2005]

Not the usual movie, it belongs to this kind of movie that you love or hate. I belong to the first category.

Definitivly worth a try. Someones rightfully mentioned bad taste - been a long time i have not heard about that movie - and while the two movies are rather different, they both belongs to the comedy/horror genre.

I found myself laughing a lot watching the movie, and being surprised every here and there by references i would have not expected to found (i'm not going to spoil but there are many).

Benoit is just excellent as an abusing impresario and despite i found Vanessa acting not as good, she shines as a singer and the overall ambiance and story had hooked enough to come here to comment about it.

While i think this movie deserve a notation around 7-8 i gave him a 10 to balance the love/hate effect that lead many to gave it a 1.

Under-rated film

[BayHarbourButcher · 10/10 · 2 July 2007]

I am surprised that people have rated this film at a measly 5 out of 10 on average ( my own rating is a solid 7 out of 10 & I only very rarely rate a movie higher than 7) - IMO its a "gem in the rough" i.e. it has its flaws (such as the weird ending that felt like it was only one half of the movie) but to counter that it has many redeeming features such as originality of script, decent acting and camera-work, some hilarious moments (e.g. the fake singing dog), some great b-movie gore and special effects etc ... - the flying alien "shrub" monsters with tentacles capable of decapitating (or sucking the face off) any unfortunate sole to encounter them were some of the coolest and most original B-movie monsters I've seen for quite a while - comes highly recommended in my book

A good kind of insane

[Heislegend · 8/10 · 31 May 2011]

This movie is just about impossible to fit into a genre, and that's pretty much a good thing. If you've ever seen the Japanese movie Wild Zero (which is also awesome), then it kind of helps to understand this movie. It's a bit of absurd comedy, action/thriller, and horror. The great thing is how abruptly it transitions between the genres and yet still have it work.

Any sort of breakdown of the plot would not really do it justice. The essential bit is a strange group of beings from another dimension invading a small town. But there's so much more in terms of sub plots and the film explores them just as much. The end is a bit of a let down, but the rest of the ride is just a ton of fun if for no other reason than it's so crazy.