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Reviews
La vie d'Adèle (2013)
A lesbian soft core porno that has been done to death before!
I am totally floored, flabbergasted, and struck beyond belief as to why this lesbian porno won the much coveted Palme D'Or! Either the jury was all made up of lesbians or the French LGBT took the jury to an orgy where they smoked the best pot on the planet and convinced them to vote while still high. I can't explain otherwise why this cliché lesbian coming of age story about a woman exploring her sexuality and emotions can win the prestigious award. This film is so slow, so boring, so predictable, so has-been-done-before that it boggles the mind that someone actually thought it out, wrote it down in script format, and then convinced someone else that it was a good idea to make it into a movie, then convinced an investor to sink his money into this utterly pointless exercise in futility, a very mundane lesbian story with no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
And someone should have told the director, Mr. Kechiche, that there was something called "editing" where you actually cut out the scenes that don't add anything to the story, like people sitting down to eat dinner every 10 minutes, and talking about stuff that is completely irrelevant to the story. Or that scenes of dancing were so tediously long, or that the love scenes are so boring and emotionless, and that I could watch much better sex on redtube. And here is a question, why did Abdellatif Kechiche make a movie about lesbians again? Is he gay or does he enjoy watching two women go at it so much that he decided to turn his fantasy into cinema? Over the past twenty years there has been a deluge of lesbian themed movies all pretty much preaching the same stuff... girl confused about her emotions, girl tries boys, girl doesn't like boys, girl tries girls, girl loves girls, girl is torn, confused, falls in love, cheats, etc, etc. The theme of this film has been done to death, and I have watched much better lesbian movies than this one that were never even shown in theaters let alone won the Palme D'Or. You just have to check Netflix or any DVD store, or Amazon for lesbian themed movies and you will see a plethora or them, many much better than this French bore that has more scene of people eating and dancing than anything else. And four hours long? I completely understood why Lawrence of Arabia and Intolerance were four hours long, but this lesbian porno? Excusez moi, c'est vraiment too much! My advice, your life would be better off skipping this film in theaters. Wait until it comes to Netflix, or to a DVD store near you. And when it does, skip it and watch something else.
P.S. Don't be fooled by the 8 stars this film has received, they're probably all from the gay and lesbian community.
L'ennemi intime (2007)
BRILLIANT Film-making!
This film is nothing short of "brilliant." "L'ennemi Intime" is set in French-occupied Algeria in 1959 at the height of the insurgency. A French platoon is sent deep into enemy territory to find and liquidate the head of the insurgents called Slimane. Lieutenant Terrien, a novice and a humanist, is given charge of the platoon after its commander is accidentally killed by friendly fire. "L'ennemi Intime" is a little bit like "The Battle of Algiers" but set in the mountains of Kabylie (Berber territory in Algeria). I first saw it at the Dubai Film Festival in December 07 and was completely blown away by it. It is so gripping and visceral. The film is an incredible commentary on the inhumanity of war; how not matter how innocent and good one goes to war he is almost certain to become a beast and a murderer in the end. I highly recommend this film. Every soldier who is about to be deployed to a war zone should watch Ennemi Intime. Its simplest message is that war corrupts the human soul and there are no winners once the shooting stops.
Goodbye Baby (2007)
Great Performances!
This film is a very good example of how a well-written, well-directed and technically good film can carry more punch than a lot of Hollywood heavy-hitters. Some of the cast members have appeared in TV shows (such as The Sopranos and CSI: Miami) but most are practically unknown. Take Christine Evangelista, the female lead, she alone amazingly carries the film. Her performance is simply Oscar worthy and I am not exaggerating (note: I don't know her nor know anyone associated with this film). The directing is very smooth and unobtrusive. The cinematography is plain great. Every single actor in this film shines. I was pleasantly surprised by the cast. It's a drama worthy of a film festival Best Picture and Best Ensemble Cast prizes. Kudos to everyone involved in this very fine film.
The Ultimate Game (2001)
Excellent Martial Arts Film!
This film was shot on a shoe-string budget from what I heard. During production, the producers faced some monumental odds that included location problems, actors not showing up or bailing out of the shoot to do other projects, crew members showing up late, etc, but they persevered and got the film in the can. The post-production was even worse as the production sound turned out to be so bad that the director had to ADR the whole film, and then he faced serious problems trying to get the actors to show up and read their lines. Anyone would have quit but he did not. It took him close to two-years to edit picture and sound and he had to contend with whatever he could get. During production, the producers planned to shoot the climatic scene on the beach with a helicopter and machine guns but then one of the main characters (who will remain unnamed) did not show up. On the spot, the directors had to think quickly and rewrite the script, scrapping the helicopter shot.
So, with that in mind, it is true the first act of this film is a bit slow for the MTV generation raised on 15-second commercials, but once it shifts gear, it's a non-stop action heart-thumping thriller to the very end. The fight scenes are simply amazing! Very-well shot, very-well choreographed and brilliantly edited. I highly recommend this film to all martial arts fans. Check it out, it's worth your time!
Alexander (2004)
I really enjoyed watching Alexander!
I have not seen the film since it opened in 2004. The main reason was the very bad reviews I read mainly from movie-goers. After reading reviews from critics it cemented my opinion that I should wait for the DVD. But when the DVD came out, even then I failed to watch the film. The wind was taken out of my sails and I simply forgot about Alexander. Then I met Oliver Stone at a film festival and heard him speak passionately about Alxander. He told the audience that the Director's Cut was very good and everyone should watch it. And so finally I did. However, as the film started I had a deep sense of mistrust and prejudice (I still thought that 90% of movie-goers and critics can't possibly be wrong). Then came the surprise. I was really pleasantly surprised to have enjoyed watching the film. Although I admit that it dragged at times and the relationship between Alexander and his parents on the one hand and his bisexual lover on the other was a little overbearing, I still thought that triumvirate was necessary to make Alexander want to go forward and prove both his mom and dad wrong. That was the emotional backbone of the story. If Stone only focused on the military conquests he would have made a different film. This one has emotional depth and grit. On the other hand, I thought Colin Farrell was not up to the part. He played it way too laid back and conciliatory. He was too soft and at times feminine. But then he was wise and knew how to treat his conquered enemies. It was a tough part to play and he did a decent job (If I were Stone, I would have cast Jason Patric, who in my mind is one of the most under-appreciated actors in Hollywood). All and all, this was a very difficult subject matter and I truly think Oliver Stone did a great job at giving us his version of Alexander's life. As to the criticism regarding various accents, makeup, etc, I think they are baseless and petty. I thought the accents worked pretty well since the film was shot in English. I realized that a lot of the people didn't like the film watched it to find fault or had certain expectations that were not met. After all, Alexander the Great is widely known throughout history and there is so much written about him that what we know about him could be mostly myth. We envision him as a superb military commander with super human traits when in fact he was a human being who had many flaws. Kudos to Oliver Stone for sticking to his guns and making a film that, though not appreciated in its time, will certainly make future more sophisticated and smarter audiences (not the ones who rush to watch Blades of Glory and Spiderman 1,2,3) much happier and more appreciative.