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Showing posts from 2014

Diana

More than an elegant portrait of Lady Di's last years, this product resembles a cheap adaptation from a mediocre Harmony novel. Naomi, what have you done? Mark: 5 / 10

The Normal Heart

From a 1985 theatrical play, a moving and somewhat interesting HBO movie. Not entirely developed, in my opinion. And the co-producer Ruffalo should have renounced to the main role. Mark: 6.5 / 10

Movie 43

It's so excessive and disturbing that it ends to be dull and completely, madly, frantically useless. One of the worst movies I've ever seen. Indeed. And don't tell me I haven't properly understood it: it's rubbish. Mark: 2 / 10

Maleficent

Despite my skepticism, the overall weak reception by the majority of specialized journalists, and the risks of a complete reinterpretation of the so well-known fairytale, this movie is a gem. The mad king and the inept fairies are unmissable, as well as the unique Angelina. Mark: 8 / 10

The Croods

Enjoyable, witty and somewhat original version of a sort of mixture among The Flintstones, Avatar and Ice Age. Way better than the super-praised Frozen. Mark: 7.25 / 10

Frozen

The highest-grossing animated film of all time? The fifth highest-grossing film of all time? Are you serious??? Oh please... This movie, though technically extraordinary, is nothing more than the usual feel-good Disney cartoon. And the snowman is not funny at all. Mark: 6.25 / 10

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

"I am fire... I am... death!" "What have we done?" - These are the last lines of a sort of connection chapter between the beginning and the end of an extremely ground on adaptation of a pretty short book. The result: impressive but frayed. Mark: 6.75 / 10

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2

Wow, almost four months passed since my latest post... I'm coming back with a pretty negative review: the second chapter of this animated feature franchise is chaotic and redundant, and has no traces of originality. And it's not better than the (nothing more than acceptable) first movie. Mark: 5 / 10

Don Jon

Agreeable, pretty funny, somewhat witty comedy (with a glimpse of drama) presented by a very sexy and talented Gordon-Levitt. Simplistic ending, but an overall appreciated effort. Mark: 6.5 / 10

Beautiful Creatures

Way far from being pretentious (though Jeremy Irons and Emma Thompson are somewhat underused), it's a pleasant divertissement adapted from a successful novel. Ehrenreich is pretty good. Mark: 6 / 10

Her

The beginning is way beyond promising, the overall result is pretty satisfactory. The most remarkable flaw comes with the excessive duration and the urge to explain every single detail. Great performance by Joaquin Phoenix. Mark: 8 / 10

Dallas Buyers Club

It's not an unforgettable movie, nor a bad or weak one. It's a survival battle, strong and believable, extremely well acted and properly adapted. McConaughey is really impressive. Mark: 7.75 / 10

American Hustle

Undoubtedly a great (and partially trustworthy) depiction of the Abscam scandal, with a magnificent cast and a pretty solid script adaptation. Mark: 8.25 / 10

Blue Jasmine

Some plot stretchings and a somewhat weak script do not affect the overall quite positive effect of Woody Allen's latest effort. Cate Blanchett is simply grandiose. Mark: 7.25 / 10

Philomena

A little, magnificent gem. Unmissable. Mark: 8.75 / 10