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La Casa de Papel (2017)
Season 1 good! Season 2 excellent!! Season 3 meh...
Excellent new concept.
Season 1 is a kind of enjoyable warm-up.
Season 2 has many explosive fun moments! Definitely "bingeable"!
All in all, S1 and S2 are a lot of enjoyable fun.
Sure, some plot holes, but La Casa de Papel never pretended to be dead serious!
This is a take-it-easy show, as the "incredible" that is happening is fortunately
forgotten thanks to riveting scenes and action. 9/10.
Season 3 : euh... what happened?
Netflix took over from S3, is that the Netflix effect?
Did the authors think "Ok, Netflix poured so much money in this, we don't need to care anymore"?
S3 looks like La Casa went from fun and original to just... industrial. This is basically a remake of S1 ; but a lot doesn't make sense at all ; while S3 tries its best to stir up feelings, that doesn't work as much of it is anticipable, and, unfortunately, not interesting.
Hopefully S4 will better? As good as S2?
Un monde sans pitié (1989)
A very well made societal portrait of the 1989 France
Hippo and Nathalie, an unlikely couple in Paris. She is a top gun student. He resembles a loser. So different... Actually, really different? This is what Eric Rochant portrays brilliantly in one of his early movies. On one side stands Society with its practical and economical rules. On the other side is life, simply. Love, tricks to subsist in a society obsessed with the economy. Will Hippo success in his attempt to bring Nathalie closer to his simpler life?
Living with Yourself (2019)
Very bad script!
Paul Rudd is a great actor. And the global idea is interesting.
Unfortunately the script, dialogue, scenario all appear to come from a cheap computer algorithm. Bad making, timings, interaction between characters... "Living with yourself" tries hard to fit what makes a comedy, but it's hardly funny. The authors should have chosen a more "serious" path, adding some funnier moments here and there.
Aren't these authors watching Breaking Bad or Game of Thrones to get the most basic idea of what makes a show solidly interesting?
Dirty John (2018)
Go past the first 2 episodes
Very watchable from episode 3.
Connie Britton plays elegantly that 50 years old beautiful woman who falls in love with Dirty John.
Eric Bana plays convincingly John the sociopath, whom past life is unveiled gradually.
The negative reviewers probably stopped after the first episode ; though there are interesting developments after the characters have been introduced in the beginning.
I must agree, the two daughters are annoying when they talk ; they might have been "forced" to speak with an "OC" accent.
Terra (Julia Garner) is more bearable in the excellent "The Americans".
All in all not a bad show, gripping at times, and a rather good making.
Fast Five (2011)
Finally, a good F&F
I watched the first Fast and Furious, a few years ago (2001), and was very disappointed. This was the typical arrogant action-i-am-stronger-than-you-bunch-of-high-fives-with- muscular-hands-absent-script movie. For me, the F&F series would end at that number one.
But yesterday, intrigued by the 7.3 IMDb rating of F&F 5, I decided to give that movie a chance. And... action, action and action. Nicely done. Beautiful, amazing and, even, the unexpected: the movie has a lot of originality!
The first action scene is absolutely fantastic, and literally breathtaking. And the one near the end... I can just say amazing... while I'd like so much to talk about it - but this comment would be flagged as spoiler. Not only that scene belongs to the "never seen before" category, but also it was filmed from the right angles, and it looks real (maybe it is!).
The script is not from Agatha Christie, of course, and one may anticipate and guess some of the developments during the movie, find a few plot holes, but, clearly, this is not what you want from the movie. It is more than watchable thanks to the amazing action scenes, and the brilliant making that seized the most from those scenes.
Finally, Brazil, the Brazilians and the Favelas add a lot to the atmosphere, colors and photography. This is also why the movie looks "different".
If you need to get some more energy, to get 120% woken up, ready to run / work / whatever, watch that movie ; this is far more efficient than an energy drink!
The Mechanic (2011)
Not the usual Statham, but is bad?
People used to Transporter (and the like) are gonna get a surprise in this movie. Jason Statham plays a professional killer the true, serious and credible way. The kind of role that is usually reserved to the "elite" actors of this kind of film genre, like Bruce Willis or more recently Matt Damon. The Mechanic gives Statham the legitimacy he deserves to play the same role in place of such actors.
In the Transporter Statham plays a hero in a movie where nothing, no situation and nobody is really taken seriously. The charismatic actor injects a lot of humor that matches perfectly his character.
In the Mechanic, we have a still charismatic actor who plays a serious role that doesn't allow the same humorous attitude. While some elements are predictable, the script is not bad, and even offers much originality. Also, Donald Sutherland plays remarkably the killer's mentor.
All in all, this is an enjoyable movie.
Transporter 3 (2008)
Unexpectedly good!
Ready to watch an average entertaining movie, I didn't expect to see the best of the Transporter sequels.
For once the script has been designed carefully, action and fight scenes happen logically, there is true suspense and we believe in the story. This is not the regular high-budget low-brained film we have been taught to expect.
Valentina (Natalya Rudakova) has a nice touch of "Nikita", and plays wonderfully the captive girl half romantic, half moving. A very promising actress. Jason is excellent as usual, and, for once, gets his performance highlighted thanks to a riveting story. Fight scenes have something from the legendary Jason (Bourne) movies. Camera effects give fights some necessary depth, compared to other movies.
The best of Luc Besson back at work.
Do not pay too much attention to the low rating: It looks like the Transporter aficionados - used to pure raw action/no story "Chuck Norris" like - were disappointed. Well, this is probably the best thing that could happen to this movie: Transporter 3 definitely got its level upgraded and targets a different audience.
My advice to the producer: keep on the good work, and create a new movie based on the same pattern, but just don't name it "Transporter 4", so that you don't disappoint the "Missing in action" fans.
Waitress (2007)
Misandrists will love the movie
It is refreshing to view new faces from time to time. I like "Waitress" for that: a decent movie that tells an interesting story based on original ideas where not-that-famous actors play.
Russell and Sisto do really a good job. They are convincing and rightfully cast for their respective role.
So, where is the problem?
While the editing of the film is "funny" at times, the script is the problem. In several places the situations are irrelevant, not credible. The reactions of the people are often ridiculous. And men act strange...
The message intended from the director becomes quickly very clear: simply put, she hates men. From half of the movie it appears clearly that the director is a woman, and during the second half, it becomes obvious she must have some sort of revenge to take on men...
I liked the ending though and gave the movie a 6 instead of 5.
Serving Sara (2002)
M.Perry saves the movie
This movie is originally based on some good ideas. And many elements of it are not so predictable.
But, unfortunately the direction and the script are so bad, that all in all, the average result is a rather clumsy movie. Most of the actors do a lousy job (direction problem) and the lines do not match well the situations.
Nevertheless, thanks to Matthew Perry the movie is still watchable: 1. His enjoyable jokes, à la Friends. 2. His perfect play. 3. His match with E.Hurley.
Elisabeth Hurley is also enjoyable (and so sexy...).