Change Your Image
leplatypus
- wherever the place
- whatever the support
- to share my experience with others
- to share the other experiences
- because movies are art
- because art is life
- because movies are travels for home: we sit but we go to faraway places, meet new people, discover other cultures
- i like writing
- it is sort of a legacy: i leave something behind me
- for people to know me better because reviews are always subjective: when we speak about a movie, we speak about ourselves....
AND FOR SURE, I DON'T FORGET THAT --- LIFE IS A MOVIE WITH A BAD ENDING ---
*** After 2000 viewings ***
They come from: 545 WEB (27%); 438 DVD (22%); 251 TV (13%); 219 RENTAL (11%); 161 SCREEN (8%); 130 VHS (7%); 106 PAYTV (5%); 41 DAD (2%); 37 VIDEOGAMES (2%); 33 CINEMATHEQUE (2%); 32 STICKER (1%) and 7 HOTEL (0%)
*** Since then ***
Having stopped writing reviews at 1300, i now stop the substitute ongoing list at 700.
I focus on my 12 (6+6) TRAMPOLINE (*) ARTITS LISTS: I would like to have 100% in " Titles I have seen " for each of them.
(*) i called them TRAMPOLINE because when i'm down, any of their movies can get me up again!
I understand that some title would be impossible to watch because they are just unavailable > those ones will become the leftover on my WATCHLIST.
Note that for a TV SHOW with multiple seasons, i rate only the best episode from each season and i put " SEEN " over the other ones.
*** At last ***
I have now a clear definition of my QUARANTINE LIST:
1) the "patient" is related to AWFUL-OVERRATED NAMES: examples > a director WOODY ALLEN, an actor BRAD PITT, an actress NICOLE KIDMAN , the son of, the daughter of, well the FAMILY business, the same name, generations after generations, with the talent decreasing over time (LILY ROSE DEPP for example)...
2) the "patient" has a DREADFUL PLOT: examples > BIOPIC, movie about MOVIES, CHEATING, NIGHTLIFE, BRACED PRIDE ...
3) the "patient" comes from HIGH-UP : examples > French BOBO, renowned ARCHITECT, skillfull DOCTOR, talented ADVOCATE, successful ARTIST, POTUS, ROYAL, MONEYBAG, FASHION, ...
4) the "patient" is highly VIOLENT and carries a GUN in the poster: examples > MILITARY, COP and other ARMED FORCES, OLD WEST, KUNG-FU and other VIGILANTES...
5) the "patient" is either too SHORT : examples > a music video, a video game, a sketch movie, just a extra, a member of a XXL casting, ... or too TALL : examples > a multi years TV SHOW, ...
6) the "patient" is for DIMWIT : examples > animals ANIMATION, endless SEQUELS, useless PREQUELS, stupid REBOOTS, ...
7) the "patient" is terminally ILL : examples > CANCER, DRUGS, BOOZE, GENETIC DISORDER …
8) the patient has the JAUNDICE, just the awful BLUE-YELLOW colors grading with people being SMURFS at night and intensively TANNED in daylight !
in other words, MY BEST MOVIES are about the SIMPLE, ORDINARY PEOPLE, THE LOST ONES, THE BATTERED ONES, …. « the tired, the poor, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched, the homeless, the tempest-tossed » © Liberty Enlightening the World ---
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the last 700 RIP-VIEWS buried by new IMDB
Reviews
Morning live: Episode dated 4 September 2000 (2000)
"Le pire du Morning Live" (vhs) (dvd) (dvdr)
I'm surprised to not find this compilation on IMDb. Actually, those DVDs are a best-of this show running for 5 hours of footage. There's no editing because it's a collage of a tons of bit. The menu is very long to load and as most French DVD, there aren't subtitles for french deafs or foreigners!
Right now, the show isn't "live" anymore and if the DVD are still funny, a lot of the show appeal is lost because it was made to be appreciated live: it was news, with music videos, with guests, panelists and gags. By the way, it has never been "Morning" for me either because i was never awake for 6-9 in the morning. I usually watched this on its rerun the afternoon on the satellite channel "Fun TV" while working for the exams to my actual job. Thus, i remember to laugh a lot and I thank all the production for that! They made me what i am today!
In my opinion, Youn and his buddies really reinvented humor in TV. It's not intellectual for sure but their trash is very jubilant: they did what no one before them done! In addition being some overgrown teens, they are also fine actors. Youn has really talent to play a lot of different characters! They are also good at songwriting because hits like "Stash-Stash" or "Fous ta cagoule" are good to listen and make laugh too!
Now, that i'm working and that i have to get up the morning, i wish i could find them again to start my day with a happy smile on my face!
Histoire(s) de la télévision: Episode #1.1 (1990)
S1990 - P2 - mourning (dad)
3 months after Bruno's death and the cancellation of ABCD, Les Nuls came back to NPA with a recorded fiction...For me, it's the best Nuls production because for one time, they deliver a fine package with a backbone: the TV history and the family dinner. The two settings are hilarious (the sexual life of elephants!) and innovative, totally enhanced by a deep knowledge of visual language: the family TV focusing attention, they can spoof any period of TV (black and white, color) and it looks like the real thing (Flipper the worm)... For sure, it's also for them and their fans a healthy way to go on after a tragic loss and the solidarity they show as a family is bigger than the TV...
30 for 30: Survive and Advance (2013)
Basketball & Courage (paytv)
So far the only thing i knew about the late Jim Valvano was that when my home basketball team CSP Limoges became European Champion under the coaching of Bozidar Maljkovic, medias said that it was the best coaching ever since this NCAA tournament 1983 won by Jim.
With this documentary, you have indeed a great resume of this NC state team winning all games in the last seconds. Beyond the athletic achievement, what's extremely good here is that you have the original footage of the games plus the gathering of the team decade later. It's just beautiful because you can touch what sports is about and especially basketball. It's an epic journey with teammates helping and believing and sharing a bond that lasts forever. They did something unique and they have this joy every day.
But, the documentary achieves greatness because it offers in parallel the biography of Jim who died from cancer at a young age. Born from Italian parents, he was proud of his roots and what a guy he was: funny, easy to talk, imaginative, caring and for sure, courageous: when cancer broke him down, he managed to get up when needed to deliver very moving speech and visiting his old players. And the big surprise was that all along, his best friend was Coach K, the best ever USA basketball coach (a winning streak of 83 winning games!) and you understand why: the duo had amazing beliefs, deep human fundamentals.
Honestly, I like Phil Jackson, Jordan and the Bulls. But Jim was like a divine shooting star and this documentary pays him an amazing homage and ranks as the best biopic ever, beyond sports and hoops. A must see to get your life back in track!
Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces (2014)
*** 800th review *** An unexpected (new) journey (web) : « The missing pieces »
Well, for 20 years, Twin peaks was finished : no third season, no new movie, no bonus. But, lately, « it's happening again ». First, we got this release of all the famous material that was cut for the movie and next year we will have new episodes !
About this deleted / extended scenes, my first reaction is to wonder why IMDb doesn't treat it like a true and real movie. It had a theatrical projection, it has credits and its duration (91 min) worths it ! Such opportunity is really exceptional and totally never seen before: it's like we have a new movie by itself. Sure, there's no plot in the traditional sense because it's above all cut branches of a tree but it worths watching and it's better to have that than nothing ! At first, i thought it would be a mess but Lynch has made the effort to put the scenes in order so it's really easy to follow what happens. Do the pieces reveal mystery ? Not really in the way that you can discover them literally by reading the FWWM script ! If a lot of them don't forward the story, at least, they bring the mood, the feeling of that particular little town. I really don't know other TV shows in which we follow so closely what happened in those family houses (except maybe some King's novels adaptations).
Finally, i'm very blessed because i'm among the few who discovers Twin Peaks with FWWM. It's because it spoke to me, it punched me that I watched the show after and it was indeed a unique experience. To retrace own steps with such a release now is definitely a new experiment as well and i really wonder what will be the new show about as its main villain (bob) has already left our world while he was the big winner of the last moments of this show !!!!
The Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour: Vampire Bats and Scaredy Cats (1977)
Scooby DVD, where are you ? (DVDR)
This show is from a CD-Video that i collected in cereals boxes dated from the first movie release. In fact, I got all the 4 different boxes but I am pretty sure that I didn't eat all the cereals!
If the X-files were the mystery show of my College years, Scooby was the one from my school years. It was broadcast every Wednesday afternoon on the first channel. But I don't recall to have been a great fan then: my preference went to Goldorak! By then, I remember it was a cool mix between horror and fun and that the stories kept repeating: a mystery, some monsters, then clues and the solving and arrest of mere crooks
Then, I discovered it again while a trainee in Belgium in 2002! This time, the shows were seen every morning and I realized that it was really crazy: a lot of great laughs made me become a Scooby addict! In 2003, after I visited the Warner bros park in Madrid, I came back with a real size soft toy Scooby! I saw the first movie at its release!
One of my dreams would to see all the classic cartoons but they aren't released in France in DVD! That's why I bought cereals box! If the other shows are 1.11:"A Gaggle of Galloping Ghosts", 1-13: "Which Witch is Which?", 1-17: "That's Snow Ghost"), I choose 2-2: "Vampire Bats and Scaredy Cats" because it was the best: all the things that makes Scooby, maybe the best cartoon ever, are there: the 70 colorful fashion, the classic cast (plus Scrappy!) and art
Scooby is really a deep character because he is easily afraid but terribly bold, dumb but brilliant and I just like the running sequences and all the crazy gags! Have you got that with Disney or Looney tunes? I don't think so.
Ciel mon mardi!: Episode dated 10 May 1988 (1988)
Oh my god! My Tuesday! (DVD)
If the title is silly in English, in French, it's funny because "Husband" is written closely to "Tuesday" ("Mari" & "Mardi")! This was the first popular talk-shows when French TV turned private in the 1980'S with channels like TF1, Canal +, La Cinq, M6.
It was my teenage years but I actually never watched this particular show. It was later that its host, Christophe Dechavanne, becomes my favorite, with his fun, honesty and compassion for people.
So, the DVD was a great pleasure for me because it allowed me to witness how Dechavanne built his "legend" and it brings back nostalgia of this creative French TV period!
WrestleMania XXVI (2010)
I catch the mania (TV)
This is the first program I wanted to watch with my brand new TV: as often with me, I evolved from Stone Age to XX century at once: for example, my computer went from Windows 95 to XP. There, I leave a 15 inches TV to a full 47, so my screen gets nearly 8 times bigger!
I choose this wrestling show to welcome it for several reasons: I remember that my grandfather watched the french broadcast a very long time ago, that my father watched it on Canal + on Saturday nights (Hulk Hogan, Andre the giant,..) and now it's a hobby that I share with the kid. In fact, that's him who falls first with cards and I followed him. One year ago, I couldn't name any wrestlers whereas now, I can recognize Bastita, Undertaker, Mark Henry,CM Punk It's a good show for kids because they are introduced with the violence of the world on a light dose and with morality: there are rules for the fights and you can tell why there are bad guys and good guys! Those wrestlers are role models for kids and I applause when I see they participate in reading challenge (actually, our sports models in France go to hookers!).
In addition, it is scripted like a show, with cliffhangers, suspense, comedy and artistic wardrobes and names! On a different level, I admit that I envy those wrestlers because they are strong, in perfect health while my body is weak and tired. I have always fantasied about having my soul in a bigger, taller body just to see if people would behave differently. That would be a great experience to define what are we? To go back to the ring, if the fights are great (and sometimes funny), it's a pity that it isn't more sports oriented. I don't understand how the games are chosen, how many belt are there and we can't figure how many fights, win, loses have made the wrestlers.
Beginning with WrestleMania XXVI, we will see how up I go....
World's Busiest Train Station: Episode #1.4 (2013)
Destination Shinjuku, the XYZ board of City Hunter (tv)
I discovered this station by reading the wonderful mangas of Tsusaka Hojo: indeed, the station is a favorite location in his work. Thus, this documentary offers me the opportunity to get a real look at this place and i must admit that Hojo draws very accurately those platforms. Then, as it's Japan, i get attentive as this country really puzzles me and in addition, i can also compare cultures as my hometown Paris houses the biggest station in Europa ("Gare du Nord"). So, as the documentary wants to follow an entire day and starts at 01.00 am with the intervention of the cleaning team, I notice at once a big shift: here, the workers are dressed with care and they seem to be very proud of this thankless job. The other big difference is that the station looks clean, modern, high-tech and shiny whereas mine is dark, tidy, and out of time. We could also say that Japanese people seems calm and french people are noisy but quickly, i realize that their dedication serves a rather inhuman system. Agents are wake up by automatized beds, passengers are pushed like fish in a can, punctuality is evaluated in seconds, one single station for thousands people, workers live faraway. It's like urbanization going mad: the city appears to not be any more at the will of men bur rather to twist men to its needs: Maybe the documentary is maybe biased but i can understand why Japan has the highest rate of suicides and if my actual life is a bit empty, at least, my environment isn't so totally blind!
Tre kronor: Avsnitt 64 (1997)
3 crowns for my queen (web)
Noomi is simply my favorite best Nbr 1 actress of all time and forever ! So i'm happy to see as much of her works as I can because if the productions change, she stays (nearly) the same. Here, according to IMDb, it's her baptism with her most early work when she was 18 ! I saw a compilation of 9 minutes of her Lucinda character and as it's in Swedish i can't understand what they say : I understood that with her friend Gina, they were runaway stealing purses to find money until they are taken in charge by a girl working in a burger restaurant ! There she becomes part of a girl group, Las Chikas, and she will be finally found by her parents ! We had a similar show in France for teenagers but it was more comedy and always happening in the same bar for costs production : here there are outdoors scene : In a way, the places and sets look different from what i know of this country when i go to Malmo. Noomi is great as she is very natural and dressed with ordinary clothes. As usual, she has a particular hairstyle with long brown hair tied with a sort of bandanna and she is really into her scenes ! Great start Noomi !
Le j.T.N.: Episode dated 3 May 1988 (1988)
S1988 - Un Nain Connu (dad)
With this 1st year of NPA with Philou, Canal + invented the big, long show live each evening while all others channels bored us with sitcoms, news or games! So my family stuck to it and indeed i remember Les Nuls action, announced by this cheap opening credits of a bouncing earth! With that, Les Nuls found their best formula that will be used over and over by others (Guignols, Inconnus,..): spoof news, spoof ads, spoof TV shows, spoof clips, spoof movies, funny weather and live songs (Omelette, Werhmacht choir, Mizou-Mizou)... They found also their team of 4 with the arrival of Dominique Farrugia! It was hilarious, provocative (Hassan Cehef, Royal Rabbin, Petit suicide), technically amazing and with a love for movies and just fun that was contagious!
Lady Boss: Episode #1.1 (1992)
Her screenplay is like her novels : repetitive, boring and a bit addictive (web)
For me, Collins is a true pen name because she invented an exciting formula but unfortunately, she has this only recipe and the moment you have tested it, all her work is the same : Hollywood life, mega stars, stars on the decline, disturbing past, criminal plots, couples on the edges, steamy meetings
So, everything is here in this « Lady Boss ». With two episodes of 90 minutes, i don't think she has cut a lot of pages from her novel and the movie is really sluggish and very talkative all the more than she has a lot of characters under her belt.
But, it's Hollywood life, with mansions we can never enter or live inside whatever we work all our life and it's about people who are free of any material cares and paradoxically who don't realize their chance !
The best quality of this movie is young Kim Delaney, who was thin at this time ! Before long seasons of « NYPD Blue » in which she stuck to Grey pants and deep concern, it was great to see her dress lightly and smiles ! In addition, she was the perfect pick to be the boss as she seems indeed to be a woman who can really take charge !
Faut pas rêver: Episode dated 23 July 2010 (2010)
With Patricia, on the contrary! (web)
For 2 seasons (2009-2011), my favorite French reporter, Patricia Loison was the host. Unfortunately, I missed all her shows then as I discovered her with her next assignment on late news. Right now, I just found 2 episodes of her world travel: Laos - Japan.
It's true that the inside documentaries are pretty boring (long monologues without Patricia about uninteresting, tidbits of the country folklore) but as soon as Patricia comes back, the show is truly great: Pat is a smiling, cool, respectful, funny, witty reporter and it's a great time following her steps and meeting the locals. In Laos, I liked when she wanted to go to the temple top, head protection or not. In Japan, she was a pink panther in a sea of black dresses Japanese so she was easy to target!
I admit that beyond her skills and charm, Pat won me over by her story: She was left in a Indian orphanage and had been adopted by French couple. With love and work, she achieved a tremendous success in her life and she really communicates her joy of living! Congratulations Pat !
ABCD Nuls: Pleurnisher (1989)
S1990 - P1 - a death in the family (dad)
Les Nuls came back in NPA for this new season 1989-1990 with a funny concept that gave them less work: no news anymore just dictionary ones (A as ...), with the usual spoofs! Everything was cool, hilarious (Lapin Compris, Where do babies come from?)... until fate strikes: B shirt died suddenly and the show stops... We miss you, Bruno!
Objectif: Nul: The End (1987)
*** 30th anniversary *** a new TV (dad)
For me, 1987 is a benchmark year for TV as we finally got Canal +, the 1st french Pay TV: Awesome movies every day at every hour and an original evening with something else than boring, liturgical news... After our dinner that was finished around 20PM, we watched the game Starquizz and that's why we never saw the birthday of Les Nuls who were aired just before.
Our french Monty Pyhton, SNL invented the very short comedy pastille just before the news evening and with that, they revolutionize french TV! Honestly, this lost in space, star trek, alien spoof is not that funny but really well done... However when they do their own stuff with false ads, they are too much...
On the DVD compilation, l'Intregule, there is the episode about mermaids (bad) and another one about a What if featuring classic directors and it's much better...
Les Guignols de l'Info: Putain 15 ans! (2003)
Putain, je suis partagé (vhs) - (dvd)
I got a love / hate feeling towards this show.
Love, because it's funny and subversive. In other words, it brings to light the hidden and dark motives of the people who are in command of our civilizations: the world company, the media manipulations, the egoistic politicians,.. It's the only place where you can hear it. In some way, they are democratic puppets and their rebellion is real freedom! And as they say the truth with derision, they hurt them a lot and makes us laugh.
Hate, because the comedy has become parody and it's dull: imagination has left because it is "like" the movies, the TV shows... In addition, it's always the same trick: the person is limited to one trait, which is used over and over. At last, it's only about the rich, famous and powerful people. And I really don't care about them! So I don't run to see the show!
The Presidents: Taylor to Lincoln (1849-1865) (2005)
*** 150th anniversary *** I should have waited for tomorrow and review about Berlin wall fall *** 25th anniversary *** (web)
On 8 November 1864, Lincoln got elected for a second term. Thus, i review this related documentary exactly one hundred and fifty years after it. As you can see in my account, this time equals the JFK assassination (50 years) plus Titanic sinking (100 years). This way, i can grasp what the past is really about and better understand what we can call modern time. Thus, with this video, i know that 150 years is also the invention of photography and more tragically, the start of technological (mass destructive) wars as the Secession War was indeed the first conflict in the world to use those new modern weapons (rifles, guns, canons,...).
The highlight of this documentary is thus its painting of the Gettysburg battle. A good point also was the explanation of the fight pro/against slavery (even if America being a true Republic, this question should never have existed: a free state is a state without slaves)! But those two tales point the failure of this documentary as it mixes thus American history and Presidents!
We are so brainwashed about them that we don't realize that we must distinguish what people do and what do the elected man in the oval office. So instead of mixing everything in a confuse time-line, this documentary should have focus only on the acts of POTUS and forget the gossips about their private life as well! Here, you got the false feeling that incompetents presidents have started the secession war and that godly Lincoln has ended it as well as slavery! History is not so clear-cut, so easy because it's the result of billions individual decisions..
The Last Don: Part I (1997)
The first class of the «Last Don» (DVD)
If you are a fan of the Godfather Trilogy, you'll like this feature. Otherwise, if you raise an eyebrow of interrogation, well, don't worry: after seeing this show, you will run to rent this another famous trilogy.
Indeed, the «Last Don» has all the flavour of Mario Puzzo, that is to say an immersion in the big families of the Cosa Nostra. The thematic values already developed in the before mentioned classic movies, are met again in this adaptation of another of his novel: Family, Tragedy, Love, Honour, Wedding, Loyalty, Murder, Plots and Sicilia.
It is always surprising how dichotomized or schizophrenic all those religious families can be. They give absolute devotion to the family, but they can wipe it all in one moment if the codes have been broken. There is no place for empathy, for forgiveness.
The good point in the «Last Don» would be that the classic material is shown in new directions or territories: Childhood, Teenagers life, Hollywood, California. It may be interesting to find how the story could be the real sequel of the Godfather, part II. Maybe, Mario Puzzo, not really convinced by the part III, would have liked to tell the last story of his dreams. I didn't read any interviews of his motives to write the «Last Don», so I can't tell more.
About the movie, sure, Clifford isn't Coppola, Aiello isn't Paccino or Brando, and TV isn't theater. But the story is very well introduced, all the actors are convincing. At the end, you'll get a fine feeling to this show, and that is what must count.
And remember: Books are great too ! So, you are also invited to read the Godfather and the Last Don, available at your nearest library.
10.5: Episode #1.1 (2004)
Magnitude 10.5 in the clichés of patriotic feelings (DVD)
Terrible earthquakes threaten California.
This tragedy addresses all people, but the story limits its scope to the "clichés" of American patriotic figures: the President of the United States (very badly characterised), his best friend in charge of FEMA, the son of his best friend in charge of FEMA, the Governess of California, the daughter & husband of the Governess of California, the secretary of the Governess of California. Well, if you are cousin of the Secretary of the State, maybe you will appreciate the context.
If you don't have this "pedigree" (99% of the audience), the ending sequences of the two episodes with surprising digital effects will entertain you as well as the meeting of old TV friends: Kim Delaney in a strong will scientist, and Jill of the late "Jack & Jill".
It is not enough for a 3 hours drama, so I give sadly a thumb down to this show.
Une chance de trop: Episode #1.1 (2015)
One less chance for me (rental)
Initially, Alexandra was among my 6 best actresses list and the one defending France! I made this choice after viewing her 300+ episodes of the daily comedy 1GARS-1FILLE and considering her as a perfect wife: in other words, the Alex in this sitcom was truly all i can expect for a soulmate: pretty, funny, tender, eccentric, caring ... I naively think that she would be like this in all her works...
And so, i started to watch her other movies and honestly, the passion was not here anymore: when she did comedies, it was not that funny.. and when she does drama, she is rather annoying: very rigid, easily upset... only in that TV show!
This drama serie was really excellent with speechless cliffhanger & suspense: as it involves a kidnapping, it's rather stressful too and Alex is amazing feeling in panic and courageous at the same time. Her supporting cast is excellent as well with actors really concerned and there are so much twists that you can never take your breath!
So this one is a true recommendation!
Millennium: Del 1 - Män som hatar kvinnor (2010)
The new target of Millennium: greedy producers (dvd)
Well, i have watched the 3 movies and was left unsatisfied. They have begun with a extraordinary team-up between an asocial punk and a patient journalist and they ended with them apart. I find this so strange and sad that Lisbeth was running away from Micke after giving him so much that i conducted the case online. That's how i learned that those 3 movies were initially a TV show that runs 6 episodes of 1h30 each, meaning that 40 minutes have been left of each movie.
Thus, for those who wonder which to watch and buy, well, be aware and don't do as me: skip the movies and choose only the TV show.
Indeed, the movies have exactly the same content, less a lot of scenes, some casual but some paramount! Now, you have another proof against those greedy and lazy producers that prefer money over art and try to enslave the web on the name of defense of authorship! Indeed, instead of release the shows on screen (what about 3 hours movies nowadays?), they invented truncated movies so as sucker like me buy the same product two times.
Sure, now in the show, the characters appear a bit more coherent and I got the answer to my big question. In fact, Lisbeth rejects Micke as she waited for him at the end of Millennium 1 and saw that he's with Erika, the boss of Millennium! It's only a few seconds and there's no way those greedy producers couldn't put it in their movie!
The other scene i get in mind is another ending, the one for Millennium 3, still short but telling a lot: it's about Lisbeth visiting her old tutor after she has been released. For those who think Lisbeth as lacking empathy, it's not true: she can have feelings, even for men but her pain and past overwhelms her expression (if not, she wouldn't dress like a punk!).
So, all those cut scenes show that when she wants, she can talk, thus she appears a bit manipulative or at least not easy going. In all cases, Noomi done a extraordinary job as well as Michael Nyqvist!
With all those products, i stand more firmly that the best adaptation ever is be the movie that you make reading the books!
V: Part 1 (1983)
V as Vigileance (dvd)
"V" and me is a long story: it has been broadcast in France in 1985 and it was a huge hit: Sadly, as it was Monday night, my brother and me couldn't watch it. Indeed, our parents allowed us only Tuesday to watch TV after dinner. But as past legends, we were told the stories by our friends at school. Next, i was able to watch it on a rerun maybe 5 years later but i missed the essential episode, that is to say the first one. Thus, i never knew how the visitors arrived. Next, the DVD came out but there was only the first series (the two episodes of Johnson). It's only in 2004 in a London trip that i found the DVD of the "Final Battle" in English only. Finally, it's when i collected them all that a lavish collection with all episodes was released in France that I couldn't buy so.
Now, i can watch peacefully my DVD thirty years after the release and the show is still a incredible one. It begins with great credits with this iconic painted V and the great musical theme. Sure the special effect are outdated but that's not the point otherwise we would never watch old movies as well. Maybe what's more annoying would be the short-cuts in the story: Why did Visitors conspire in English when they are alone in their own mothership ? Also, the events are ultra fast (as the scientist conspiring or the pregnancy) which made them unlikely and they do too much operations inside the mothership. For sci-fi fan, it wouldn't be very original because "V" strips a lot of classics ("Episode IV", "4th dimension", "War of the worlds").
However, those cunning visitors allow the best lesson of democracy mass audiences can find. That's why this show would be always accurate. In short, it says that dictatorship comes ala ways under a mask. When its evil roots have taken, the pluralism is the first victim and the only way to restore liberty and freedom is the fight.
What's original and totally truth in this show is that the resistance or terror are personal choices and it can bring strangers together or divide families as well. It's very different from what we see today when heroic characters are Potus, the army, police, which may be a signal that fascism is indeed coming.
The so awaited first episode of the arrival is brilliantly directed and totally anticipatory. The invasion can be followed live on streets as well on TV. The news keep going on the screens of all the key families and it's a good trick to tell the story as well to introduce the characters.
Finally, it's one of the few shows that deals with an extended cast in which all of them are real good. I have never seen them in anything else (except from the deadly Freddy) but they were unforgettable in those "V" shows! In addition, it's cool to have a show wrapping all the story lines at the end.
Our young generations should take a look at this show and find inspiration for the nowadays threats that keep going stronger!
The 7.39: Episode #1.2 (2014)
A sort of English « Groundhog day » (tv)
Sure, there's no paranormal here but i feel the same zen lesson about life: in a way, it says that big happy moments come and go as the bad and nasty ones ; everything changes, nothing lasts forever and that's why we must enjoy the moment, every little second
I didn't expect the movie to be this as i watched it for the English way of commuting and compare it with my life as expected, London is a much better area than Paris : all is clean, modern or taken care while Paris is tidy, full of tags, over-used with old technology ! In addition, the romance even if it's cheating is engaging as it's the meeting of two lost souls : the young woman is afraid to found her family and the old guy has already built his own and feels maybe not empty but is stunned by this only being that ! The dialogs are full of truth and accurate descriptions of that life spleen. At last, the cast is really good and it's a welcome change from overpaid, repetitive and boring Hollywood stars !
Cleopatra: Part 1 (1999)
Nose Bad (dvd)
The DVD version consists of 2 episodes, the parricide of Caesar being the juncture. In addition, the language was Spanish without subtitles. Hence, it's hard for me to review in depth this movie because because i didn't understand what was said.
Cleopatra being an historic icon, the part is very difficult and i found that for a newcomer, Leonor Varela just plays fine. She is strong-willed but also a very supportive, tender soul mate. Thimothy Dalton as Caesar is perfect and their romance is the main thing of the first episode. So, it is not really a documentary, nor a peplum but a great love story.
After the parricide, a new lover comes (Marc-Antoine) but the flavor is gone: we remember always our first love. So, i found the second episode dull and their tragic fate isn't told powerfully.
Nonetheless, the production is luxurious: the sets are big, tastefully decorated; the Moroccan live location exotic and the wardrobes splendid. The producers have a lot of money for sure, but they spend nothing on the special effects. They are so poor (blue screens, ships, Sphinx) that it's funny.
Finally, I would like very much to hear it in french or English to make a definitive opinion about this two movies.
Mildred Pierce: Part Five (2011)
Divorced with children (dvd)
Well, if "Married with children" is funny and make fun of a poor family, this show is quite boring and focuses on a wealthy one instead.
Moreover, having just watched "Millenium" and concluded that the show shouldn't have been turn into movies, here, it's the contrary: those five hours should have been edited in a fine movie because the scenes drag a lot, all the more than they happen a lot of times in Mildred's house (it would be interesting to compare with the classic black and white release then).
I'm really ambivalent with the story : if the goal was to make me cry in front of this courageous woman who had to work, well, i'm not that audience: she isn't poor: she has a luxurious and big house, a car, pays piano lesson to her daughter, so really, she isn't a self made woman. She hasn't started from nothing. For me, it's the usual crap of the "grace and miracles of the rich" and i just really don't buy those lies. In the last episodes, the show turns into a family drama around an "american idol". Again, the whims of the fortunate left me totally unmoved.
Sure, Kate carries all the show on her shoulders and proves that she's a great actress. It was fine to see that Al's daughter in "Simone" has become a young woman. The lavish production from the thirties America would please the Indy fans but it's not enough to recommend it.
And as a final stab, I just wonder how the privileged elitist critics who praise it found the repetitive gratuitous nudity?
Joseph: Joseph (1995)
Monica (vhs)
I can't say if i have explained my reviews like this because NEW IMDB forbids reviewers to retrieve quickly their old reviews but this movie belongs to my decade of being a crazy fan of Monica Bellucci.
It was between 1996 (with l'Appartement) and 2005 (Combien tu m'aimes) and ironically, i stumbled unto her following visits to a Italian (!) shrink (!) after a burn-out caused by 4 intensive years at the Law University!
So in that period, i did all to watch every movie in which Monica was in and so I taped this one from an Italian channel! In that light, this movie is just awful: Monica has just a stand-up role and we can glimpse her when the action takes place in the royal court but that's all!
Now, this movie is a good example of her acting talent: except a few good movies (L'appartment, Doberman, Come mi vuoi & Mauvais genre), Monica never left her model career and her lymphatic, crouched sexy roles just bored me over! Acting is not about being sexy, kind or cool, it's about giving emotions and for that, Monica is a total failure! That's why my passion extinctguished by itlsef...