Reviews

Stéphane Bern is excellent in all his historical documentaries. But in this series where he wanted to test himself again as an actor, the result is just passable. Here he plays the role of a prosecutor who is uncomfortable after a disastrous conviction leading to suicide. He takes a leave to try, with his students, to exonerate his brother-in-law, accused of a crime.

The whole story is far-fetched, but can be easily watched if you don't expect a masterpiece. The second episode is a little better constructed, but still not very credible. And the inspector is still as bad as ever.

We should see 2 other episodes of the same kind. It will be time to stop this series after that, and return to History Secrets.

This film, as is often the case with Quentin Dupieux, leaves you a little disconcerted. The sudden ending prohibits any step back from the story that has just unfolded. The first half will surely make you laugh with its zaniness. The second half, turning to the taking of hostages by this individual who has become threatening, is less funny. We're looking for the message, but there doesn't seem to be any. We deride the troublemaker, the mediocrity of the actors, the cowardice of the spectators. Without any real conclusion.

I am sure that all theatre actors will shudder as they perhaps recall a similar experience of a provocateur interrupting the play they are performing. A sabotage that more twists and turns could have made exciting. Far too many films are at least an hour too long. This one could add additional time.

Even for a low budget television film it is incredibly bad. It has been a long time since I watched actors playing like these ones. If you imagine Emily in Paris turned into a thriller then prepare to smile at everything: the dialog, the characters, the story... All actors are beginners, but the one playing Antoine is even worse. A robot would be better. Shifra Zuckerman is the only decent one, but if she gets better roles in the future she will probably laugh when remembering this disaster.

Awful and terrible are the only descriptive words coming to my mind. A few aerial views of Paris are not enough to make it authentic.

Most reviews highlight the imperfections of the series. I accept that some of the stories, such as the Nelson/Irene permanent changes of mind, are a bit silly. But forget all unbelievable sides of the story, the telenovella look of it, and just have fun at the dialogues. If you can put aside your natural critical mind, just listening to Gladys (Laura Ramos) and Tirso (José Coronado) will make you laugh out loudly. I could add that Nona Sobo/Irene is not as bad as other reviewers judge her. I think they they confuse the role and the actress because her character is indeed a bit irritating. With the same duo of lead actors (Coronado and Luis Zahera) I enjoyed this series better than Unauthorized Living which is very good too, but not funny.

I have never watched a film with so many stars as bad as this one. The first minutes are a mess and you wonder what's going on. Then they are all on this strange island where the decor is the only interesting thing. All actors look unnatural and unconvinced by their role. Craig's accent is ridiculous. The whole film is so long and boring that I did not care what would happen beyond the first hour. I moved to a little Canadian crime series with unknown actors which was 100 times better. And certainly costing 100 times less. It is sad because the first film (knives out) was quite good. You can try it to your own risks.

This is an excellent series, created within a dark and isolated environment, worthy of Alien or The Thing. All actors are good, and the story develops in a series of twists that let you suspect one after another. Two things could have been done better: 1) some exchanges are hard to understand, and subtitles are needed. 2) the end is cheap and disappointing. Apart from this, congrats to the team who did it.

The story is simple and you can guess the end. But actors are good. Boys are nasty, and girls (Brittany Ashworth and Anaïs Parello) are pretty. If you have done some climbing you will enjoy the cinematography. It is film-making at its best, the director Howard Ford knows his job, and the result is impressive. Some reviews are very negative, but without giving any valid argument to justify the criticism. I really liked this film, and I wish success to all the team who participated.

All other reviews must come from members of the film crew. If the permanent shaky camera does not make you sick, I challenge you to watch this film more than 10 minutes. One of the worst of the year. I have not given that mark for some time, but I think it is well deserved.

All seasons are easy to watch. But without Titus Welliver as Bosch the show would be limit boring. He saves it, and most of the other actors are fine in their own role. Except one, Maddie (Madison Lintz), who is absolutely unbearable. A robot would have been more expressive, and she should exploit any other skill than acting. Some parts may become slightly confusing, but things are clarified in the end. Anyway, the details of the stories are not that important, more interesting are the situations and opposition between Bosch and the other strong characters, like Irvin Irving (Lance Reddick) or Jerry Edgar (Jamie Hector). It is probably one season too much, but still enjoyable.

I was skeptical after reading the bad reviews. But I guessed they were from people that do not understand the purpose of cinema. Sad guys and killjoys who think they are too clever for that kind of films. Honestly I have not laughed so much for a while from beginning to end. Excellent fun, don't miss it.

That kind of female prison series is interesting, even when relatively far from reality. But the problem here is the main character who is portrayed as a stupid, naive, dishonest, liar and unlikable girl. She desserves the 7 years sentence despite claiming being innocent. There is not a single decision that she takes, which is not wrong. After 9 episodes I started to hate her so much that I had to give up watching this series. Sad because there was some potential, and some of the prisoners were well played.

I am a fan of Nordic crime series. They are entertaining and even with low budget they are usually well played and well composed. But this one is terrible, uninteresting, and all actors are almost painful to watch. It seems obvious that they do not seem convinced by the amateurish dialogues. If you add that there is a background story happening 10 years later, badly connected to the rest of the episodes, it becomes pretty unwatchable. Without another season, and I doubt there will be one, it will remain a dead project making no sense whatsoever.

The worst film of the year. And unfortunately also the longest. 2h30 lost watching laughable talks which make no sense, and noisy action breaking all the laws of physics, but also the rules of logic. It was a real pain staying to the end, and the need for fresh air was high after such garbage. So, fine, they have saved the world, but not my evening.

Season 1 was clearly the best. But even season 3, which is heavily criticised, was fun and should not be taken too seriously. I had a good time watching it, and already wait for season 4, which I am not sure will ever happen. All characters are inconsistent and change constantly for no reason. Good guys become bad, and bad guys move to good. No explanation, just the need for more unexpected twists. But who really cares? Just try the first episode of any season, and I am sure you will not stop at this one.

This team of detectives is one of the worst I have seen in that kind of crime series. There are so many twists and subplots that you get tired and want to finish it quickly. Most characters are violent and stupid, and eventually you don't care about the solution. Especially irritating is the permanent drama between Hector and his friend's wife. Also the way they all recover in five minutes from terrible injuries, or severe concussions is ludicrous. The only not too bad actor/actress is Nya de la Rubia who plays Lola. The other ones are close to awful. If you don't speak Spanish you will have to guess the dialogues, with white subtitles on white background. So, watchable, but not the top of Netflix.

Just saw Spectre, and I am a bit disappointed. Not that it is a bad film, in fact you get everything you would expect from a Bond movie:the nasty bad guy at the head of a world wide criminal organisation, the clever gadgets including the amazing sport car, the Bond girl played by Léa Seydoux, well all the value for money you can ask for.

So what's wrong? I am afraid that it is Bond himself, who is not keeping with his time. James was created during the cold war, in a different world, and as a spy of the 50s, he was an exciting hero fighting the evil with humour and ruse. But the formulae has been used and reused, and does not work any more. Even his car fails to fire a missile, and the music theme cannot be remembered. The news reminds us every day which are the bad guys in the real world, but James is now lost in the past dream, that does not connect with the present. There will be more James Bond, but do we need them, not sure.

The story : a charming village in the middle of nowhere in south-west France (Aulon in Hautes-Pyrénées), has seen its last business shut down, and now everyone is surviving on tiny state benefits. The mayor (Didier Bourdon) applies for a grant from Brussels, to restart another factory, but this will be given only if there is a doctor with a five years contract coming to the village. They find one for one month, and from there, they will imagine tricks to keep him and convince him that this is the right place to stay.

The comedy : The film is a succession of funny situations and gags, with the young doctor from the big city discovering life in an isolated place, with no mobile connection, and Internet access only in the morning at the Post Office. Villagers are more concerned by fishing and hunting, than by electronic music or game of cricket which is his passion. All this is run at slow pace, and the development of the story is not sophisticated, but never boring, and you will have a few good laughs. It is the best view of traditional deep countryside of France, thrown on screen with all possible clichés.

The result : I visit some friends sometimes in such a village, in the Puy de Dome. There is only one factory canning mushrooms, no shop except a van for groceries and bread stopping near the church every day. The school is still opened, but just, and the Post Office has closed long ago. So I could perfectly understand the problems addressed in the film. It is good to show remote communities in such a light way. The final product is a decent refreshing film, making you smile, and having you wonder if life is not better away from the traffic jams and the frenetic madness of our metropoles.

Bitch Hug is a funny drama, or a sad comedy, depending on how you see it. The film is about friendship between 2 girls, Kristin, a dizzy blond girl, and Andrea, a young and introverted brunette. To escape the embarrassment of having missed her plane to New York, Kristin asks Andrea to stay at her place, and tries to write articles about her trip to the Big Apple, as if she was really there. Surprisingly this trick works fine, probably because everyone knows and can imagine himself in New York, without having actually been there! Anyway, still hiding in the attic of Andrea's house, Kristin starts to become intrigued by this young solitary girl. Is Andrea seriously depressive and turning away from people, or just very independent? As Kristin uncover some of her secrets, she also becomes more bound to her and questioning herself on what she really is.

The link between the two has of course its up and down, and is clearly on the edge of intimate affection and love. More is suggested than obviously explained. A lot can be debated on the psychology of every character in this film, and not just the 2 main one.

I think there is more life, love and fun in this little Swedish film, than in many long and annoying big budget productions. I had a good time watching it and can give it a big fat 8/10.

Julia is a young lawyer who has been in conflict with her father for a long time. Her mother seems a bit insane, and Julia thinks that he is partially responsible for this. She has also split with the father of her son and tries to escape all these concerns by working hard. On a new case, she is brought back to the house near the lake where she was raised to help a group of environmentalists to protect its natural beauty against the industrial project of a power company. But by doing so she has to fight the greed of the locals, and their trust in an evil spirit that is believed to be attached to the lake.

So this is a story full of mystery and fairy tales, very atmospheric, dark, and pretty much centered on the person of Julia, extremely well played by Krista Kosonen, that brings us to a surprising end. Overall, an interesting Finnish film.