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Cherry 2000 (1987)
Delicious obsession of the 80s
Welcome to the future of delicious kitch, Cherry 2000 is a contradictory realization where all is simultaneously well done and badly done, believe me it is not easy to define. We feel the technique and aesthetics of this beloved California of the 80s, so close to Terminator and Robocop, with a Total Recall side in the image and colors truly intact, yet nothing really works, the realization and the frames remain typical of this Californian wave but a lot of things are really arranged in spite of common sense. The costumes, the decor, the adventures, the objective of the hero, the dialogues, the casting, it is fascinating because everything is both next to the plate but in a total coherence.
Fascinating obsession that this time capsule, the film is pure "gem" is yes a real diamond in the image of this Cherry 2000, beautiful but artificial that soon leaves the place to this real woman: Lylou dallas, well I mean the original, not the Besson version but certainly his first inspiration, I want of course to tell you about Johnson (but what is this name). Let's get on board his incredible orange dodge, for the most improbable mad maxien road trip on the entire coast. Don't worry, she leads by intuition, mainly.
The condition of the woman is here back in 12, forget modern civilization, women are plagues who think only of security and money, no wonder he cherishes so much his android dear Sam. Because in this tribal area, life this sweet amazon, utopia just as improbable in view of what it accomplishes all day, furioza has nothing to hold (but what is this direction of actor). Of course Johnson is made for Sam, in this ancient modern western, this warrior explodes these opponents in basouka in a scene so exaggerated that she can summarize alone the film: It is improbable, but never stupid, It's not very well arranged but incredibly endearing. How not to fall in love?
You want to go back to that time or Basil Poledouris makes your ears sing? It will not have the magnitude of the great successes of this time but the taste is certainly kitck to death but the atmosphere is intact. Enjoy the trip, because we don't make films like this anymore. Much deeper than it seems in the end, this film is a box of my darling (yes I know it's easy but I finished haha) I can't help but reopen the box, to take again, if you are the lovers of the 80s, It's a matter of urgency, and then who knows... with any luck, you might cross paths with Morpheus before he enters the matrix.
Le journal d'une femme de chambre (1964)
A great classic of rare efficiency
Delicious criticism of opportunistic France and rancid of our campaigns of yesteryear, the film is carried by a magnetic Jeanne Moreau. And we can say that it neither pink nor ideal this French campaign, I would even say particularly obscene, but it is above all the man who is targeted as often with our dear Bunuel.
His relationship with women, with those men who covet, who manipulate, who exploit all women who cross their paths. Again the condition of the woman is terrible, Céléstine tries to extract herself from these monsters but soon she sees this forced to constantly deal with to try to do justice or to extract herself but this fact inexorably trap, to simply survive.
France, seen from the inside, is frightened in the image of Joseph, a militant nationalist, an ordinary monster who acts with impunity, to all the confidence of the bourgeoisie, a cowardly and decadent bourgeoisie that complements itself in its comfort (with a beautifully comic Michel Piccoli).
A timeless echo here devoid of artifice and exposed in the image of a realization as beautiful as classical, indeed here no effect of style in a staging to support his purpose, no usual artifice of the filmmaker who acts in perfect adequacy, this simplicity of presenting things without artifice is a stroke of genius.
Yes, it is very intelligent and fine, as every time with Bunuel, deeper than it seems and even if the desire to demonstrate each of the scenes in their hidden sense titillates me, it is not so much worth it, everything is easily accessible to those who take the time for a second reading.
A great classic of rare efficiency with this final absolutely freezing in a pre-war era, terribly echoing today.
Color Out of Space (2019)
Lovecraft at the cinema, it will be for another time...
Adapting Lovecraft to the screen must have a taste more than exciting with the era of modern special effects for today's authors and studios so this universe offers an exciting organic visual. It is a unique sensory imagination that has almost no possible comparison because reading Lovecraft is mystical, insidious, cosmic while undergoing a slow and dark descent into the darkest darkness. It is even possible to be one of the most difficult readings I have ever read, despite the fact that it is always exciting. Try to chain the news of Lovecraft, it's like doing Silent Hill on playstation alone, at night, isolated in the middle of the countryside in a country house. Except Lovecraft does that even on the subway, which means... Generally in his stories we follow a single ordinary character, confronted with an abyss that goes beyond him and it is absolutely exciting to discover, endowed with a subtle and terrifying atmosphere. There is a hypnotic, fascinating and unhealthy side to wanting to know what lies behind the abyss of each story.
In short in the hands of a cinematographic genius like Darren Aronofsky for example who would be, I think, by far the best possible choice if one day wants to know a real adaptation to the height of the original material, we would live a moment of cinema totally unique. But enough fantasy, here it will be this content of Richard Stanley and it is enough to look at his filmography to realize that we are very far from the account even if yes, it must be recognized, it does here better than usual and even offers a few small successful moments like the cutting of carrots, the discovery of llamas, or the mother and young son very "The Thing" of Carpenter (the reference is almost obvious to the vision of the font of the credits).
The director seeks at times to create an almost naturalistic atmosphere with a certain respect for the original material, illustrated in particular by close-ups here and there of a disturbing, insidious and mysterious nature, especially at the beginning of the story but it will not be enough and those for several reasons. Already Lars Van sort with his magnificent Anti-christ succeeded much better this kind of exercise and especially, very quickly, see already from the first minutes appear a terrible lack of subtlety for a story of this caliber and it will not get better. Very quickly everything will be drowned with an excess of sound and visual introducing the threat in a very adroit way. So in truth on paper, the idea is not stupid in itself, because it participates in making live a saturation of the senses in the image of the characters in the story, but all bet on it to the total excess it is very pity see reductive, quickly making everything much too simplistic.
After the vision of the film, there is almost no doubt that we are faced with an opportunistic attempt to surf on the return of great Nicolas Cage and understand that with the film Mandy (besides he should have tried with his director when I think about it) there is something to try in the atmosphere and the visual for this story (so let's take the star in passing) and then Lovecraft today, he is a much more recognized author of all then... Forward for the adaptation with some changes in size including the main characters, for a better identification of the spectators lambda with his modern family of former townspeople converted into the countryside for simplicity (exit the filthy farmer family of the original news) and then while you're at it, here are some new characters to add a little spice and explanation out loud. Either it might be a good idea to update it, but did it have to be snapshots on all floors and then in terms of "meaning" it's not a great message (like if you come back to nature, you will die) but well, let's go, let's try to believe it.
Even by squinting at best, the film completely misses the mark, forgetting the transcription of a real gradient of this plunged into the colored abyss and everything goes too quickly becoming ever more coarse and caricatural. Whether with the characters, their obsessions, the visual, nature and of course, color. We quickly realize that we are simply in front of a classic horror film, certainly, sometimes a little better than average because the universe it adapts is great, but clearly all is very disappointing when we know the original.
So if we ignore the original news and try to take the film for what it is, again we won't remember much except the concept, it looks anyway and we have a good time, but nothing is really taking, apart from being a few scenes that will mark the spirits well because of its visual power of organic horror but which turns out in the end little transcendent as the film seeks to avoid the discomfort in its viewer (and which is paradoxically the engine in Lovecraft). In fact this adaptation becomes a good little Saturday night movie, even if it means losing all the flavor of the universe. Difficult to digest anyway, when we know that it could have been a unique and incredible experience, but well here we will have to get used to it, Lovecraft at the cinema, it will be for another time, maybe be...
The Lost Boys (1987)
It's quite ridiculous
Saturday night, a little hyped by the title with its small reputation of cult movie of the 80s, I finally saw Lost Generation (The Lost Boys). It is also the film that revealed our dear Jack Bauer in 24h Chrono, namely Kiefer Sutherland! Well I'm not going to go out of my way, I was very disappointed. The film is nice at the beginning, looks very promising, the atmosphere of the 80s is a little guilty pleasure and the style of this young generation in the mouth.
But after this nice intro where we discover this small band not like the others with some trip well felt on the transformation of the main character (it's quite funny when he flies) and well it's a little cold shower. We go on the vampire hunt with children and very quickly it all becomes ridiculous. We end up with pretty lame clashes especially at the end. What to say about the final under the background of American flag, dog savior to independence day and grandfather who will wade makes us a pathetic scenario reversal.
A small movie to have fun on Saturday night, with a BO not too bad, to see without taking the head, but from there to find something really good or cult, it's a bit like the queen of the damned, it promises quite a lot on paper but in the end it's quite ridiculous.
Super Z (2021)
The antithesis of the classic zombie movie
Real delirium, Super Z is almost the antithesis of the classic zombie movie, deeply potash and delirious, I had completely missed this trash French UFO. After a nice and grotesque start on the creation of a family of talking zombies (at last babbling), the tone is quickly set. After a surreal presentation of this family recomposed for the occasion, it is with their flight that we discover the small life of these monsters not like the others while they settle in an abandoned house in the middle of nature.
My feeling is strange because somewhere I was quite disappointed that a subject as interesting as talking zombies is immediately turned to the practical joke, but curiously the quirky tone and consistent style works quite well with the universe set up, Kind of like a South Park live. We discover a lot of characters all more stupid than the others, but there is a zombie travelogue and a teenage rapper who are worth the detour. In the end I liked this family of monsters for what it is: Tight and endearing pariahs.
The film oscillates between the stupid and the homage, it is not always crazy, some characters lack development, it's a little soft in the middle while remaining quite enjoyable in the stupidity with some really crazy scenes like the pursuit in 2cv of war with the machine gun of Predator or the orgy based on soup LSD! I had a bit of trouble with their plan to conquer the world even if the final catch up well by blithely parodying the American action film and brings some consistency. It's quite funny that it came out the same year as Coupe! From Hazanavicius that I had loved. In itself I found the delirium infernal Z series crazy enough successful even if more finesse would not have hurt because there, it screams a lot and it makes the experience a little tiring at times, it's a pity because it's rather original and nice.
Crimes of the Future (2022)
Pure happiness for lovers of organic science fiction!
Cronenberg comes back and delivers a very powerful film in his message and totally in accordance with his usual theme which hides under our skin. The atmosphere is dark in this future where the exploitation of others continues these ravages on our minds and our bodies, we follow a couple of artists embodied wonderfully by Viggo Mortensen and Léa Seydoux, one makes prodigious tumors with his body, the other excerpts with virtuosity.
It is disturbing in many ways and disgusting in many ways, and it is often very difficult not to look the other way every time we are plunged into the depths of the world.the darkest depths of our morbid perversions as in the flesh of our bodies bruised by a changing environment. If nature adapts, our society does not seem to have succeeded in the transition, poverty is omnipresent, hiding its failure in this absurd art to which each character seeks a goal in this world that does not seem to have any. Yet in this chain of interpretation, the solution is very present, misunderstood and obvious, only it is frightening, even more afraid than our own mutilations absolute symbol of our cowardice to look the truth in the face. The fear even transformed into art, vogue in every minute of the film magnified by the artistic performance of the film itself, whether on the form as on the background, the crimes of the future really managed to interpret each of our obsessions as well as that of the author to embody our escape through each of the characters.
This is what makes all the stronger the revelation so dreaded by all, including us, in the image of the contorting chair, which shows that man is capable of inventing the worst stratagems to escape the evidence, the natural truth imposes itself on condition of wanting to hear it. It is up to man to face these responsibilities in order to give himself to this nature which has become alien to him, both in his body and in his environment, a search full of meaning in a society which must rethink in these most obvious lines.
A real success in many respects as the film gathers all of Cronenberg's cinema at its highest level but sensitive soul abstain, for others it is certainly the most mature work of the filmmaker, a pure happiness for lovers of organic science fiction.
Le notti di Cabiria (1957)
A masterful Fellini
Cabiria, a young prostitute living in an Italian slum of the 50s, is surrounded by a gallery of character strong in contrast who, each in their own way, tries to survive by watching over each other. Cabiria is a little apart with her personality of fire, although a bit stupid at first, she is above all a real woman released before the hour, for better or worse. Very endearing from the very first moments, we feel at home, like the opening of the film, that the young woman does not know how to do things half way. Seeking above all to get out of misery by any means possible, she plays her big mouth but no longer this control when it comes to love. It is precisely on this point that Cabiria comes to surprise us and while she is of all the fights to achieve her ends, it is above all, a great romantic. Blinded by the pursuit of her ideal, the young woman simply does not weigh in.
If the nights of Cabiria know how to remain light as his character, it is also a poignant testimony of his time, a small pearl that tells a lot about our society and our relations. Because the film in fine this unfold half a century we are surprised to find that nothing has really changed. The small theatre of this miserable life, presented here as a fleeting stroll approaches innocence in all these forms and reveals unsuspected characters who, like little treasures, are often there or she does not expect. Fellini dissects us in passing a man/woman relationship that is particularly hard fought in this class struggle where the hypnosis sequence will remain engraved in your memories, in the image of its final: magisterial.
Qin song (1996)
What is this hiding in the shadow of the first emperor of China?
What sacrifices are necessary to unify such a continent, Xiaowen Zhou answers this question in the privacy of the giant machine. How far is it necessary to be master in manipulation? Three beautifully interpreted characters are here to respond to this piece of history, the emperor himself, his favorite daughter and his childhood friend to whom he owes his life, become an exceptional composer. Run away from me I am you, I am running away from you, at this cache, mingles love and freedom to think in front of an emperor so powerful and so subtle, that to escape his drawing seems impossible. Impressive on all fronts, the film tells us the mysteries of power and the human damage it inevitably causes. For the emperor himself, whose strategy is based on the investment of a lifetime, it is nevertheless through the artist that such a drawing takes all its meaning. So despite all the precautions to protect but also enslave by patience are old friends, the necessary games and manipulations causes inevitable dramas in front of the steamroller of the stakes which swallows absolutely everything in its path. Exciting and bewitching, the realization is remarkable and captivating, just like the story that offers us an unforgettable final or all the most contradictory feelings this mixture, remains this universal and invisible love that transcends any symbol.
For each of these three characters whose final remains in the image of the emperor himself, now (* spoiler alert: last witness with the spectator himself, of an inevitable tragedy of a truth that escapes him incessantly: we cannot capture freedom without seeing it die, a metaphor in the image of the empire itself).
This magnificent film is a real forgotten nugget, much more digestible than we can believe at first sight that projects us without detours in an exciting piece of history.