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Reviews
Wasabi (2001)
It's called Entertainment.
This film was intended, quite clearly (to all but the most naive i suppose), to be a pastiche of your typical American "good cop with a bad attitude" action movie.
As the film progresses it assumes the unenviable task of showcasing every action-movie cliché under the sun whilst at the same time attempting to keep you entertained with an endless array of simple, and entertaining, jokes. If Wasabi's humour was not delivered in such a deadpan manner (credit to Jean Reno for that) it would be an abhorent piece of tripe (like most attempts at parody). When i watch a low-grade parody movie i usually notice that both the cast and crew seem to gallop through every scene, putting in very little effort whilst winking at the audience as if to say "See? I'm making fun of bad movies. How clever am i?" However, Luc Besson (writer and producer) has gone with the idea of combining self-referential humour (which is of course common to all parody films) with enough straight acting (difficult in such an absurd movie) to lodge the film in some strange quasi-universe where the characters are never quite aware of the absurdity of their situation, even when it's staring them in the face. It is neither straight-out farce nor a serious attempt at film making. It does not pay loving homage to the action genre or massacre it. The film instead strides this delicate balance, always in danger of tipping over into meaninglessness but somehow never doing it.
The action is eye-catching, the humour is very french and in anyone else's hands it would be nothing more than trash. It's not though, because this is Luc Besson. In short - it's not a film, it's a movie. So watch it like one.
Molière (2007)
C'est Parfait!
I began watching this film with no expectations whatsoever - i had never heard of Moliere or his works before. The only reason i decided to watch this film is because my girlfriend is French, and i thought it would be helpful to take in some 'histoire Francaise'. Thank god i did.
The scenery and costumes, as one would expect from a period piece, are magnificent. But the true value of this film is in the emotional current running through it, and in the authenticity which the characters exude so effortlessly. The dialogue is razor sharp and incredibly insightful, tearing down so many expected clichés you almost forget you are watching a period piece (i am not typically a fan of the genre due to my mother who watched Sense & Sensibility endlessly when i was growing up.) There are moments where you expect the actors to do or say particular things in keeping with what a film *should* be - yet their reactions are so true to life it's easy to forget you're watching an invented story. The writers also manage to express, with ease, tales which have no time period, and deal with issues which can be translated through the ages. I disagree with some who suggest the ending deserts the spirit of the film by not being comedic in nature - personally i thought it was rather beautiful, and rounding everything off nicely. I only wish it were longer! At two hours i felt cheated when i could easily have watched four.
This film is not for everyone (as no film is,) but if you like smart humour and a little romance you really can't go wrong with Moliere. Authentic acting, insightful words, beautiful imagery, witty jokes and even a tear or two. I rarely give a film 10/10 but i really can't find any faults in this film. C'est Parfait!
Alexander (2004)
How to pout in battle...
I feel i must make people aware that there are many of us who have seen this film and don't care if Alexander liked boys or girls yet still think this motion picture is absolutely, terrifyingly, obtusely and almost intentionally awful in every way it could be. Some may love the issues it touches on but be warned, you may just find yourself spending far more time than you would ever wish trying to tell everyone you know just how absolutely terrible you thought it was. The actors, although mostly multi-million dollar "heroes of Hollywood" are made to look like children in a bad school play by a uniquely hollow script. Even the apparent "historical accuracy" which Oliver Stone so readily tells us of is poorly executed and occasionally misleading. The Persian army are not a collection of brain-dead simpletons running randomly around the field of battle like they're being told to go in two directions at once (i mean, really Oliver, wtf was that opening shot of them all about?) To further add to the humour value Colin Farrell's pre-battle chat to his "generals" (mostly a collection of model-turned-actor brainless pouters) is filled with a marvellous moment when Mr.Farrel lists off every single Greek name of every general in the room and a summary of what they're good at in battle. The scene is so leaden you wonder if Farrell found a copy of Stone's notes on who was supposed to be in the shot and just read them out. It was like bullet-point history with no character or life. Every second moment in this film heightens it's own tension to the Nth degree as if to cry out to the audience watching "BUT LOOK, CAN YOU NOT SEE WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE?!?" I hardly think Stone's assumption that his "film" (i think "moooveee" is more accurate) plays well with "intelligent audiences" is anywhere near the truth. I don't know, maybe his Mom likes it. If you like historical epics don't watch this.
To summarise: Alexander - it steals time out of your life even when you're not watching it.