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It has been a month since my last post. I've been pretty busy with school and stuff, so I haven't written any reviews. For a whole month worth of movies, I haven't seen so much new stuff...
That's because I've been rewatching a lot of stuff, buying some DVDs, rewatching movies already on the list, etcetara. So here's a little retrospect of the past month...

I've been trying to watch some of the Academy Award-nominated movies lately...
Slumdog Millionaire that I saw quite a long time ago already, a pretty good movie, maybe a bit overly dramatic near the end but for what it's worth, the first half was pure gold. An amazing photography and brilliant camera work, I highly recommend it if you love India and its culture, and if you love beautiful films in general.

The Wrestler was amazing. The more I think about it, the more I'm in love with that movie. Minimalistic in its approach, almost like a documentary, it's such a gripping and touching story. Almost like a metaphor of Mickey Rourke's life, I'd say he offers in The Wrestler one of the most touching performances I've seen. So honest and brutal, and almost predictable (but in a really good way, oddly), it's a movie that grows with you after you leave the theater. Another Aronofsky masterpiece.

I plan on seeing Milk someday...although knowing myself, I'll probably end watching some of the movies I recently bought on dvds.

Added Reservoir Dogs to my collection. That movie amazes me every single time I see it. It is such an absolute classic, so funny and entertaining, it's Tarantino at his finest. The same day, I actually rewatched Kill Bill Vol.1 too, and goddamn, QT sure knows how to make great films.
By the way : the teaser trailer for Inglourious Basterds is out, and I'll link it here because it's fucking awesome, check it out.

I've finally got to see some great movies like Being John Malkovich which was really strange...maybe a bit disappointing since I was expecting something fucking mindblowing like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (that I recently bough on dvd along with Hard Candy (my personal Ellen Page favorite) and Cloverfield, all of which I haven't got the chance to rewatch yet.) Being John Malkoviche was pretty good nonetheless. John Cusack gives a solid performance in it, along with John Malkovich of course. I got to see Forrest Gump for the first time ever and I wasn't dissapointed : it is actually what I was expecting from a 6-time Academy Award winner type of film. For a strange reason, I always expected that movie to be about a handicap marathon or something. I'm glad it wasn't, though. Also ; The Godfather was all I expected it to be and more. An important milestone in cinematic history.

I think that pretty much covers the month. I've rewatched a personal favorite of mine, Donnie Darko and got to see Juno again, which was a bit of strange experience...for some reason. I thought it was not as good as I remembered it to be...but I couldn't tell why.

I've just been finishing Alias Season 3 on DVD and it's been pretty good. A fairly different season than the firt two, not so many "classic" episodes either but it's some pretty good and entertaining spy-fi, as far as I'm concerned.

I have a bunch of movies I want to see: 12 Monkeys, Good Will Hunting, Blade Runner, Burn After Reading, the lastest Henry Selick film Coraline and a bunch of other stuff. A really gory and violent horror movie would be good too....

Someday. The truth is I don't see where I'll have the time. I'd say March break, but I suspect I'm gonna be pretty busy with school projects, again..! (at least one of them is actually film related, hurray!)

That's enough for tonight and this ridiculously long post that nobody will read.
See ya!

TOP 10 of 2008

It's never too late to do my year's top 10 isn't it?

So here's my very own top 10 of 2008. But I've got to say, I'm cheating a bit. You'll find some 2007 movies and even a 2006 movie. But hey, I got to see them this year and they were fucking great! It's not a "top ten best movies" so to speak, but it's a top ten of my favorite cinematic experiences of the year.

10. Repo! The Genetic Opera.

(Darren Lynn Bousman. 2008)

Now, the reason this movie makes the list is not that the movie was that good. It was pretty good yes, very entertaining, but for me, this stands out as one of the greatest cinematic experiencesof the year. The world premiere at the Fantasia Film Festival this summer was just crazy
Darren Lynn Bousman was there, the cast too, the crowd was insane, it was a hot summer night, I met some nice people. A very fun night to remember.

9. Iron Man
(Jon Favreau. 2008)

This is the movie that launched the summer now officially know, and thus, for the end of times, as The Summer of the Comic Book Movie. And as far as I'm concerned, while this wasn't the best one (that being TDK and we all know it), this definitely was the most comic-book-ish, and let alone, the best fucking Marvel movie I've seen. It paved the way for the Avengers, introduced Marvel's very own studio, put Robert Downey Jr. back on the map (for me anyways) and was just pure comic gold.

8. Cloverfield
(Matt Reeves. 2008) Certainly one of the most hyped and anticipated movies of 2008, I remember it coming out in January and boy, was I excited. I've had practically spent the whole summer going all over the Internet looking for clues and shit. And when I got to finally see it, I got definitely what I wanted : an action-packed, thrilling, hand-held kaiju flick. It is also one of the rare movies I went to see twice in theaters. It's not a grand film but it's pretty damn entertaining.

7. Tokyo Gore Police
(Yoshihiro Nishimura. 2008)
This movie makes the list for being the single most fucked up thing I have ever seen. Ever. Trust me. It is not an amazing movie, so to speak, but it sure is a cinematic experience you're likely to never live (or want to live) again. In all seriousness, this movie is intense. Hear my words : intense. There's a limit of blood you can show in a movie. This movie basically says fuck you and utterly destroys those limits. For the gore fans out there only: Trust me, you will never, ever see something like this. This a one-in-a-lifetime movie. My eyeballs still hurt.

6. Jack Brooks : Monster Slayer
(Jon Knautz. 2007)
This shouldn't be on this list right? Well it is. The reasons ? It's Canadian and I'm kinda proud it is. And it was SO MUCH FUN. This a Halloween Party kinda movie. A throwback to the eighties when CGI didn't exist. A movie full of slime, goo and blood, latex and monsters. Plus, watch with a cheering crowd at a film fest : fun time garantied. And it stars Robert Englund. This isn't one of the best films I've seen this year, no way, but I had such a good time watching it. Highly recommended.

5.The Fall
(Tarsem. 2006)

I've already reviewed this movie but let me remind you : this movie is amazing. Amazingly beautiful, great characters, one of my favorite actor (Lee Pace from Pushing Daisies)as a pistolero, some of the greatest imagery you'll ever see in a non-blockbuster flick (it was shot in over 22 countries and it shows), this movie is as epic as it is heart-moving and really really good.

4. Who is K.K. Downey?
(Darren Curtis & Pat Kiely. 2008)

I am not a comedy guy. Look at the list, I don't usually see a lot of comedies. It's not a genre I love very much. But this, guys, this was seriously one, if not the single greatest comedy I've seen. And, maybe that is impairing my judgement but it's from Montréal, and this movie made me want to make movies myself, like you wouldn't believe. It's about those hipster guys, one is in a band and another wants to publish a book but they all fail miserably. They then decide to create this icon. K.K. Downey and basically fool everybody in thinking he's the one who wrote the shitty book. This movie is juste pure comedic gold. That's all I'm going to say. Now, if a DVD could come out so I could spread the love...

3.The Dark Knight
(Christopher Nolan. 2008)

Don't act like you didn't expect this to be on the list. This movie is a dark and gripping thriller and it is a superhero movie. Wait what? Yes. Heath Ledger delivered the performance of his career (or sadly, of his life) and Christopher Nolan blasted his way in the summer blockbuster league, while keeping all the intelligence and intrigue of his previous films. I you haven't seen this yet, you've either lived under a rock all year, or you must have a hell of a reason.If not, I don't want to know you.

2. The Darjeeling Limited
(Wes Anderson. 2007)I know this came out quite a time ago, but this movie is so great, so perfect that it had to be on this list. Of course, I was expecting an amazing film from Wes Anderson, but when I got to see this movie, I was blown away. I know he's made The Royal Tenenbaums which is regarded as his masterpiece and I'm no one to argue with that, but Darjeeling stuck with me a lot more afterwards. This movie moved on so many levels. It's smart, funny and beautiful, so beautiful. The characters alone are some of the greatest stuff I've seen on the big screen. I could write a thousand word repeating how good this is but please do yourself a favor and see this movie. And all Wes Anderson's while you're at it.

NUMBER ONE - LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
(Tomas Alfredson. 2007)

This movie is undescribable : my words couldn't even begin to explain how good this was and how much I enjoyed it. But what makes this the definitive most amazing film I've seen this year (at this point, you get that the top 3 is pretty much the best films I've seen this year) is how it grew on me. How it stayed with me and haunted me for days. How I wanted to see it again, and couldn't. This is a true example of an awaken dream, a movie that got me and didn't let me go, for two hours long. Forget everything else you know about vampires and cold and snow : this movie is the definitive vampire movie for me. Everything in this movie is amazing and it has one of the most satisfaying endings you'll ever see.

That is it folks.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

As you all may know by now, I'm a huge David Fincher fan. I remember seeing the trailer for this movie and being absolutely mesmerized. And I remember thinking : this is going to be Fincher's masterpiece. I know Fincher doesn't write his movies, and I think that technically speaking, this is his greatest achievement yet. But I'll get to that later. I really liked this movie. Not as much as I thought I would when I saw the trailer, but I'm glad I, after reading a bunch of reviews, reajusted my expectations, and went to see it. As you may all know by now, this movie is about Benjamin Button who ages backward.

What kept me from absolutely adoring this movie was some little details here and there. It didn't ruin anything, its exactly the kind of long love story I really like, but it kept it from becoming my new Fincher favorite.

I feel that he really improves from movie to movie and I think that as a director, Benjamin Button is the culmination of his career. The mood, the tone, every scene is spot on. It's warm, it's thrilling, and touching, and for that, Fincher is my hero. Every single of his movies has this dark and eerie undertone which is just perfect. But it is not my favorite of his. Why ?

Well, the script had those little details that bothered me just a little. First, the story's as a journal, I was fine with that but I felt that the Katrina subplot wasn't necessary at all. And also, halfway through the movie, he just got stuck at the same age for a while because I felt that was kinda convenient story-wise.
That bothered me a bit.
A friend of mine said she found the movie to be a bit cliché, but that didn't bother me this much. See it like this : this is an archetypal Hollywood movie. In a box, ready for the Academy Awards. It doesn't make it bad, far from that, it really is a great film, but it sure has the romance and the scenes going with it that may be a bit cliché.

In all seriousness, I can't wait for his next one. They are rumors about a Black Hole adaptation, a Torso adaptation (both acclaimed graphic novels) and a Heavy Metal live-action with Zach Snyder, Guillermo Del Toro and Gore Verbinski all directing segments (Fanboy moment : OMFG!!!!!). I think that since Zodiac, Fincher's really on the top of his game.

All in all, a very good movie. Not his best, not his worst, but a very welcome addition to his amazing filmography.

How to celebrate New Year's eve?

By watching Michael Bay's epic sci-fi over-the-top extravaganza that is Armageddon.

I mean, this movie is what it is right? It's a Michael Bay, so it's what you can expect.

In this movie, Michael Bay blows up a lot of shit up. And I mean A LOT. China, New York, an oil-rigging platform, asteroids, bits and pieces of the moon, Paris, a Russian space station, and so on. He manages to infuse his movie with as much not-so-subtle political messages as you would expect and man, if you're looking for EXPLOSIONS like you wouldn't believe, this is what you need. It's a Michael Bay film after all. This movie is plain, epic, badass and brainless entertainment. You won't get better than this. And Bruce Willis is God, too.

If you expect a grand film, this is not for you. If you want to be ridiculously entertained, look no further, Michael Bay is the man. I have not a big bunch of respect for the guy, actually, but I can tell that with Armageddon, he manages to entertain (read : this movie is hilarious, cheesy and epic) the hell out of you. I can't believe the screenplay was partially written by J.J. Abrams. Hahaha.

Actually, this movie is worth watching. There's an epic sequence, somewhere in the middle, just before they get on the space shuttle, and you have the President giving a huge speech to the population of the Earth. Priceless, believe me.

Also, this is waay better than Transformers, as far a explosions get.

But, is this worth a place in the Criterion Collection, alongside Wes Anderson's and Kurosowa's films. I don't think so. I most definitely don't think this is "cinema at its finest" . Its a classic in its own genre, yes. But not an "important classic" as Criterion claims to distribute.

But it is the kind of movie I'll consider buying if it is less than 10$

Brains : 0

Explosions : 10

Entertainment 10+

Bruce Willis : 10++

Its sums up the whole thing.

Oh, and Happy New Year, too.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

I'm about to watch : ARMAGEDDON. Yeah, that's right. Michael "I blow shit up" Bay.

Favorite Holiday Film (flash-review #12)

Talk about an appropriate Christmas movie. I'm almost didn't put it in the LIST because I thought it was already there. Looks like it isn't...

Anyways, Seven is one of my all time favorite movies. I received the DVD for Christmas and watched it with my cousins. This movie is so good. Everything about it is amazing. The acting, the direction, the script, the mood. It's so gritty and dark and perfect, I just love it.

For those unfamiliar with this movie, its about two inspectors, portrayed by Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt and their investigation of a serie of murders related to the seven deadly sins. The ending is amazing. Every murder is absolutely horrible and perfect. Everything about this movie is spot on. If you haven't seen it, see it right now. Believe me, this movie has an ending you do not forget.

Absolute classic? I think so.
A perfect family film for the holidays (haha, no)