Category Archives: movies

crazy as Sacha (film: The Brothers Grimsby – Louis Leterrier, 2016)

We live in crazy times and one of the best things that can offer an alternative of the unbearable reality for at least an hour and a half is a crazy comedy. If that’s what you’re looking for, ‘The Brothers … Continue reading

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2022 as seen from 1973 (film: Soylent Green – Richard Fleischer, 1973)

There are several good reasons why Richard Fleischer‘s ‘Soylent Green‘ (1973) deserves to be seen in 2023. Fleischer had made three years earlier together with two Japanese directors the film that would remain the biggest success of his career – … Continue reading

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an American saga made in Europe (film: Once Upon a Time in the West – Sergio Leone, 1968)

Sergio Leone directed seven feature films throughout his career. Seven films out of which six, grouped in two trilogies, are enough for his name to be considered today among the most important directors of the 20th century. ‘Once Upon a … Continue reading

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extreme vampires (film: Trouble Every Day – Claire Denis, 2001)

One way to look at Claire Denis‘s ‘Trouble Every Day‘ (2001) is as a realistic and gory vampire movie (yes, even bloodier than many other vampire movies). Critics and experts in film history will say that the film belongs to … Continue reading

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art and truth (film: Marguerite – Xavier Giannoli, 2015)

‘Marguerite‘ (2015), directed by Xavier Giannoli, is one of two films made less than a year apart based on the fascinating story of Florence Foster Jenkins, the wealthy American amateur soprano who became famous and ridiculous for her flamboyant stage … Continue reading

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one of the best political thrillers (film: I … comme Icare – Henri Verneuil, 1979)

Henri Verneuil is a director whose films need to be re-watched and re-evaluated. It is not necessarily about his blockbuster films, the ones for which he gained fame as ‘the most American of French directors’. Several of the films at … Continue reading

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Casablanca 2016 (film: Allied – Robert Zemeckis, 2016)

I believe that Robert Zemeckis conceived ‘Allied‘ (2016) as sort of an homage to one of my most beloved films – Michael Curtiz’s ‘Casablanca’ (1942). The first part of the action takes place exactly in 1942 in Casablanca and the … Continue reading

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two not so nice guys in a not so nice city (film: The Nice Guys – Shane Black, 2016)

‘The Nice Guys‘ (2016) is one of the few directorial experiences of Shane Black, best known as the screenwriter of some of the most successful films and especially action comedies of Hollywood in the last 36 years. And here he … Continue reading

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Citoyen Stavisky (film: Stavisky – Alain Resnais, 1974)

‘Stavisky‘ (1974) is Alain Resnais‘ most successful film with the public, which may be partly due to the fact that it’s one of his most accessible films, but mostly to the exceptional cast led including Jean-Paul Belmondo. For him, the … Continue reading

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life and literature (film: Gemma Bovery – Anne Fontaine, 2014)

‘Gemma Bovery‘, Anne Fontaine‘s 2014 film enchanted me. What could be the cause? The presence in the male lead role of Fabrice Luchini, one of my favorite French actors and possessor of the most perfect diction of anyone who spoke … Continue reading

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