One of the greatest performance of French actor Gerard Depardieu lately. After the more somber and underground art film Mammuth, were you recognize somewhat the frees spirited Depardieu of the cult movie "Les Valseuses" (1974), here comes an unexpected tender and touching story of an adult that can barely read and an elderly lady from a retirement home. A love story begins, her love of words and books drives his desire to finally learn to "travel with words" and their love for each other blossoms. The director is know for his love of the human kind, undeserved as it may be, he glorifies the good one can do to another human being. It is a refreshing film, not a dark satire of society, but a joyful, hopeful, moving story with a true happy end. Don't miss it !
Reviews
4 Reviews
Mammuth
(2010)
Underdog Depardieu takes the risk of irritating the "average" viewer
15 July 2010
Warning: Spoilers
This is the unglamorous journey of an uneducated precarious worker driving thru France on his Mummuth bike to get the missing social security documents that will grant him his social rights to claim his pension. On this journey, he comes to terms with the death of his first love and finally acknowledges his love for his wife.
Special guest stars appear throughout this outrageous road movie:for instance Isabelle Adjani who made an extraordinary come back with the French movie "the day of the skirt" (i'm unable to put French titles to French films here)
The French directors are well-know for their rather satirical outlook on the world mainly thru the very popular daily TV show "Groland" on French private TV Canal+.
It gives this epic road movie a genuine feeling of authenticity.
It is somber and dark. It depicts the average low life people, the ones that no movies are made about. No one wants to see the miserable workers, the way they are, in a pathetic yet moving way.
It is obviously a metaphor about today's society without its pretty face-lift, the supermarket cashier is not played by a glamorous JLO (Jennifer Lopez).
This film will thus be repugnant to watch to the viewer that cannot stand actors without make up, fake body parts. Viewers who cannot stand to see the truth about the life of the ordinary workers, with a surreal twist should be advised not to watch the film.
The film was shot in a rather bad quality which does not only show how poor they were (and incapable of raising the money for this awkward film for which Depardieu does not get a dime!) but also set the film in a genre : social realism.
Throughout the film Depardieu is naked, without protection. What a great performer he is ! He does not care about his image being potentially undermined by this movie. He is truly pathetic which is exactly the feeling the directors want to bring out. That shitty life you live makes you pathetic but this is not only what the directors want us to see. Obviously - unless you're so blinded by Hollywood glamor - you cannot watch a truly weird and honest film about realities that are never featured on film. Ken Loach would never show his characters under such unkind light.
That's why it is a necessity that films like this one continue to be shot. There is no glamor or dignity in leading miserable lives. So it is showed as it should be for an audience of people with a critical outlook on society who become nauseous after seeing yet another blockbuster made with beautiful perfect people evolving in a perfect plastic world.
Extraordinary lines such as the dialog between Depardieu and the butcher at the supermarket where his wife works!
Thanks to Depardieu for taking the part and making the movie possible. I pity those who cannot see how important this cinema is for the diversity of point of views, not only aesthetically but politically in the movie industry today.
Special guest stars appear throughout this outrageous road movie:for instance Isabelle Adjani who made an extraordinary come back with the French movie "the day of the skirt" (i'm unable to put French titles to French films here)
The French directors are well-know for their rather satirical outlook on the world mainly thru the very popular daily TV show "Groland" on French private TV Canal+.
It gives this epic road movie a genuine feeling of authenticity.
It is somber and dark. It depicts the average low life people, the ones that no movies are made about. No one wants to see the miserable workers, the way they are, in a pathetic yet moving way.
It is obviously a metaphor about today's society without its pretty face-lift, the supermarket cashier is not played by a glamorous JLO (Jennifer Lopez).
This film will thus be repugnant to watch to the viewer that cannot stand actors without make up, fake body parts. Viewers who cannot stand to see the truth about the life of the ordinary workers, with a surreal twist should be advised not to watch the film.
The film was shot in a rather bad quality which does not only show how poor they were (and incapable of raising the money for this awkward film for which Depardieu does not get a dime!) but also set the film in a genre : social realism.
Throughout the film Depardieu is naked, without protection. What a great performer he is ! He does not care about his image being potentially undermined by this movie. He is truly pathetic which is exactly the feeling the directors want to bring out. That shitty life you live makes you pathetic but this is not only what the directors want us to see. Obviously - unless you're so blinded by Hollywood glamor - you cannot watch a truly weird and honest film about realities that are never featured on film. Ken Loach would never show his characters under such unkind light.
That's why it is a necessity that films like this one continue to be shot. There is no glamor or dignity in leading miserable lives. So it is showed as it should be for an audience of people with a critical outlook on society who become nauseous after seeing yet another blockbuster made with beautiful perfect people evolving in a perfect plastic world.
Extraordinary lines such as the dialog between Depardieu and the butcher at the supermarket where his wife works!
Thanks to Depardieu for taking the part and making the movie possible. I pity those who cannot see how important this cinema is for the diversity of point of views, not only aesthetically but politically in the movie industry today.
Revolutionary Road
(2008)
Don't give up your dreams, don't become responsible adult
15 July 2010
The book and the movie ask a fundamental question: do we choose to live our life to the fullest and fulfill our dreams or do we settle for the far from glamorous suburban life of reasonable adults in a society tailoring our dreams in order for us to buy more of the bullshit it sells. It is brilliantly acted, scripted and directed, you'll see the couple drowning in his incapacity to take a chance and live the dream instead of dreaming their life thus feeling bitter and acrimonious about it. In the 50's you would think the decision of not living the dream reasonable, in today's world, we know we're lied to, deceived by "the markets" and the advertorials so we may as well do as we dream, because it does not matter, society is not designed to make us happy (not even happy customers !), fulfilled so if you have a passion, just go for it, live every minute of it, regardless of tomorrows. Actors are fantastic, director Mendes has brilliantly filmed this sad story. Don't watch it if you're already depressed ;-)
JCVD
(2008)
Brilliant script & cinematography
15 July 2010
I don't care about Jean-Claude Vandamme but as a Belgian, I've always listen to the latest news about him. So right after he became the most notorious Belgian idiot with the "Be Aware" viral videos, I thought he made an extremely smart move (him or someone around him) to actually build on the "cult" he brought inadvertedly upon himself by his total foolishness and hilariously insane monologues. You'd think the man is stupid, yet he completely turned his bad image around in this excellent movie. Or he simply surfed on his fame to get credited for real acting for once. This film is probably the first "real acting" you have ever seen Vandamme perform. Thanks to a brilliant script and director. It is not everyday you see an actor play himself in an entire movie. But is it really him ? Obviously not, it is his message, he tries to tell his fans that it is bad to judge people from tabloid articles, for his drug addiction or even to mock him for his many wives. He speaks in his own words, this very "surreal" speech style that makes him the involuntary comic we laugh at so much. But he makes his point, he gets more humane by the minute, he is a hero, a nice guy, he's got problems like us, "average people", he 's sad, he's a dad in trouble, a jobless actor (which isn't true) he has not done anything to better the world and feels undeserving of his stardom status. Well, it is a lot of bullshit but it works. The movie is great, fun to watch also because so many excellent Belgian actors are in it. If you're looking for entertainment, you'll get it. If you're a fan of JCVD, you'll love him even more, it is the best "rebranding" of an actor I've seen in a long time. Way to go Jean-Claude, amuse-toi bien à Hollywood ;-) Bons baisers de Belgique!
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