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Reviews
The Anne Frank Gift Shop (2023)
Hilarious from beginning till the end
I had the pleasure to see this short film at a short film screening organized by the American Cinematheque here in Los Angeles. 'The Anne Frank Giftstore' was the last one in the program and from the moment it started, I was already laughing out loud. And that was just the beginning! I had no idea what it was going to be about and the comedic surprises and twists kept following each other. But not only was it brilliantly funny, it was also thought provoking. Without it being too preachy. Super well written, brilliantly performed, this is truly one of the funniest short films I have seen in years.
Disenchanted (2022)
A musical?!?
Enchanted has got to be one of the most brilliant Disney movies out there. A Disney movie that parodies everything ... Disney! Not only was the story original and fresh, Amy Adams was a comedy revelation and her over the top Disney Princess was comedy gold. And then there's Disenchanted. First off, what's with ALL these songs??? Enchanted had, what, three, four songs that were funny and catchy. This movie got a zillion, cliché-sounding songs (except for 'Badder' which was a fun duet, and which should have the only song) turning this into a musical and completely losing the parody aspect and becoming a cliché the first one was making fun of! Having said that, Adams' comedic timing is still spot on. Especially when she switches from sweet Gisele to evil Gisele.
Grace Kelly: Precious Memories (2022)
Great footage, terrible documentary
While the footage in this documentary is pretty good, with original black and white footage being colorized, intertwined with numerous photos, I quickly realized what a fluff piece this was with I formation that was so wrong it's was embarrassing. For example, Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier married in 1956, but throughout this piece, a family portrait of the Grimaldis in 1971 keeps popping up with the caption '20th Wedding Anniversary'. Footage of some church, which is clearly in the US, keeps being referred as the cathedral in Monaco! And the list goes on. "Kelly did her own stunts during the shooting of 'To Catch a Thief' " What on earth?!? That famous car scene was shot in front of a screen!!!
Physical (2021)
Physically painful
The premise seemed fun and interesting, plus it has Rose Byrne in it. The five first minutes of the first episode actually had me hooked. But that didn't last, and I quickly realized that the only thing I liked was the whole 80's aspect for it. For the next 9 episodes nothing, ABSOLUTELY noting happened. None of the characters, from the lead to the supporting ones, are likable, except for maybe her neighbor-friend. You would think that the main character would evolve from episode to episode, but she doesn't! She lets herself be ran over by her a-hole of a husband, her so called friends, and by everyone else for that matter. Every episode I was hoping for her to react, get angry, FREAKIN' DO SOMETHING. Nothing. And yet, I kept watching it every week, hoping she would do something or that something would happen. Came Season Finale and ... nada!
The Stand In (2020)
Why the hate for this movie? However ...
I don't understand all the negative reviews about this film. I actually liked it. Barrymore is incredible in both parts, playing two very different characters. I think the real issue here is that the movie isn't a comedy and shouldn't have been sold that way. It feels more like a thriller, or should have at least been sold as a black comedy. While I liked it a lot I did have a major issue with the fact that the movie is a rip-off of the 1994 French film 'Dead Tired' in which French comedian Michel Blanc (playing himself) enters a deal with his look alike when the latter proposes to take over all of his public appearances and film shoots, so Blanc can take a long vacation. But everything goes bad when he realizes the look alike has literally taken oven his life and has convinced everyone he is the real one!