September 9, 1999
East Is East (1999) ***
Fantasia 2000 (1999) ***
An animated IMAX extravaganza featuring seven new sequences and one classic segment from the original Disney classic. Best of all are those snotty flamingos playing with a yoyo in a wacky interpretation of Saint-Saens' Carnival of the Animals. Donald Duck stars in an equally hilarious segment about Noah's Ark, set to the music of Sir Edward Elgar's classic (and oft-ridiculed) Pomp And Circumstance. And there are also giant whales frolicking among icebergs...while Ottorino Respighi's Pines of Rome is playing on the soundtrack. Often quite entertaining, the film has one major drawback: some segments too closely imitate those from the 1940 film - Beethoven replaces Bach in an equally boring abstract sequence and Stavinsky's Firebird is a carbon copy of Mussorgsky's Night On The Bald Mountain.
Un film d'animation de Hendel Butoy. Avec Mickey Mouse et Donald Duck. La suite du grand classique d'animation de Walt Disney, Fantasia 2000 nous offre un pot-pourri irrésistible de la musique classique, du jazz, de l'art abstrait, du surréalisme et des luttes epiques. On retient surtout une superbe numéro des flamants jouant avec un yoyo, ainsi qu'une fresque impressionante avec des balaines géantes qui gambadent parmi les icebergs. Le fameux Donald Duck fait une apparition dans un segment qui raconte l'histoire de Noe, tandis que la Cinquième Symphonie de Beethoven est illustrée par des images purement abstraits. Presenté dans le format Imax, Fantasia 2000 est un vrai morceau de bravure - un film à la fois innovateur et traditionel.
Un film d'animation de Hendel Butoy. Avec Mickey Mouse et Donald Duck. La suite du grand classique d'animation de Walt Disney, Fantasia 2000 nous offre un pot-pourri irrésistible de la musique classique, du jazz, de l'art abstrait, du surréalisme et des luttes epiques. On retient surtout une superbe numéro des flamants jouant avec un yoyo, ainsi qu'une fresque impressionante avec des balaines géantes qui gambadent parmi les icebergs. Le fameux Donald Duck fait une apparition dans un segment qui raconte l'histoire de Noe, tandis que la Cinquième Symphonie de Beethoven est illustrée par des images purement abstraits. Presenté dans le format Imax, Fantasia 2000 est un vrai morceau de bravure - un film à la fois innovateur et traditionel.
The Iron Giant (1999) ***
Directed by Brad Bird. With the voices of Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick Jr and Cloris Leachman. Very entertaining animated feature about a young boy befriending a giant robot from outer space. Often hilarious and always exciting, it deserves to be a huge hit. A lighthearted fare, made for kids of all ages, with a surprisingly strong anti-militarist message.
Les Enfants du marais (1999) ***
Directed by Jean Becker. With Jacques Villeret, Jacques Gamblin and Michel Serrault. A deeply moving, very sentimental and often unforgettable little film about friendship, loyalty and love. Set in a small French town in the early 1930's, it delights spectators with its profoudly nostalgic charm. A genuine crowd pleaser.
The Winslow Boy (1999) ***
Directed by David Mamet. With Rebecca Pidgeon, Nigel Hawthorne and Jeremy Northam. Fine period drama based on a real-life scandal from 1910, involving a 13-year-old British naval cadet accused of stealing five shillings. Instead of focusing on the court case itself, writer/director David Mamet has chosen an interesting angle to tell the story. The result is a fascinating picture, with superb dialogue and excellent performances.
Where A Good Man Goes (1999) ***
Directed by Johnny To. With Lau Ching-Wan. A gangster movie slowly morphing into a melodrama. Touching and beautiful.
Toy Story 2 (1999) ***
Directed by John Lasseter. Even better than the first film, with exciting action scenes and superb computer animation.
Tarzan (1999) ***
Directed by Kevin Lima and Chris Buck. Voices of Minnie Driver, Rosie O'Donnell and Tony Goldwyn. Entertaining and fast-paced jungle/adventure flick about that loud, tree-swinging, loincloth-clad hunk raised by apes in the African wilderness. But the real star of the film is the magnificently animated, three-dimensional jungle, where the camera can follow Tarzan as he crashes throught thick leaves, uses a branch as a trampoline and jumps towards the next tree. Songs are few and far between, but action scenes come fast and furious every five minutes.
Sweet And Lowdown (1999) ***
Comédie de Woody Allen. Avec Sean Penn, Samantha Morton, Uma Thurman, John Waters, Anthony LaPaglia. Avec ce petit film très réussi, Woody Allen poursuit l'exploration des thèmes qui lui sont chers. Et encore une fois (après "Broadway Danny Rose", "Radio Days" et "Bullets Over Broadway"), il recrée l'atmosphère du show-business new-yorkais des années 30. Le personnage principal, Emmet Ray (Sean Penn) est un musicien célèbre et gâté, qui tombe amoureux d'une fille muette (Samantha Morton) et qui s'implique dans le monde des gangsters. Emmet Ray est un homme plutôt inéquilibré, mais capable de plaire aux femmes et de conduire une morale à la fois libératrice (pour lui) et machiste (pour elle), face aux ambiguïtés de son métier. Les dialogues sont absolument savoureux, la musique est superbe - bref, Sweet And Lowdown est un véritable bijou. A voir absolument.
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) ***
Directed by George Lucas. Ignoring both the hype and the inevitable backlash, let's just say that it's a superior example of Hollywood entertainment. Exciting from start to finish, it's a fast-paced ride across the Galaxy.
Sleepy Hollow (1999) ***
Directed by Tim Burton. Visually stunning adaptation of Washington Irving's famous novel.
The Sixth Sense (1999) ***
Directed by M.Night Shyamalan. With Bruce Willis, Olivia Williams and Toni Collette. First, it LOOKS like a typical Bruce Willis Hollywood blockbuster. And after HEARING its co-star Toni Collette, we can SMELL a disaster. But this TOUCHING and very bizarre drama actually offers a TASTE of something different. It should be seen twice. On the first viewing, it seems horribly pretentious, gloomy and weird. But once you know the ending, its stylistic austerity and its quasi-bergmanian silence, suddenly make perfect SENSE.
The Real Howard Spitz (1999) ***
Directed by Vadim Jean. With Kelsey Grammer, Genevieve Tessier and Amanda Donohoe. A very original, iconoclastic comedy about a failed pulp fiction writer (Grammer) who tries to make it big in the kiddie book business. He enlists the help of a precocious little girl (Tessier) and falls in love with her mother (Donohoe). Grammer and Tessier have great chemistry together, and the little moppet steals every scene she's in. An amazing mixture of odd-ball satire and warm sentimentality, this is a minor gem that seems to have fallen between the cracks of the film distribution system.
Petits freres (1999) ***
Directed by Jacques Doillon. Gripping drama set in a poor housing project on the outskirts of Paris. Story of a feisty young girl whose dog has been stolen by hoodlums.
Pan Tadeusz (1999) ***
Directed by Andrzej Wajda. With Michal Zebrowski, Daniel Olbrychski and Marek Kondrat. A wonderful adaptation of an epic poem about a small uprising in Russian-occupied Poland during the Napoleonic Wars. It’s a very patriotic work, but its political message isn’t nationalistic at all. Instead of demonizing foreigners, the film blames internal divisions as the chief cause of Poland’s downfall. The picture is most memorable for its beautiful poetic dialogue.
The Cup (1999) ***
Directed by Khyentse Norbu. With Orgyen Tobgyal, Neten Chokling, Jamyang Lodro. You just can’t go wrong with this Bhutanese comedy (Bhutan: a tiny Asian country in the Himalayas, squeezed tight between India and China), which was directed by a Buddhist lama recognized as the incarnation of a 19th century Tibetan saint. The story centers on a group of young Tibetan monks with an unquenchable passion for soccer. During the World Cup playoffs, they sneak out of their monastery by night and make their way to a nearby town to watch the games on television. The film celebrates the values that unite all of humanity. It also idealizes the specific local traditions that contribute to the rich tapestry of cultural diversity. And, most importantly, it manages to reconcile both concepts in a playful and entertaining way. Bhutan's submission for the best foreign film Oscar.
Buena Vista Social Club (1999) ***
Directed by Wim Wenders. A memorable documentary about aging Cuban musicians.
The Adventures Of Elmo In Grouchland (1999) ***
Directed by Gary Halvorson. With Vanessa Williams and Mandy Patinkin. This is an absolutely superb motion picture - a delightful and totally unexpected surprise. Clearly inspired by Bertold Brecht, it features characters adressing the audience, commenting on the plot and poking fun at other films (including Titanic). And while self-reflexive and incredibly clever, it still works beautifully as a simple kidpic, with excellent songs, entertaining adventures and appropriate moral lessons.
Adieu plancher des vaches (1999) ***
Directed by Otar Iosseliani. Low-key, very dry comedy about a weird aristocratic family.
Ma petite entreprise (1999) ***
Directed by Pierre Jolivet. With Vincent Lindon, François Berléand and Roschdy Zem. A businessman (Lindon) is facing bankrupcy after his little enterprise literally goes up in flames.... and after he discovers he never had any insurance coverage. Winner of the Best Screenplay Award at the last year’s Montreal Film Festival, this is a charming and delightful screwball farce.
Histoires d'hiver (1999) ***
Directed by Francois Bouvier. With Joel Drapeau-Dalpe, Denis Chouinard and Diane Lavallee. Wonderfully witty, insightful, charming and entertaining, this little gem deserves to be compared with Mon oncle Antoine. If all you expect is a simple story of a boy obsessed with hockey, brace yourself for a huge treat - this film is like a delicious candy slowly melting in one's mouth.
La Dilettante (1999) ***
Comédie de Pascal Thomas. Avec Catherine Frot, Odette Laure, et Nathalie Lafaurie. Cette delicieuse comédie signée Pascal Thomas offre le triple mérite, devenu de plus en plus rare dans le cinéma français, d’être à la fois intelligente, réjouissante et originale. Son intelligence est dû à un scénario exquis, plein de répliques savoureuses. La réjouissance est fortement liée à la création impeccable de Catherine Frot, qu’on a déja vu dans Un air de famille et Diner de cons. Et quant à l’originalité, elle vient surtout de la manière incouciante (et très picaresque) dont on y aborde le récit. Il s’agit, en effect, d’un film qui “saute” d’une situation à l’autre, en poursuivant en perte d’haleine son héroïne excéntrique qui passe par la vie comme un typhoon tropical, ne laissant derrière elle que les bouches grands ouvertes des passants.
A delicious French comedy which offers a triple treat of intelligence, entertainment and originality. The script is exquisitely written and full of delightful one-liners. Catherine Frot’s performance is impeccable. But most impressive of all is the film’s refreshingly off-handed approach to storytelling (jumping frivolously from one situation to another), undoubtedly inspired by its excentric heroine, who also passes through life like a tornado leaving nothing but chaos and exhiliration in her wake.
Cookie's Fortune (1999) ***
Robert Altman's least ambitious film of 1990's, set in a small Mississippi community.
Not One Less (1999) ***
The Wind Will Carry Us (1999) ***
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