December 12, 2000
November 11, 2000
In The Mood For Love (2000) *****
October 10, 2000
Baise-moi (2000) ****
This French film, directed by Virginie Despentes and Coralie Trinh Thi (for sex scenes), can be seen, depending on one's point of view, either as the best porno movies ever made or as the most sexually explicit action movie ever made. Either way, it's stunning. "Baise-moi" is as violent as "Natural Born Killers", way more daring and exciting than "Thelma And Louise" and far more explicit than "Irreversible", "Romance" and other recent French sex films. An early scene, a gang rape, sets the tone for the rest of the movie. While the scene is explicit, the truly disturbing moment comes afterwards, when one of the victims explains to another that having half a dozen guys ripping off her panties and fucking her wasn't such a big deal for her. She didn't mind being gang raped because there was nothing precious inside her cunt. After that opening scene, the film becomes progressively more violent, while the sex scenes, ironically, become more consensual.
The Emperor’s New Groove (2000) ****
27 Missing Kisses (2000) ****
September 9, 2000
Center Stage (2000) ***
Chicken Run (2000) ***
An excellent remake of The Great Escape, with chickens instead of Allied POWs.
Dinosaur (2000) ***
Directed by Eric Leighton and Ralph Zondag. With the voices of D.B.Sweeney, Julianna Margulies, Joan Plowright and Ossie Davis. It’s basically a kiddie movie, closer in spirit to Land Before Time than Jurassic Park. The story is simple (thirsty dinos looking for green pastures), little furry chimps (called lemurs) are cute, and the computer animation is (drumroll please) absolutely amazing. Most importantly, little children can learn the same valuable moral lesson their older brothers were taught in Gladiator: when attacked (by a Roman chariot or a Mesozoic T-Rex), stay close together.
Le Gout des autres (2000) ***
Directed by Agnes Jaoui. With Jean-Pierre Bacri, Agnes Jaoui and Brigitte Catillon. Co-winner of the Grand Prix des Ameriques at this year's WFF, Le Gout des autres is a clever comedy of manners, gently poking fun at the social naiveté of some and the cruel sophistication of others. Starring Bacri as a philistine businessman who falls in love with a snobbish actress (Catillon), this little French gem happens to be both entertaining and amazingly profound.
Small Time Crooks (2000) ***
Comédie de Woody Allen. Avec Woody Allen, Hugh Grant, Jon Lovitz, Elaine May et Michael Rapaport. Woody Allen est à son meilleur lorsqu’il est à la fois devant et derrière la camera. Et pour Small Time Crooks, ce comique légendaire abandonne l’humeur nuancé et sophistiqué de ses dernières réalisations, renouvellant avec son régistre loufoque d’autrefois, et nous faisant rire comme dans le bon vieux temps de Take The Money And Run et Bananas. C’est l’histoire d’une groupe de malfaiteurs assez maladroits. Leur plan est simple: louer une boutique de biscuit près d’une banque, creuser un tunnel et voler l’argent. Malheureusement, les travaux du tunnel n’avancent pas (apparemment, ils ne savent pas creuser); par contre, leur affaire de biscuits marche plutôt bien...
Une pour toutes (2000) ***
Directed by Claude Lelouch. With Anne Parillaud, Alessandra Martines and Olivia Bonamy. This might be an insignificant little comedy, with a needlessly complicated narrative structure supporting an absurdly banal story, and full of hilariously pretentious (and self-consciously artsy) touches. But it’s also a tremendously entertaining film, with no less than five gorgeous women leading a bunch of rich men by their noses and getting away with it. Sophisticated French fun.
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