D.Moore

Good old France doesn't disappoint. The two masters simply sat down at the table and, just as if they were sitting at pianos, played a concert that takes your breath away. Five unquestionable stars.

I can't help but give it the full number of stars. After Toy Story 3 and Despicable Me, Planet 51 is another cartoon that I have nothing to criticize about. I appreciate mostly the main idea of "role reversal" and the fact that the "alien" planet looks like the USA in the 1950s. Rock 'n' roll is in style, civilian hovercrafts resemble Cadillacs or Dodges, military vehicles are like Jeep Willys, TVs are in black and white, B-movie sci-fi blockbusters about brain-eating bloodsuckers attacking are ruling the movie theatres, and everyone is afraid of what lurks in the 500-mile-long universe. The arrival of an astronaut unleashes E.T. style mayhem turned inside out, we get all sorts of references to films like Alien, Terminator, Star Wars, War of the Worlds, as well as Singin' in the Rain, Grease, and plenty more, and there are some awfully fun characters to boot: A rugged general dubbed by Gary Oldman, a scientist-madman with the voice of John Cleese, a Bob Dylan alien (with a bunch of hippies in a hover-flower Volkswagen)... I could go on and on, but it's better if you see it yourself. If you like sci-fi and would like a fun homage to the greatest blockbusters, give Planet 51 a watch. It's better than Monsters vs. Aliens.

The Professional (especially the beginning), 96 Hours (especially the end), Bourne, Oldboy, Edge of Darkness, Kiss of the Dragon... All these films came to my mind while watching The Man from Nowhere. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, not at all. Although I do know that if I didn't know them, I would be at least one star more excited. So the pros: 1) An admittedly old familiar story about a man with a mysterious past who gets screwed over by the wrong guys in the wrong way... Ok, why not. At least it wasn't completely stupid. 2) Definitely the cinematography, direction and choreography of the action scenes - the final showdown on the knife really worked. 3) The main character gets a haircut.__Cons: 1) Before the main character gets a haircut, he has an incredibly idiotic haircut (sorry, Pete) and I feel like punching him. 2) The film is cruelly long and after an hour and a quarter it started to bore me (fortunately it got moving towards the end - see Pro No. 2.). 3) The little girl was terribly annoying, so actually I didn't really understand why there was any need to save something like that. 4) "POSSIBLE SPOILER" The theme of children slaving in drug production came too late - it was as if the screenwriter remembered it the day before the deadline and wanted to cram it into the film. "END OF THE POSSIBLE SPOILER".__For all this, I give it an above-average 3.5 stars. I'd round them up if I knew I'd ever watch The Man from Nowhere again. But that's not likely to happen.

A surprising war blast that impresses with its epic battle scenes and the gritty story of two brothers, whom the script doesn't make into heroes and terminator henchmen, but rather shows them as ordinary people for 140 minutes. The whole thing felt like a cross between Saving Private Ryan, Full Metal Jacket, Platoon and Letters from Iwo Jima (which are even better), but I didn't feel like I was watching a film ripping off its more famous brethren.

I had no idea this film existed until the TV release. And yet it's essentially a gem. Who would have ever thought that a story about Hitler, who survived the war and became a prisoner without knowing it himself, would be produced in the Czech Republic? The atmosphere of I, Justice is very strong, and I was impressed by the excellent dialogues, the actors with the great Karl Höger and the precise Fritz Dietz in the lead, Brynych's psycho-direction and the whole sterile, cold mood. Scenes of the "speech", "execution by guillotine" and the ending with a chilling point are unforgettable. I'm rounding up three and a half stars.

An average cartoon with some very funny jokes (Larry King, Sting...), one amazing scene of the first "trip" from the hive (it’s really something) and... And then nothing more. Even the creative aspects fail to impress, and apart from the discovery that the bees are actually pilots as if taken from Top Gun, there is a lack of proper ideas. I found the trial plot to be... Hmmm... Awkward. So, as I said, average in terms of everything.

If you're going to end your career, end it properly. In the same way that Clint Eastwood said goodbye to acting in Gran Torino, John Wayne says goodbye to pretty much everything (unfortunately) in The Shootist: to the western's most famous era, the silver screen and pure life, and he does it all with a dose of ironic perspective and harmless sentimentality. The legend left with his head held high. Four stars for the film, the fifth out of respect.__P.S. The shootouts, directed by Don Siegel, were always a blast.__P.P.S. John Wayne and James Stewart's scenes together are great.

The animation gets full stars, without the slightest hesitation. I was worried that the story wouldn't be clichéd. It wasn't. I was worried that the main "hero" would get too soft during the hour and a half. He didn't. I was worried about the film being too childish. It wasn't (again)! Despicable Me is an incredibly entertaining mix of a children's and adult spectacle that is full of jokes, offers several references to "slightly different" films (I was particularly taken by the "godfather" head in bed), it has excellent visuals and music, and when it comes to emotions, it doesn't emotionally shame the audience, and is instead kind and gentle with them. It’s strong competition for the experts at Pixar. "I fly to the moon.... I shrink the moon... I'll grab the moon... I sit on the toilet... What?"

Pixar rocks again and this film is worth a hundred points out of a hundred! Funny, touching, childish and adult – all beautifully balanced.

"You have a precise nature? And what is that?" This is a nice little comedy with the likeable Olda Kaiser. I think the filmmakers and actors have captured the arguing and the reconciliation of the young couple that immediately follows it nicely, and Kaiser's attempt to get the "proto-type" of his dream invention is beautifully satirical and not lost even today.