Rate The Last Movie You Saw

Alien Resurrection - (1997)

She filmed the whole movie while pregnant and in mourning? Dang, girl!

L'Enfant, 2005

Sonia (Déborah François) is a young woman who has just given birth to a baby boy, Jimmy. She comes home from the hospital to find that her pickpocket, hustling boyfriend Bruno (Jérémie Renier) has subletted her apartment and isn't exactly thrilled at the prospect of fatherhood. When Sonia lets Bruno take Jimmy for a short walk, he uses the opportunity to sell the baby through a black market connection. By the time he realizes the gravity of what he's done, it may be too late.

A lot of people are more than happy to give their opinions about who should or should not be allowed to have and raise children. While I of course have my own views, I think we can all agree that stupid, selfish people belong right down toward the bottom of the queue.

It's challenging, in many ways, to root for this couple. Even Sonia, who is the more sympathetic of the two, is hard to take at times. I mean, she and Bruno get into a rock fight while she's holding Jimmy in her arms. Later, with Jimmy in the back seat of the car, they get into an adorable wrestling match in the front seat as the car hurtles down the highway. We don't know the details of their relationship before the baby, but the fact that Bruno is a guy who makes his living stealing from others was obviously known to her.

And Bruno is . . . man. Bruno is a piece of work. He mainly collaborates with a 14 year old boy to steal purses and rob the elderly. He has on speed dial the kind of person who can sell a baby. Every action we see from Bruno is selfish, often explicitly hurting both strangers and those closest to him. When Sonia reacts in disbelief to the fact that he sold their baby, he shrugs and tells her "We'll just have another one." Bruno is probably in his mid-20s, but he's just old enough that you can't write off any of his behavior due to youth.

But this film isn't just about watching terrible people being terrible. Slowly, just by a matter of centimeters, something begins to change in Bruno. It wouldn't be entirely accurate to say that he really tries to "make things right". It's a bit different than that. But somehow you can tell that he's realizing something about the life he's living and the effect he has on others.

I really enjoyed the way that the film evokes realism. There is no score--the only music comes from the environment. The things that happen to the characters all feel "in bounds". And maybe most importantly, the kind of character arcs and growth that we see seem genuine in all their frustrating stutter-stops. The film is working right around the limits of empathy. I honestly didn't think that even Sonia seemed equipped to parent a child. But there's something to be said for people who make an effort, and the movie gives us a glimpse into what that might look like for even a person as despicable as Bruno.

First off, I love all your reviews. Always such an enjoyable read. Definitely need to watch this.

Just read in some summary as I looked for where to stream it that she’s 18 and he’s 20, so not ‘mid-twenties’, at least, but still, what the ****? The kind of film where the premise shocks me more than any torture porn.

Huh, I never realized we knew how old they were (if it's mentioned in the film itself I must have missed it). I guess I assumed because of their appearances (especially his) and the fact that they had an apartment together that they were supposed to be a bit older.

I just hope it wasn’t based on a true story. Blood-curdling stuff.

I will go to bat for this movie. I know it's not anywhere near as great as the first two Alien movies, but Resurrection is one of my favorite dumb entertaining sci-fi action flicks. Ron Perlman and Sigourney Weaver playing off each other is too much fun, the basketball scene has stuck with me for a long time. And the aliens can swim? Plus there's this shot:

Clue, 1985

At a remote mansion in the countryside, a group of visitors known only by pseudonyms are welcomed to a dinner party by the mansion's butler, Wadsworth (Tim Curry). The guests include Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan), Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn), Miss Scarlet (Lesley Ann Warren), Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd), Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), and Mr. Green (Michael McKean). Their host, Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving), has been blackmailing all of the guests. But when Mr. Boddy turns up dead, the group must figure out who committed the murder, and how.

I'm sure it's an inauspicious start to a review to say that this was my third attempt at watching this film. Finally making it to the end credits, I can say that I enjoyed the movie overall but was repeatedly reminded about why it had failed to grip me the first two times.

On the positive side, this is a very silly movie that knows that it is a very silly movie. And when it nails that silliness in the right way, it makes for some pretty hilarious moments both big and small. Things like the group arriving to find a dead body--dead bodies pile up rather rapidly in this film--and just all silently backing out together. Or the way that Mr. Green, established as being gay, deadpans "No thanks" when the busty maid (Colleen Camp) asks for someone to accompany her in a search of the house.

This silliness owes almost all of its success to the all-in performances from the cast, particularly Curry who serves effectively as the MC for everything that takes place. But lots of credit also goes to the rest of the cast--and my favorite, Lesley Ann Warren--for bringing their characters to this sweet spot of being borderline cartoons. For the most part the film manages to be kind of wild without ever getting manic.

But however much I enjoyed the film, I didn't love it. The characters are entirely caricatures, and for me that's a little hard to stick with for 90+ minutes. It's also not really a mystery, as the story is a series of setpieces as opposed to something where we get actual relevant clues or information.

I'm happy that I was finally able to watch the film and get on board with its sensibilities. I can see why this is a favorite for some people. This is the kind of movie that, if it's on as you're flipping through the channels, you stop and watch.

I can't say it's a favorite, although Tom Hanks pulls out the stops creating another character - A Man Called Otto - Otto is aging, grumpy, judgmental and lives a compulsively neat life on a rowhouse block in Pittsburgh. His wife died a few years back and he seems to be sinking into grouchiness and unhappiness over a world he doesn't control.

A new family (Latino) moves into his block. I don't know just why they'd want to, but they kind of adopt Otto. The family and a stray cat, as well as eccentric neighbors, intrude on his grouchiness, giving Otto light moments and engagement in his last days as his heart gives out.

It's a nice story, Hanks is good as always, but it also has the feel of a movie that was pasted together from "moments" that worked in a somewhat improvised plot line. It worked better in the end than in the first hour. I'm mixed on it....a 7, but just barely.

I too felt strongly about Lesley Anne Warren, who I actually had a tremendous crush on and think has just the right sarcasm and sardonic with to give that role some life.

I haven't seen this yet but it struck me as If We Made El Camino Geared Toward Tom Hanks fans.