DarrellN
Joined May 2003
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Reviews12
DarrellN's rating
This Rock fest is a love fest for our country's Marines. A wildly diverse and select group of performers express their genuine gratitude for the Marine Corps, and perform two to three numbers each. The second half (includes Destiny's Child, Hootie and the Blowfish) really rocks, with an unforgettable climax by KISS. The picture quality (via high definition cameras) and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound are as good as can be. Several other celebrities do little more than say "thanks," but they all seem sincere, and the Marine audience of 40,000 responds appreciatively. This is a novel and pleasant diversion from a typical rock extravaganza.
This movie is about trust, mistrust, truth, and lies.
It begins with a ragtag group of petty criminals planning, organizing, and then attempting to carry out a heist. We get the sense that their project is doomed from the start, a view held especially by their mastermind, Alphonse `The Fox' Marechal. Alphonse says his fellow thieves are birdbrains. However, he needs the money from the heist to support his lavish spending on wining and dining women.
We quickly see that Alphonse's mistrust of his team is not misplaced. His safecracking `expert' deceives him about the cost of their equipment and the value of the loot inside their target safe. The job ends up taking much longer than they budgeted, and results in their being found out by the police. Alphonse ends up being the only one caught, convicted and sentenced to prison time.
Five years pass until Alphonse is released from prison. It's payback time. He searches for the three birdbrains who double-crossed him, and for his share of their take.
This movie is overlong and would be ordinary if not for the presence of Lino Ventura. As Alphonse the Fox, Ventura is as charismatic and magnetic as any movie tough guy.
I never learned what or who is `cloportes' of the title. However, an odd scene during the title sequence at the beginning, showing cockroaches running across the camera lens, is neatly explained at the very end.
I reviewed this movie as part of a project at the Library of Congress. I've named the project FIFTY: 50 Notable Films Forgotten Within 50 Years. As best I can determine, this film, like the other forty-nine I've identified, has not been on video, telecast, or distributed in the U.S. since its original release. In my opinion, it is worthy of being made available again.
It begins with a ragtag group of petty criminals planning, organizing, and then attempting to carry out a heist. We get the sense that their project is doomed from the start, a view held especially by their mastermind, Alphonse `The Fox' Marechal. Alphonse says his fellow thieves are birdbrains. However, he needs the money from the heist to support his lavish spending on wining and dining women.
We quickly see that Alphonse's mistrust of his team is not misplaced. His safecracking `expert' deceives him about the cost of their equipment and the value of the loot inside their target safe. The job ends up taking much longer than they budgeted, and results in their being found out by the police. Alphonse ends up being the only one caught, convicted and sentenced to prison time.
Five years pass until Alphonse is released from prison. It's payback time. He searches for the three birdbrains who double-crossed him, and for his share of their take.
This movie is overlong and would be ordinary if not for the presence of Lino Ventura. As Alphonse the Fox, Ventura is as charismatic and magnetic as any movie tough guy.
I never learned what or who is `cloportes' of the title. However, an odd scene during the title sequence at the beginning, showing cockroaches running across the camera lens, is neatly explained at the very end.
I reviewed this movie as part of a project at the Library of Congress. I've named the project FIFTY: 50 Notable Films Forgotten Within 50 Years. As best I can determine, this film, like the other forty-nine I've identified, has not been on video, telecast, or distributed in the U.S. since its original release. In my opinion, it is worthy of being made available again.
I didn't find much funny in this 40-year-old French comedy. Maybe it was funny when it was released, or maybe it was funny (is still funny?) mostly to the French. Maybe my sense of humor is warped.
The plot and circumstances of the characters in this movie reminded me of many comic operas I've seen. Without the great music, these operas would be trivial as art.
The `plot' centers on the relationship of two families. Leon `Patate' (potato) Rollo, a toy inventor, is married to Edith, a chic store owner. Leon and Edith have a teenage daughter, Alexa, the most popular girl in school. Noel Carradine, a former classmate of Leon, is a handsome, famous and rich industrialist. His wife, Veronique, is elegant and beautiful, but vulnerable to M. Carradine's philandering.
Leon and Noel did not get along well in school, and haven't since. However, Leon needs financing for his newest toy invention, and is willing to let bygones be bygones if Noel will loan him money. Noel, however, is not about to serve as `the Bank of France' for this old classmate.
Some of the `jokes' in this movie derive from Leon's inventions. There is a sausage slicer made from bicycle parts, a monkey doorbell, a calendar toothbrush, and several `Rube Goldberg' creations. Other `laughs' come from mistaken interpretations of phone calls and notes. There are several slapstick routines that you've seen done better elsewhere (e.g., Leon runs head on into a glass door, a `pistol' turns out to be a cigarette lighter).
This is a comic farce, but more farce than comic.
I reviewed this movie as part of a project at the Library of Congress. I've named the project FIFTY: 50 Notable Films Forgotten Within 50 Years. As best I can determine, this film, like the other forty-nine I've identified, has not been on video, telecast, or distributed in the U.S. since its original release.
The plot and circumstances of the characters in this movie reminded me of many comic operas I've seen. Without the great music, these operas would be trivial as art.
The `plot' centers on the relationship of two families. Leon `Patate' (potato) Rollo, a toy inventor, is married to Edith, a chic store owner. Leon and Edith have a teenage daughter, Alexa, the most popular girl in school. Noel Carradine, a former classmate of Leon, is a handsome, famous and rich industrialist. His wife, Veronique, is elegant and beautiful, but vulnerable to M. Carradine's philandering.
Leon and Noel did not get along well in school, and haven't since. However, Leon needs financing for his newest toy invention, and is willing to let bygones be bygones if Noel will loan him money. Noel, however, is not about to serve as `the Bank of France' for this old classmate.
Some of the `jokes' in this movie derive from Leon's inventions. There is a sausage slicer made from bicycle parts, a monkey doorbell, a calendar toothbrush, and several `Rube Goldberg' creations. Other `laughs' come from mistaken interpretations of phone calls and notes. There are several slapstick routines that you've seen done better elsewhere (e.g., Leon runs head on into a glass door, a `pistol' turns out to be a cigarette lighter).
This is a comic farce, but more farce than comic.
I reviewed this movie as part of a project at the Library of Congress. I've named the project FIFTY: 50 Notable Films Forgotten Within 50 Years. As best I can determine, this film, like the other forty-nine I've identified, has not been on video, telecast, or distributed in the U.S. since its original release.