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Kristin's Christmas Past (2013)
Little masterpiece
Story : Kris, a young woman who made wrong life choices at 17 (in 1996) ends up alone on Christmas at 34 (in 2013). She miraculously finds herself transported at her family home of Christmas 96 and meets her younger self, whom she will try and guide to avoid crucial mistakes and breaking up with her mother (and classicaly, 2 boys are involved...)
I happen to be a great fan of Shiri Appleby (Kris at 34), Elizabeth Mitchell (the mother) and a huge fan of AJ Langer, and all three deliver top performances. Hanna Marks (Kris 17) is quite entertaining too.
This movie is a teenage drama comedy about regrets, untold feelings and forgiveness, brilliantly interwoven, illustrating that afternoon TV movie can be superior art.
Kong: Skull Island (2017)
Spectacular, original, but dumb in many aspects
Pros : actors and acting, scenery, twists (the hollow island idea is brillliant), classical story
But the helicopters thing : about 20 helicopter shipped in one medium-size cargo and their pilots keep standing in range of Kong's arms like sitting ducks, even though their colleagues went down, so none of them retreats. "Gros foutage de gueule", as we say in French. Does it come from poor marketing decision to increase the ratio of big explosions per movie, which is supposed to be mandatory to atract male teenagers ?
And you can't believe the colonel (Jackson) is dumb enough to believe he can redeem US military failure in Nam by shooting down a giant ape in some lost Pacific island.
Magic in the Moonlight (2014)
"Whatever works" reboot starring Mia Farrow lookalike
The main character is similar to the one in "Whatever works", pessimistic and know-it-all ; he too reluctantly falls for a younger and less learned woman, which helps him see things under a different perspective. The girl happens to look quite like young Mia Farrow
Woody Allen preferred to revisit this story as a period piece (the one of Gatsby) and in France where he seems to prefer to work recently.
Happy-ending happens, but not the same way as "Whatever works" - no fall involved in the final twist...
I personally prefer "Whatever works", due to richer intrigue and characters (and to Ms Wood...) ; however, this one's philosophic message (how to be optimistic...) is more developed
Mystère au Moulin Rouge (2011)
So many clichés
In this movie for French public TV France 2, Emilie Dequenne is as usual excellent, the period is described accurately (which is the least) but the intrigue is, let's say, so predictable..
The villains are, as usual in many French fictions : (===spoilers===) - a degenerate upper-class son - his father, finance Tycoon and corrupt right-wing politician - a corrupt police inspector
Three "curiosities" : - I did not know that at the time, purchasing one's own shares to raise rate was forbidden (??) - I can't imagine how one can temper with a duel pistol which is supposed to be chosen randomly (that's how bad guy #1 goes down) - I can't imagine how you pierce somebody's belly with the shaft of a shovel (that's how bad guy #3 goes down)
In the end, the banker villain is eliminated by anarchists by bombing (since 2015, this kind of morality is no longer acceptable)
Another cliché : the girl does not return home (Nantes) to marry her fiancé but stays with the Moulin Rouge to carry on with her art (complete beginner but already a star)...
Bref, that's how we spend taxpayer's money in our country...
6/10 for Emilie, most of the cast and direction