Movie Review - Black Bag

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Genre: Crime/ Thriller/ Drama
Runtime: 93 minutes
Year: 2025
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, Pierce Brosnan, Naomie Harris, Regé-Jean Page, Tom Burke, Marisa Abela,
 
Description: When intelligence agent Kathryn Woodhouse (Cate Blanchett) is suspected of betraying the nation, her husband (Michael Fassbender) – also a legendary agent - faces the ultimate test whether to be loyal to his marriage, or his country.
 
I WATCHED THIS FILM FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 42: A FILM WITH MICHAEL FASSBENDER
 
Review: We follow secret agent George Woodhouse, who must find out which of his fellow spies has betrayed the country. His wife Kathryn is at the top of the list of suspects.
“Black Bag” is spy thriller by Steven Soderbergh. It’s a clever and intimate thriller with a mix of suspense and psychological drama.

The cast is strong, Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender are great as ever and have excellent chemistry. The style and atmosphere is elegant, stylish and mysterious. But that’s where the positivity ends for me.

For the genre that it is, the great cast it has and the interesting and intriguing plot, “Black Bag” is boring. And the story is unnecessarily complex, incoherent and complicated. And this way it’s really difficult to stay engaged. The pace is very slow, the film mostly consists of conversations. And there is nothing wrong with that, some of my favorite films are very heavy on dialogue. But for this movie it works to its disadvantage.

Probably the biggest disappointment of the year.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

Movie Review - The Killer

Director: David Fincher
Genre: Action/ Crime/ Thriller
Runtime: 118 minutes
Year: 2023
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Tilda Swinton, Charles Parnell, Arliss Howard, Kerry O’Malley
 
Description: After a fateful near-miss, an assassin (Michael Fassbender) battles his employers, and himself, on an international manhunt he insists isn’t personal.

Review: After a job gone wrong, an assassin must take more and more victims to escape from his self-made mess.

Director David Fincher is a favorite of mine. He made some of my favorite thrillers ever: “Seven”, “Fight Club” and “Gone Girl” are movies I will never stop recommending. It’s clear the crime-thriller genre is what Fincher excels in.  

That Fincher feels comfortable within this genre is abundantly clear. Everything is clearly portrayed, with the editing and soundtrack effectively contributing to the visuals. Michael Fassbender does a solid job as the cool killer, but his stoic demeanor solidly gets in the way of the film.

The unnamed killer is a man of few words, whose thoughts are conveyed via voice-over. Fassbender conveys everything rather monotonously, perhaps appropriate for an assassin, but it makes it a bit boring to listen to at times.

The story suffers from the same problem, it lacks a compelling plot. The killer travels from place to place, sometimes claiming a victim. It is too little to get invested in. the sporadic outburst of violence are brief, but beautifully crafted. There is especially one fight scene, that is so well-crafted. A hand-to-hand fight that really stuck with me. The film could have used more such moments to ramp up the tension, as you are otherwise never on the edge of your seat.  

“The Killer” is technically a well-made film that just passes by without doing anything to you. The film feels detached, perhaps intentionally, but without any emotional involvement. Still a good film, but not David Fincher greatness.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

00s Movie Review - Inglorious Basterds

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Genre: Action/ Thriller
Runtime: 152 minutes
Year: 2009
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, B.J. Novak, Eli Roth, Til Schweiger, Mike Myers, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Fassbender, Cloris Leachman, Gedeon Burkhard

Description: In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.

Review: When the name Quentin Tarantino os on a movie poster, I’m in! He is probably my favorite director of all time and he has a fantastic resume (all but one film). His style is unique, his dialogues are memorable and quotable and the characters are unforgettable. “Inglourious Basterds” is definitely one of my favorites.

“Inglourious Basterds” shows an alternative history of World War II. In this version there is a group of infiltrating soldiers called the Basterds. It’s their task to scare the occupants by killing Nazis in the most brutal ways. They are led by Aldo Raine and all of the men are Jewish Americans. During their quest, the get together with the German actress Bridget von Hammersmark, who also works as a spy.

This film is again filled with amazing characters. It’s a bizarre potpourri of people, that are hard to believe to be real, but are convincing anyway. Brad Pitt portrays Aldo Raine in the most fantastic way. Hilarious even. Mélanie Laurent is a great newcomer, as Shoshanna Dreyfuss, who wants revenge for the death of her family. But Christoph Waltz is probably the greatest discovery of the ‘00s. As Hans Landa is manages to scare you, charm you and disgust you at the same time. What a fantastic performance and also one of Tarantino’s best characters ever.

Like I stated before, Tarantino knows how to write great dialogue. And that’s no different here. The dialogues are long, but never dull. The conversations stay interesting and the situations original.
“Inglourious Basterds” is a film that I can enjoy every single time, even due to the length of the film. It’s a must for every Tarantino fan. No, for every movie fan. Last correction: it’s a must for everyone!

Rating: 5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Assassin's Creed

Director: Justin Kurzel
Genre: Fantasy/ Action/ Science Fiction/ Adventure
Runtime: 115 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Marion Cotillard, Jeremy Irons, Brendan Gleeson, Charlotte Rampling, Michael Kenneth Wiliams

Description: Callum Lynch (Michael Fassbender) explores the memories of his ancestor Aguilar de Nerha and gains the skills of a Maser Assassin, before taking on the secret Templar society.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2022 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 46: A MOVIE BASED ON A VIDEOGAME
 
Review: Movies based on videogames aren’t really successful, with a few exceptions of course. This time, it’s “Assassin’s Creed”. The film has an incredible cast and it looks amazing. But its execution is a soulless misinterpretation of the game, that might even be on the list of worse videogame adaptations ever made.

The real potential of “Assassin’s Creed” lies in three unique elements, all of which were butchered. First, “Assassin’s Creed” belongs to the sci-di genre, but this is extremely poorly utilized. The basic elements are still accurate: Abstergo is a secretive company that kidnaps people from certain bloodlines, such as Callum Lynch, to put them in the so-called Animus. An imaginative device that finds in DNA the genetic memories of one’s ancestors, and creates a holodeck-like simulation in which history can be experienced. In the game, these simulations show a fine collision between history and technology. In the film Callum has zero influence on the simulation. He simply undergoes the story as Aguilar.

Second, the relationship between Callum Lynch and his ancestor Aguilar. The game always works with two storylines, where the Animus driver and ancestor are quite different but gradually grow together. This “synchronization” is hardly named in the film. It also never plays with themes of reality or identity. The scenes in medieval Spain are simply three long flashbacks that serve only as action scenes or plot vehicles.

Finally, the mysterious story is told with the subtlety of a children’s series. For example, the film opens with a piece of text, leaving nothing in the dark. Where the mystery slowly unveils in the game series, there is hardly any subtlety present in the film.

They put so much effort in the visuals of the film, but totally ignored the essence of the game’s story. And also completely wasted the talented cast that they had. I’m not a big games, but I don’t believe fans of this game like it. I just know this movie sucked.

Rating: 2/ 5
 

00s Movie Review - Inglourious Basterds

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Genre: Action/ Thriller
Runtime: 152 minutes
Year: 2009
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Mélanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Daniel Brühl, B.J. Novak, Eli Roth, Til Schweiger, Mike Myers, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Fassbender, Gedeon Burkhard

Description: In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.
Review: When the name Quentin Tarantino is on a movie poster, I’m in! He is probably my favorite director of all time and he has a fantastic resume (all but one film). His style is unique, his dialogues are memorable and quotable and the characters are unforgettable. “Inglourious Basterds” is definitely one of my favorites.
“Inglourious Basterds” shows an alternative history of World War II. In this version there is a group of infiltrating soldiers called the Basterds. It’s their task to scare the occupants by killing Nazis in the most brutal ways. They are led by Aldo Raine and all of the men are Jewish Americans. During their quest, the get together with the German actress Bridget von Hammersmark, who also works as a spy.
This film is again filled with amazing characters. It’s a bizarre potpourri of people, that are hard to believe to be real, but are convincing anyway. Brad Pitt portrays Aldo Raine in the most fantastic way. Hilarious even. Mélanie Laurent is a great newcomer, as Shoshanna Dreyfuss, who wants revenge for the death of her family. But Christoph Waltz is probably the greatest discovery of the ‘00s. As Hans Landa is manages to scare you, charm you and disgust you at the same time. What a fantastic performance and also one of Tarantino’s best characters ever.
Like I stated before, Tarantino knows how to write great dialogue. And that’s no different here. The dialogues are long, but never dull. The conversations stay interesting and the situations original.
“Inglourious Basterds” is a film that I can enjoy every single time, even due to the length of the film. It’s a must for every Tarantino fan. No, for every movie fan. Last correction: it’s a must for everyone!

Rating: 5/ 5

10s Movie Review - X-Men: Dark Phoenix

Director: Simon Kinberg
Genre: Action/ Science Fiction/ Adventure
Runtime: 114 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Sophie Turner, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Evan Peters, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jessica Chastain

Description: Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) begins to develop incredible powers that corrupt and turn her into a Dark Phoenix, causing the X-Men to decide if her life is worth more than all of humanity.

Review: “X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is reportedly the end of the film series, that started about 20 years ago. But it doesn’t feel like a traditional epic end, with a satisfying ending and closure for all the storylines and characters.
The “X-Men” series never had reboots or remakes and it blew new life into the series with the prequels, starting with “X-Men: First Class”. It never repeats itself or reuses storylines, until “X-Men: Dark Phoenix”. Where we see again how Jean Grey becomes bigger than her powers and finds a darker side to herself. This also happened in “X-Men: The Last Stand”. Because of “X-Men: Days of Future Past” Jean Grey could start with a clean sleight, but this film doesn’t use it for the best. There was a great chance her, but they missed out.
The best part of “X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is the acting. This is strong, solid and convincing. And Sophie Turner, who plays Jean Grey, has enough power to stand strong between big names like James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence.
Jessica Chastain plays the villain role, which she does well. But there is no backstory to her and her group and her meeting with Jean should lead to something bigger. But it never really goes anywhere. This storyline is almost disposable because it’s written so poorly.
I also had issues with the timeline. This happened because of “X-Men: Days of Future Past” and it makes everything a lot harder to follow. And overall the film is really bland and dull.
“X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is by no means a terrible movie, but it’s probably not one I will ever rewatch.

Rating: 2,5 / 5

10s Movie Review - The Snowman

Director: Tomas Alfredson
Genre: Crime/ Drama/ Thriller
Runtime: 119 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, Charlotte Gainsbourg, J.K. Simmons, Val Kilmer, Toby Jones, James D’Arcy, Chloë Sevigny

Description: Detective Harry Hole (Michael Fassbender) investigates the disappearance of a woman whose scarf is found wrapped around an ominous-looking snowman

Review: Every once in a while, a film is planned that can’t fail, at least on paper. “The Snowman” is based on a popular best-selling novel. It has a director who delivered succesful movies and a cast that understands its craft. So what can go wrong? Well, I don’t know what went wrong, but “The Snowman” is a terrible movie.
“The Snowman” is the first film based on a populat book series starring detective Harry Hole. Good ad his job, but bad in getting his personal life together. He has a struggling relationship with his ex-girlfriend and her son and deals with a drinking problem. In the first half hour we see Harry wake up in three different places I the morning, after drinking all night.
To restrain his inner demons, Harry needs a case that he can hold on to. When a killer is on the loose in Norway, killing and beheading young women, he can finally shows off his skills again. On every crime scene, the killer leaves a snowman, which will become the signature.
You would think this is the perfect plot for an intense cat and mouse game between a cop and a serial killer. But this never happen. Where did it go wrong? It’s not director Alfredson, who previously gave us “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” and “Let the Right One In’”. He blamed the hasty production process.
This does show, especially in the subplots of the film. Sometimes they feel out of context and it never really feels like a whole. Especially the scenes with Val Kilmer, which are sometimes even comical and plain weird.
Morbid things happen in this movie, but the movie never shocks, scares are gets exciting. Movies like “Zodiac” or “Sev7en” are perfect examples of how it should have been. “The Snowman” lacks everything that those two movies have.
Michael Fassbender isn’t bad, but he isn’t as strong as usual. And I seriously think that, if it weren’t for him, this movie would’ve even been worse.
“The Snowman” is better of left unwatched. It’s a waste of time.

Rating: 1,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Song to Song

Director: Terrence Malick
Genre: Drama/ Romance
Runtime: 129 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Michael Fassbender, Rooney Mara, Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett, Holly Hunter, Bérénice Marlohe, Val Kilmer, Lykke Li

Description: Two intersecting love triangles. Obsession and betrayal set against the music scene in Austin, Texas.

Review: Again a cinematographic meditation by director Terrence Malick, about love and life. He takes the audience on a poetic journey to finding the meaning of life. As always, Malick doesn’t work with a straight forward screenplay and the (amazing group of) actors improvise.
Malicks style is very recognizable. It’s more a chain of images, because there are no real scenes. He creates a series of situations and it’s clearly his intuition that make his montage choices. The randomness of these images make me think of perfume commercials on TV. And that’s really not a compliment here. “Song to Song” kind of feels like a commercial, but then with the length of a film. And I think we could take off an hour, without losing any important moments.
There is no focus, because we see so many characters. And we don’t get to understand them, there is barely any development and their motives are unclear. Hardly any communication between the characters. Whispering voice-overs tell us some philosophical things and a lot of existential questions are asked.
The camera work is a big plus though. No steady images, always moving. The camera is constantly with the characters and switches between warm close-ups and distant shots. And the camera looks for the little things in the surroundings.
I never really understood Terrence Malick and I really don’t get why so many actors want to work with him. He always gets such big names to work with him and all the performances are really good by the way. But “Song to Song” is just a lot of improvising. Maybe that’s it, that the actors can let go of the rules for once. But all that cuddling and stroking, after a half hour I’m done! “Song to Song” is just not for me I guess.

Rating: 2/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 67: Alien: Covenant

Director: Ridley Scott
Genre: Horror/ Science Fiction/ Thriller
Runtime: 122 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, James Franco

Description: The crew of a colony ship, bound for a remote planet, discover an uncharted paradise with a threat beyond their imagination, and must attempt a harrowing escape.

Review: After a pause of 20 years and a prequel, it’s finally here: a new Alien film. It’s a sequel to “Prometheus” and a prequel to “Alien”. “Prometheus” got mixed reviews, but director Ridley Scott manages to make up for that with “Alien: Covenant”. The spaceship Covenant is on a colonial mission. They are traveling to another planet to start a new civilization there. They have some hiccups, where several people on board die. When they discover another planet, which is closer by, they decide to check it out. Off course, that’s a bad decision.
The film looks amazing, but that’s not a surprise. The film is scary and bloody, but because most of the film is set outside or in larger areas, it doesn’t give you that claustrophobic feel. Only when they are in the spacecraft. We get Xenomorphs and the so called Facehuggers, but also Neomorphs. This is a smaller albino alien, which are just as dangerous as the other two.
The cast is not always convincing. The one that shine are Katherine Waterston, Danny McBride and Michael Fassbender. The last one even has a double role. The rest of the cast is forgettable and their characters never get any depth.
The twist at the end wasn’t as surprising, but I liked the ending anyway. “Alien: Covenant” is a good film, much better then “Prometheus”.

Rating: 4/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Michael Fassbender Movies

Michael Fassbender is one of the best actors of the moment and also one of my favorites. He has a vibrant charisma, is handsome, convinces in every role and shines on screen. Here are my favorite Michael Fassbender films.

5. Frank
It’s one of the weirdest films I have seen in a while, but weird in a good way. It’s a brilliant film. Not for everyone, but Indie movie lovers will embrace it. Like I did.

4. 12 Years a Slave
Fassbender plays a relentless man, a villain, in “12 Years a Slave”. You know an actor is good, when a normally charming and likeable actor turns into a tiran and makes it believable.

3. Jane Eyre
It’s one of my favorite classic stories and I really love this adaptation of the novel. Fassbender is so good and irresistible in “Jane Eyre”.

2. Inglourious Basterds
It’s an alternative history story, one of my favorites by Tarantino. Fassbender’s role isn’t major, but big enough to be memorable. He has a very important role in the infamous bar scene.

1. Shame
Before I went to see this film, I never thought I would like it. Let alone love it as much as I do now. The film is made so beautifully, the story is more than just a man and his sex addiction. It has many layers and Fassbender is brilliant in “Shame”.

They Almost Made the Top 5: X-Men: First Class, X-Men: Apocalypse, Hunger, The Light Between Oceans, 300

100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 56: The Light Between Oceans

Director: Derek Cianfrance
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 133 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Rachel Weisz

Description: A lighthouse keeper (Michael Fassbender) and his wife (Alicia Vikander) living off the coast of Western Australia raise a baby they rescue from a drifting rowing boat.

Review: “The Light Between Oceans” is a film where viewers will need tissues. The plot is a bit slow, but Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander are excellent in it.
Fassbender plays Tom, a veteran that doesn’t say too much. He takes a job as a lighthouse keeper. He meets the lively Isabelle, played by Vikander. They fall in love and get married. After two miscarriages, Tom sees his wife getting more unhappy every day. One day a little boat comes ashore. It has a dead man in it and a baby. They decided not to report the boat and the dead man, a raise the little girl as their own.
The film is about loss and disappointment, sacrifice and how to deal with the past. The setting of the film is beautiful and if it wasn’t for Fassbender and Vikander, this film would be a forgettable and mediocre melodramatic film. Now it’s a more than that.

Rating: 4/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 105: X-Men: Apocalypse

Director: Bryan Singer
Genre: Action/ Adventure/ Fantasy/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 143 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult, Oscar Isaac, Rose Byrne, Evan Peters, Sophie Turner, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Olivia Munn

Description: After the re-emergence of the world's first mutant, world-destroyer Apocalypse, the X-Men must unite to defeat his extinction level plan.

Review: With “X-Men: Apocalypse”, director Bryan Singer concludes the second X-Men trilogy. It’s Singer’s fourth X-Men film, but the first final film in a series. And Singer delivered a great superhero film.
This time the world’s first mutant comes back and wants to destroy mankind. The X-Men have to join forces again to try to defeat him.
Eventhough “X-Men: Apocalypse” is the final film in the trilogy, started by Matthew Vaughn, the story takes some time to introduce new characters. Well, not really new, because we already knew Jean Grey, Scott Summers and Nightcrawler. We meet their younger versions and how it started for them. This way it doesn’t only feel like a great finale, it’s also a fresh start.
James McAvoy is really good as Charles Xavier and Jennifer Lawrence can exploit her character more in this film. Oscar Isaac is villain Apocalypse and is doing a solid job. Bt none of the actors ever reach Michael Fassbender’s level, who plays Magneto.
“X-Men: Apocalypse” is an entertaining and action packed conlusion in a good trilogy. The movie is over two hours long, but the time passes really quickly. That’s a good sign. I really enjoyed “X-Men Apocalypse”.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016: # 93: 300

Director: Zack Snyder
Genre: Action/ Adventure
Runtime: 117 minutes
Year: 2006
Starring: Gerard Butler, Lena Heady, Dominic West, David Wenham, Michael Fassbender, Rodrigo Santoro

Description: King Leonidas of Sparta (Gerard Butler) and a force of 300 men fight the Persians at Thermopylae in 480 B.C.

Review: The Spartans: brutal, big and without any fear. With only 300 men they went to battle with the Persians. This heroic chapter of the Greek history, inspired Frank Miller to a graphic novel: “300”. Drector Zack Snyder wanted to bring this to life on the big screen. Result: a two hour event that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Future king Leonidas is taken from his mother at age 7. He has to undergo a very tough training to get him ready for the future. To proof that he can be the kinf of the Spartans he doesn’t only hsve to be strong, also smart and brave. Twenty years after defeating a big beast, he is ruling as king. And a bigger enemy is coming, an army of a million men.
The movie was entire filmed in front of a green screen, so it took about 60 days to finish that. But everything looks so good. The fighting scenes are amazing, they have a gret dramatic effect to them. And Gerard Butler is very strong as King Leonidas.
“300” is a great adaptation of a graphic novel and very well made. Although the movie is pretty brutal, I think this movie will be liked by people who normally don’t like this type of film.

Rating: 4/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 34: Frank

Director: Lenny Abrahamson

Genre: Drama/ Comedy

Runtime: 95 minutes

Year: 2014

Starring: Michael Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Scoot McNairy, Francois, Civil, Carla Azar, Shane O’Brien, Moira Broker, Paul Butterworth, Phil Kingston, Chris McHalem, Hayley Derryberry, Lauren Poole

Description: Jon (Domhnall Gleeson), a young wanna-be musician, discovers he's bitten off more than he can chew when he joins an eccentric pop band led by the mysterious and enigmatic Frank (Michael Fassbender).

Review: “Frank” is a fictional story loosely based on the alter ego of the cult band and comedy legend Chris Sievey, who transformed into Frank Sidebottom when wearing a giant fake head. In this film Michael Fassbender is the one wearing the head and “Frank” is a hidden gem.

In “Frank” musician Jon accidentally meets an unconventional alternative band. Because of an incident the band is looking for a keyboard player and Jon happens to play it. The lead singer of the band is Frank who, despite of wearing a big fake head hiding his face, is extremely charismatic. When Jon joins them in a remote lodge to record a new album, the situation becomes stranger and stranger.

The movie deals with one important question: what is success and how do you define it? It is different for everyone. Jon’s big dream is to break through as a musician and to reach fame with a big audience. He is looking for appreciation and doesn’t only want compliments from people like Frank. Frank, but mostly the band, doesn’t care about what the crowd thinks. Creativity can’t be taught, you either have talent or you don’t.

Michael Fassbender is great as Frank. With or without the head he gives away a fantastic performance. You feel his enthusiasm and love, but also his powerlessness, panic and pain. Maggie Gyllenhaal, as Clara, also does a good job. She is closest to Frank and hates everything mainstream. Casting Domhnall Gleeson was also a good thing. He doesn’t fit in the group at all. Even though he seems like an average man to us, he is the odd one in the group. He represents how we would probably feel in a group like Frank’s.

Music is off course a big part of “Frank” and the soundtrack is really strong. If you don’t like alternative, experimental and vague music, you might think otherwise. The film has a beautiful and touching ending and you will leave this film satisfied.

“Frank” is a quirky film about self-expression, love for music and friendship. I loved it!

Rating: 4,5/ 5

Movie Favorites: Jane Eyre

Synopsis: After a bleak childhood, Jane Eyre (Mia Wasikowska) goes out into the world to become a governess. As she lives happily in her new position at Thornfield Hall, she meets the dark, cold, and abrupt master of the house, Mr. Rochester (Michael Fassbender). Jane and her employer grow close in friendship and she soon finds herself falling in love with him. Happiness seems to have found Jane at last, but could Mr. Rochester's terrible secret be about to destroy it forever?

 

 

Unique Selling Point: Although the story has been told many times, it does the classic novel justice. It’s filmed beautifully and the actors have plenty of room to show their skills. It’s great to see how efficiently the hundreds of pages of the book are made into a film.

Most Valuable Player: Michael Fassbender as Rochester, the handsome and charismatic man with a dark edge.

Best Moment: Every hopeless romantic would go for the part where Rochester asks for Jane’s hand in marriage.

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 121: Slow West

Director: John Maclean

Genre: Action/ Western/ Thriller

Runtime: 84 minutes

Year: 2015

Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Michael Fassbender, Ben Mendelsohn, Caren Pistorius

Description: A young Scottish man (Kodi Smit-McPhee) travels across America in pursuit of the woman he loves (Caren Pistorius), attracting the attention of an outlaw (Michael Fassbender) who is willing to serve as a guide.

Review: In “Slow West” the young loner Jay is looking for the woman he loves from Scotland, who is chased by bounty hunters. On his trip Jay meets lots of characteristic figures, like killer Silas. He wants to accompany Jay in his search for the his girl. Silas is a bad guy who isn’t a bad guy.

The movie has a slow pace and it feels longer than its actual runtime. But the characters, especially the character of Silas, are interesting enough. It’s a story of life and death and the struggle to accept both. The final scene is the absolute highlight of the film, which makes it worth watching.

“Slow West” is not your typical, conventional western, but definitely worth your time.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 16: A Dangerous Method

Director: David Cronenberg

Genre: Drama/ Thriller

Runtime: 99 minutes

Year: 2011

Starring: Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley, Viggo Mortensen, Vincent Cassel, Sarah Gadon

Description: A look at how the intense relationship between Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) and Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen) gives birth to psychoanalysis.

Review: Psychoanalysis, is that a theme for a movie. As long as you don’t approach it to theoretically. Director David Cronenberg has been fascinated by psyche and the effect of the physic. Never has the human mind played such an important part in one of his movies. Two prominent psychoanalysts go head to head in “A Dangerous Method”, being Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. . But the confrontations between the two are limited.

Instead Cronenberg focuses on Sabina Spielrein, a Russian-Jewish patient of Jung, who eventually became a famous psychologist herself. Jung uses Spielrein as his Guinea pig to test psychoanalysis. The young woman , with masochistic tendencies, shows Jung a side of himself he never knew. Spielrein becomes Jung’s mistress and his experiences lead to a break between with Freud.

In “A Dangerous Method” there is a lot of conversation. The scenes between Mortenen and Fassbender, though minimally present, are the highlights of the film. Knightley does her very best, but somehow her weird Russian accent doesn’t really convince us. It is very brave of her to take this role, which is physically challenging for her. It would have been better to focus on Jung and Freud and especially Mortensen doesn’t get that much screen time.

With the wonderful cast and a top director, you can expect quality, but “A Dangerous Methode” disappoints. It’s not as vivacious as it could have been and because of the long dialogues it drags a bit. The moments that capture us, the scenes between Mortensen and Fassbender, aren’t present enough. A missed shot.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Actors/ Actresses of 2014

I'm still looking back to 2014 and all the great actors and actresses of that year. Some stood out more than others. Here are my favorite actors and actresses of 2014.

5. Jennifer Lawrence

Nominated for an Academy Award again for her role in “American Hustle” and she was in “X-Men: Days of Future Past”. She played Katniss Everdeen again in the third installement of “The Hunger Games” series and she got a hit with the song “The Hanging Tree”. And and didn’t even mention all the other awesome stuff she said and did in interviews and talk shows.

 

 

4. Rosamund Pike

Finally she got the role she deserved. In “Gone Girl” she nailed it, she was definitely the best bit of the film.

 

 

3. Michael Fassbender

He was in “12 Years a Slave” and I really wanted to whip him. His performance was so good, he played a convincingly good bad guy. Then there was “Frank” and off course “X-Men: Days of Future Past”. He’s had a pretty good year.

 

 

2. Matthew McConaughey

Okay, I used to be critical. I didn’t think much of McConaughey, he made some bad movies. But ever since “The Lincoln Lawyer” I started to like him more and more. Now, I think he was one of the best actors of his generation. In 2014 he won an Acadamy Award for his wonderful performance in “Dallas Buyers Club” and also hit theaters with “Interstellar”. But for me the highlight is “True Detective”, what an awesome show!

 

 

1. Chris Pratt

He had a small role in “Her”, voiced for the awesome “The Lego Movie” and finished of with the coolest movie of 2014: “The Guardians of the Galaxy”. Chris Pratt is also coming with “Jurassic World” in 2015, so Pratt is without a doubt my favourite star of 2014.

 

 

They Almost Made the Top 5: Keira Knightley, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 156: X-Men: Days of Future Past

Director: Bryan Singer

Genre: Action/ Adventure/ Fantasy/ Science Fiction

Runtime: 132 minutes

Year: 2014

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Halle Berry, Nicholas Hoult, Ellen Page, Peter Dinklage, Shawn Ashmore

Description: The X-Men send Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) to the past in a desperate effort to change history and prevent an event that results in doom for both humans and mutants.

Review: In “X-Men: Days of Future Past”, Wolverine is send back in time to stop mutants from going under. The X-Men are threatened by Sentinels, robots who have to exterminate mutants. Many mutants have lost the battle against them and all hope is set on Wolverine. His goal is to stop the inventor from going through with his plans. Wolverine gets help from a young Professor Xavier and Magneto.

Bryan Singer returns as a director, he also directed “X-Men” and “X2”. He doesn’t stay close to the original source material, which could bother fans. Yet “X-Men: Days of Future Past” was very well received by the audience and is so far the highest rated movie in the series.

Again the movie is filled with beautiful special effects, but I did miss the more emotional and personal touch that “X-Men: First Class” had. The focus is on Wolverine, but also on Charles Xavier and Magneto. The connection between Hank McCoy aka Beasy and Mystique, that was a storyline in the previous film, is never spoken of. Actors Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender do work well together and it’s a joy to watch them together.

Although I enjoyed watching “X-Men: Days of Future Past”, it didn’t live up to my expectations. It’s a good looking movie, but it lacked depth.

Rating: 3/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 147: Prometheus

Director: Ridley Scott

Genre: Actie/ Science Fiction/ Horror

Runtime: 126 minutes

Year: 2012

Starring: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce, Logan Marshall-Green, Sean Harris, Rafe Spall, Patrick Wilson

Description: A team of explorers discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth, leading them on a journey to the darkest corners of the universe. There, they must fight a terrifying battle to save the future of the human race.

Review: Director Ridley Scott doesn’t make it easy for himself. He tried to tell a story, located in the universe of his own classic “Alien” from 1979, to answer one question: where do we come from? Man who wants to meet his maker. Scientists Elizabeth Shaw and Charlie Holloway find a series of identical cave drawings in 2089. They think they know the answer to that question and billionaire Peter Weyland sets up an expedition. On spaceship Prometheus they are on a search for the truth.

The Prometheus arrives, with a crew of seventeen, on a planet similar to the one in “Alien”. The tension is built because you don’t know why each of the crew members are on the mission. The distant Meredith Vickers has to lead the crew and her help is android David.

Scott could have chosen to play out a cat and mouse game, but instead he focuses on David. His plans are revealed little by little, but it’s clear he’s the one with the most dangerous mission. Dangerous for mankind. The questions isn’t who is going to survive, but why David does what he does. There is no emotional impact whenever one of the crew member dies. And even though some scenes are pretty gruesome, they are never as anguished as in “Alien”.

The movie is visually stunning and detailed. This movie is beautiful in 3D. But beautiful pictures alone don’t make a good movie. Scott made this movie a bit too simplistic and the characters lack intelligence and depth. “Prometheus” is still a pretty good movie.

Rating: 3/ 5