Movie Reviews

My Dinner with Andre | Reelviews Movie Reviews

Published

2 years ago

February 6, 2024

Some movies, no matter how highly regarded, can lose at
least some of their luster over the passage of time. When My Dinner with
Andre was released in the fall of 1981, it was a critical sensation, garnering
raves from all corners including accolades from Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel
(both of whom named it among their Top 10 films of the 1980s). The years haven’t
necessarily been kind to it, however. When it first arrived in theaters, the French
New Wave was still firmly anchored in the minds of many art-house viewers. The
freshness of that aesthetic, which informs My Dinner with Andre, has
grown stale with the passage of decades and there are times when it’s hard to
view this film as more than a curiosity of another age.

Okay, I’ll admit it – there were times when, while I watching
My Dinner with Andre, I found myself becoming bored. Not “eyes glazed
over” bored, but restless. Although the movie works as a study in acting, shot
selection, and editing, it has lost its edge in terms of telling a story. So
much of the film’s relevance is tied to the era in which it was produced. Although
aspects of the culture clash – between activists who believe technology has
created a robot society and those who prefer to simply live their lives day-to-day
without drama – remain as relevant today as ever, the anecdotes used to express
this are dated. Andre Gregory’s adventures in Poland, the Sahara, and Findhorn
(Scotland) are as believable as Paul Bunyan’s Tall Tales and his philosophy is naïve
and simplistic.

Although the movie is narrated by Wallace Shawn (who would
be immortalized six years later as Vizzini in The Princess Bride), he has
considerably less dialogue than the title character. Yet, while Gregory does a
lion’s share of the talking, director Louis Malle maintains the fiction that this
is from Shawn’s perspective. He is the only one we see outside the restaurant
(during the prologue and epilogue). The background is simple: Shawn informs us
in a voiceover that he is going to have dinner with an old friend and
colleague, Gregory, who has become something of a recluse in recent years. 95%
of the film focuses on their dinner conversation with Gregory regaling Shawn
with tales of his years away from the theater, then the two engaging in a debate
over rationality vs. mysticism in criticizing modern society. The movie ends
with them parting as friends.

One of the most amazing things about My Dinner with Andre
is how it manages to capture the seemingly off-the-cuff approach one might
normally associate with improv – sort of the thing Mike Leigh was famous for. However,
every word was scripted and the two actors never deviated from what they wrote.
The improvisational “qualities” were a collaborative result of Gregory, Shawn,
and Malle working to achieve it. It’s also amazing that Gregory (making his
feature debut as an actor) was able to memorize so much dialogue. There are numerous
long takes in which his monologues go on for stretches without breaks. Although
it would be unfair to diminish Shawn’s contributions, the heavy lifting
undoubtedly falls to Gregory.

Although the actors use their real names and some of the biographical
details attributed to their characters come from real-life occurrences, both
men have repeatedly denied that they are playing themselves. Instead, they
created fictional avatars that were intentionally different from their true
personalities. In an interview, Shawn even joked that if the two were to embark
upon a remake (something highly unlikely although, at the time of this writing,
both are still alive), they could swap roles without the need to change even a
line of dialogue.

My Dinner with Andre has the look and feel of a stage
show, although it was never developed as such. From the beginning, it was
intended to be a movie. Gregory and Shawn, however, have deep roots in theater
and they bring this to the film. Additionally, before going in front of the
cameras, the pair hosted ten rehearsals on stage in front of live audiences
with Malle not always in attendance.

At the beginning of the movie, I focused on the words,
allowing myself to settle into the rhythms of the conversation between these
old friends getting re-acquainted. Over time, however, I found myself becoming less
interested in what the characters are saying and more intrigued by how Malle chooses
to present the conversation: shot selection, editing close-ups into the master
shots, etc. Expressions and reactions (especially Shawn’s, because much of his emoting
occurs without words) are of paramount importance. Although My Dinner with
Andre may be of minimal interest to mainstream movie-going audiences in the
2020s, it should be required viewing for would-be actors and behind-the-camera
craftspeople. Although what Gregory and Shawn have to say may have lost a share
of its relevance, how it’s presented offers a clinic in the importance of the
non-verbal aspects of filmmaking.

My Dinner with Andre (United States, 1981)

Run Time: 1:50
U.S. Home Release Date: 2024-02-06
MPAA Rating: “PG”

Genre: Drama

Subtitles: none
Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1

Movie Reviews

Movie Review: Here comes “THE BRIDE!”, audacious and wild – Rue Morgue

Published

24 seconds ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Movie Review: Here comes “THE BRIDE!”, audacious and wild – Rue Morgue

That’s both a promise and a challenge she delivers, since what follows may rub some viewers the wrong way. Yet Gyllenhaal’s full-throttle commitment to her vision is compelling in and of itself, and she has marshalled an absolutely smashing-looking and -sounding production. The story proper begins in 1936 Chicago, which, like everything and everyplace else in the movie, has been luminously shot by cinematographer Lawrence Sher and sumptuously conjured by production designer Karen Murphy. Her involvement is appropriate given that her previous credits include Bradley Cooper’s A STAR IS BORN and Baz Luhrmann’s ELVIS, since among other things, THE BRIDE! is a nostalgic musical. Its Frankenstein (Christian Bale), who has taken the name of his maker, is obsessed with big-screen tuners, and imagines himself in elaborate song-and-dance numbers. (Considering the reception to JOKER: FOLIE À DEUX, one must applaud the daring of Warner Bros. for greenlighting another expensive film in which a tormented protagonist has that kind of fantasy life.)

THE BRIDE! may be revisionist on many levels, but its characterization of its “monster” holds true to past screen incarnations from Karloff’s to Elordi’s: His scarred appearance masks a lonely soul who desires companionship. Frankenstein has arrived in Chicago to seek out Dr. Cornelia Euphronious (Annette Bening), correctly believing she has the scientific know-how to create an appropriate mate for him. Rather than piece one together, Dr. Euphronious resurrects the corpse of Ida (Jessie Buckley), whose consorting with underworld types led to her brutal death. Previously chafing against the man’s world she inhabited in life, she becomes even more defiant and unruly as a revenant, apparently possessed by the spirit of Shelley herself, declaiming in free-associative sentences and quoting rebellious literature.

Buckley, currently an Oscar favorite for her very different literary-inspired role in HAMNET, tears into the role of the Bride (who now goes by the name Penny) with invigorating abandon that bursts off the screen. Unsure of her identity yet overflowing with self-confident bravado, she’s the opposite of the sensitive “Frank,” but they’re united by the world that stands against them. That becomes literal when a violent incident sends them on the lam, road-tripping to New York City and beyond, on a trail inspired by the films of Ronnie Reed (Jake Gyllenhaal), Frank’s favorite song-and-dance-man star.

With THE BRIDE!, Gyllenhaal has made a film that’s at once her very own and a feverish homage to all sorts of cinema past and present. It’s a horror story, a lovers-on-the-run movie, a crime thriller, a musical and more, and historical fealty be damned if it makes for a good scene (as when Penny and Frank sneak into a 3D movie over a decade before such features became popular). In-references are everywhere: It might just be a coincidence that the couple’s travels take them past Fredonia, NY (cf. “Freedonia” in the Marx Brothers’ DUCK SOUP), but it’s certainly no accident that the former Ida is targeted by a crime boss named Lupino, referencing the actress and pioneering filmmaker whose works included noirs and women’s-issues stories. Penny’s exploits lead legions of admiring women to adopt her look and anarchic attitude, echoing the first JOKER (while a headline calls them “Twisted Sisters”), and the use of one Irving Berlin song in a Frankensteinian context immediately recalls a classic comedic take on the property.

Whether the audience should be put in mind of a spoof at a key point in a film with different goals is another matter. At times like these, Gyllenhaal’s pastiche ambitions overtake emotional investment in the story. As strong as the two lead performances are (Bale is quite moving, conveying a great deal of soul from behind his extensive prosthetics), it’s easier to feel for them in individual scenes than during the entire course of the just-over-two-hour running time. The diversions can be entertaining, to be sure, but they also result in an uncertainty of tone. The dissonance continues straight through to the end, where the filmmaker’s choice of closing-credits song once again suggests we’re not supposed to take all this too seriously.

There’s nonetheless much to admire and enjoy about THE BRIDE!, and this kind of risk-taking by a major studio is always to be encouraged (especially considering that we’ll see how long that lasts at Warner Bros. once Paramount takes it over). Beyond the terrific work by the aforementioned actors, there’s fine support from Peter Sarsgaard and Penelope Cruz as detectives on Penny and Frank’s heels, with Sandy Powell’s lavish costumes and Hildur Guðnadóttir’s rich, varied score vital to fashioning this fully imagined world. Kudos also to makeup and prosthetics designer Nadia Stacey and to Chris Gallaher and Scott Stoddard, who did those honors on Frank, for their visceral, evocative work. Uneven as it may be, THE BRIDE! is also as alive! as any film you’ll likely see this year.

Movie Reviews

Maxime Giroux – ‘In Cold Light’ movie review

Published

12 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Maxime Giroux – ‘In Cold Light’ movie review

(Credits: Far Out / Elevation Pictures)

Wed 4 March 2026 9:30, UK

Maxime Giroux – ‘In Cold Light’

The action is relentless in the complex thriller In Cold Light, a tense combination of crime and fugitive tale and family drama. It is the third feature and first English language film by Maxime Giroux, best known for a very different kind of film, the critically acclaimed 2014 drama Felix & Meira.

The tension and high energy of In Cold Light almost overwhelm the film, but are relieved, barely, by moments of character development and introspection that keep the audience pulling for the restrained and outwardly cold main character.

Speaking at the film’s Canadian premiere, director Giroux admitted he found creating an action film a challenge. Part of his approach was using very minimal dialogue, especially for the central character, letting the action speak for itself, and allowing silence to intensify suspense. Giroux has said he likes the lack of dialogue and speaks highly of the importance of silence in cinema; he prefers using “physical aspects of communication” in his films.

Young Ava Bly (Maika Monroe) is a competent and businesslike drug dealer, working in partnership with her brother Tom (Jesse Irving) and a small team. As the film begins, Ava has just been released from a brief prison sentence. She is hoping to return to her former position, but her brother’s associates consider her a risk due to her recent incarceration. While she works to re-establish herself, a shocking encounter with a corrupt police officer sends Ava’s life into chaos and forces her to go on the run.

Ava’s fugitive experience introduces a new character, to whom Ava turns for help: her father, Will Bly, played by Troy Kotsur, known for his excellent performance in CODA. Their first interaction is handled in a fascinating way, as Will is deaf and the two communicate through sign language. This, of course, provides another form of the silent interaction the director prefers; he explained that much of the father-daughter interaction was rewritten with the actor in mind. Their conflict is nicely expressed through a scene in which their initial conversation is intermittently cut off by a faulty light which goes out periodically, making communication through sign momentarily impossible, nicely expressing the rift between father and daughter.

As Ava continues to evade danger, her escape becomes complicated by new information, placing her in a painful dilemma. We gradually learn more about Ava, her background, and her character through occasional flashbacks and glimpses of her dreams. The plot becomes more complex and more poignant, and gains features of a mystery as well as an action tale, as she is pressed to choose from among equally unacceptable alternatives.

The climax of her efforts to protect both herself and those close to her comes to a head as she meets with the director of a rival drug gang. Veteran actress Helen Hunt is perfect in the minor but significant role of Claire, the rival drug lord, who plays odd mind games with Ava in an intriguing psychological fencing match. It’s an unusual scene, in which Ava’s personality is made clearer, and Claire’s understated dominance and casual speech do not quite conceal the threat she represents.

The frantic pace and emotional turmoil are enhanced by the camera work, which tends to focus tightly on Ava, and by a harsh, minimal musical score that sets the tone without distracting from the action. Giroux chose to shoot the film in Super 60; he describes digital as “too perfect” for the look he was going for, and since “Ava is rough,” the film portrays her better. The director describes the entire movie as “rough,” in fact, and deliberately chose a dark, washed-out look for much of the footage, occasionally using light and colour, in the form of fireworks, lightning, or a colourful carnival, to both relieve and emphasise the darkness.

The dynamic, intense story holds the attention in spite of the lengthy, sometimes repetitive chase scenes and subdued dialogue. Ava’s predicament, and the difficult decisions she is forced to make, are made surprisingly relatable, from the initial disaster that starts the action to the surprising flash-forward that concludes the film, on as high a note as the situation could allow. Fans of action movies will definitely enjoy this one.

Movie Reviews

Jeremy Schuetze’s ‘ANACORETA’ (2022) – Movie Review – PopHorror

Published

1 day ago

March 4, 2026

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Jeremy Schuetze’s ‘ANACORETA’ (2022) – Movie Review – PopHorror

PopHorror had the chance to check out Anacoreta (2022) ahead of its streaming release! Does this meta-horror flick provide interesting story telling or is it a confusing mess.

Let’s have a look…

Synopsis

A group of friends heads to a secluded woodland cabin for a weekend getaway, planning to film an experimental horror movie. As the shoot progresses, the project begins to fall apart—until a real and terrifying presence emerges from the darkness.

Anacoreta is directed by Jeremy Schuetze. It was written by Jeremy Schuetze and Matt Visser. The film stars Antonia Thomas (Bagman 2024), Jesse Stanley (Raf 2019), Jeremy Schuetze (Jennifer’s Body 2009), and Matt Visser (A Lot Like Christmas 2021)

My Thoughts

Antonia Thomas delivered an outstanding performance as the female lead in Anacoreta. It was remarkable to watch her convey such a wide range of emotions with authenticity and depth. I was continually impressed by her ability to switch seamlessly between different dialects. I absolutely loved her delivery of the dialogue of telling The Scorpion and the Frog fable.

Anacoreta employs a distinctive, meta-horror style of storytelling. The narrative follows a group of friends creating a “scripted reality” horror film, and as the plot unfolds, the boundary between their staged production and their actual lives becomes increasingly blurred. This was interesting, but at the same time frustrating as a viewer.