The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec

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The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec - 18/4/2011 9:53:00 AM

Empire Admin

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Absolute turkey !! - 18/4/2011 9:53:00 AM

SEEDA

Posts: 1
Joined: 18/4/2011

Empire, are you kidding ? This is by far Luc Besson's worst film. It is farcical, boring, charmless and the lead has zero charisma.

I'm astonished at your review..

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Post #: 2

RE: Absolute turkey !! - 19/4/2011 11:11:37 AM

Jasper_29

Posts: 294
Joined: 22/8/2009

This film is to Raiders what The Fifth Element was to Blade Runner -- only much, much worse. The acting is average, the humour is poop (literally) and some of the effects make The Mummy Returns look like Oscar material.

If you believe this might be a fun adventure film think again, this is garbage of the highest order.

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RE: Absolute turkey !! - 19/4/2011 1:58:27 PM

Deviation

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quote:

this is garbage of the highest order.

Like The Fifth Element and Joan of Arc then?

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- 21/4/2011 3:41:26 PM

bagrot1

Posts: 82
Joined: 9/2/2006

I really wish I could make my own mind up but it is hardly showing anywhere outside London.

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Post #: 5

Well... - 21/4/2011 10:19:56 PM

ktmurphy

Posts: 2
Joined: 5/3/2011

I thought it was great! I saw a preview screening at the French instiute in London on the 14th April and we enjoyed a Q&A with the leading lady afterwards as well! I thought this was beautifullly shot and very witty and nicely paced.

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Post #: 6

RE: Absolute turkey !! - 22/4/2011 5:42:05 AM

Posts: 452
Joined: 30/9/2005
From: The Home of the Land

quote:

ORIGINAL: Jasper_29

This film is to Raiders what The Fifth Element was to Blade Runner -- only much, much worse. The acting is average, the humour is poop (literally) and some of the effects make The Mummy Returns look like Oscar material.

If you believe this might be a fun adventure film think again, this is garbage of the highest order.

"Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man..."

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Post #: 7

�DARTH VADER� STRIKES BACK � THE EXTRAORDINARY ADVENTUR... - 26/4/2011 3:13:48 PM

adambatman82

Posts: 11156
Joined: 15/12/2005
From: Sheffield

I quite liked it. Not much of a fan of Besson in general tho. Here's a copy and paste of my review. -

�DARTH VADER� STRIKES BACK � THE EXTRAORDINARY ADVENTURES OF ADELE BLANC-SEC

The man deemed �The Darth Vader Of French Cinema� returns to directing after a number of years out in the wilderness of producing with The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec, with Luc Besson looking to Jacques Tardi�s forty year-old Franco-Belgian bande dessinee for inspiration.
The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec carries with it the sort of air of whimsy familiar to the mainstream French cinema. Employing a style closer to the Terry Gilliam inspired post-sachirine visuals of Jean-Pierre Jeunet over anything previously seen in his own back catalogue, Besson has produced a work that feels like something of a fresh start for the filmmaker. Franchise-intent, and appropriate for a mass audience of both children and adults, The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec isn�t particularly comparable to anything that the man has produced thus far (aside from the obvious �powerful female� strand running through).

The title character of The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec, portrayed by visual arts teacher turned weather girl turned model turned actress Louise Bourgoin makes for a wonderful protagonist, tying together a solid cast. Bourgoin borders on the sultry without it ever feeling too sleazy for a young audience (although there is a surprising amount of nudity for such fare), and is immensely likeable, dragging the viewer through a second act that lags on occasion. Nicolas Giraud and Jacky Nercessian make for interesting interesting co-stars, as does Mathieu Amalric, who appears in a nice little cameo, in a role reminiscent of the Nazi interogator Arnold Tohl from Raiders Of The Lost Ark. In fact the whole film owes a lot to that kind of Hollywood adventure spectacle, with the tone of Besson�s film matching that of Spielberg�s almost note for note. The pterodactyl effects recall the stop-frame animation of a time gone by, with the feel of the books captured well. The biggest hurdle for any French comedy is in how well its humour translates to an international audience, and for the most part Besson succeeds (obviously he�s a filmmaker well versed in international productions). Much of the most successful comedy comes courtesy of the Guillermo Del Toro-esque mummy , a great comedy sidekick who brings with him a neat little joke concerning the construction of the Pyramide du Louvre.

As a representation of Paris the film succeeds nicely. Besson has nary been considered an affectionate filmmaker, but at times The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec does genuinely feel as though it is a work celebrating the great city in which a large portion of the story unfolds. The city presented on screen is very much a fictional construction, but it is one ground in the same sort of magical nostalgia that I fully expect Martin Scorsese�s Hugo Cabret to be drawn from later in the year.

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Post #: 8

RE: The Extraordinary Adventures Of Adele Blanc-Sec - 26/4/2011 6:07:42 PM

R W

Posts: 268
Joined: 23/6/2006

Director/Screenwriter: Luc Besson
Starring: Louise Bourgoin, Mathieu Amalric, Gilles Lellouche, Jacky Nercessian

Synopsis
Set in the early 20th Century, novelist Adele Blanc-Sec (Bourgoin) has in her possession a mummy which she wants to resurrect in order to save her dying sister. Meanwhile, a pterodactyl is on the loose in Paris and only Madame Blanc-Sec can save the day.

Review
It has been said for many years that Luc Leon Besson was going to stop directing and just produce a series of actioners like the Transporter trilogy and Taken. With the exception of his recent CGI animated series, Besson returns to direct live-action with his adaptation of a supposedly well-known graphic novel series from France.

As someone who hasn�t read any of Jacques Tardi�s comics, I approached this as a fan of Besson�s earlier work so I went in with high expectations, particularly with the quote on the film�s poster: �Amelie meets Indiana Jones�. Although the eponymous heroine is not in par with those two iconic characters, Madame Blanc-Sec is a wonderful watch.

Like Amelie, it has a quirky sense of humour that only we can identify as French as there are moments of slapstick and occasionally cheeky-cheeky. If you are a massive fan of Jeunet�s film (like me), the opening sequence is literally a series of intertwining shorts which set up the story and tone of Besson�s film.

For a film thats less than two hours, there is an awful lot going on as it�s not just a pterodactyl and mummies, but Adele Blanc-Sec has difficulty with would-be suitors, police and other distractors. One can say that all these elements don�t add to very much, and yet the film does have a heart which is the protagonist�s emotional journey to save her sister, thus the film becomes strangely moving.

Despite the bagginess of it all, director Besson keeps everything sharply paced and never boring for a family-friendly audience, despite the inclusion of a gratuitous bath scene. Primarily set in 1910s Paris, the design is beautifully done and feels epic and reminds you that Besson was once a great visualist during his early work. As for the Indiana Jones aspect, the film isn�t as action-packed as expected, but hopefully you won�t fall asleep.

Surrounded by people that look a lot like characters from Tintin, former TV presenter Louise Bourgoin is not only astonishingly beautiful, but she is easily the best thing of the whole film. Many of the funniest scenes are by her sharp-witted performance, as she isn�t some damsel in distress, but her strong feminine persona shines throughout.

Verdict
Whilst we wait for Spielberg�s take on Tintin, Besson�s Adele Blanc-Sec may be all over the place, but it is terrifically entertaining with its sense of humour and the charismatic performance and beauty by Louise Bourgoin.

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Post #: 9

Fun film - 28/4/2011 9:11:06 PM

boristhespie

Posts: 202
Joined: 30/8/2009

OH dear some people don't like it and I guess that is why Luc Besson is who he is. He divides people.

It's amazing what he has done with the budget as this looks on par with any huge Hollywood production.

True to the comics Adele Blanc Sec is a fun film. It is not serious while the humour is of a distincly French tone which may explain why some do not get it. The reality is that unlike much of Besson's recent work this is aimed fair and square at a French audience.

This is not a film for teens who like big Hollywood blockbusters, the joy is in the period setting, the sumptuous costumes and period sets.

Loise Bourgoin is gorgeous and carries the film well. She's has a playfulness which fits with the character.

A fun film for those looking for something different and a return to form for Besson in directing terms.

Personally I love Luc Besson films have done since the 80's and Subway. He's done a couple of duffers in Arthurs and the Minimoys, Angle-A and Joan of Arc but I love fifth Element which was a different idea to dystopia. Yeah Buggerall like Blade Runner but stupid comparison.

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Post #: 10