Le Fils de Rambow

Can you possibly avoid succumbing to a movie where the opening scene shows a teenager in a movie theater, greatly enjoying a cigarette while recording the first Rambo with his video-camera? And when a little later he meets a boy from an orthodox Christian family, so together they decide to Swede (hi there, Be Kind Rewind which this movie has a lot in common with, as well as with Bridge to Terabithia) a sequel to the original movie about saving Rambo’s dad. All this in a perfectly recreated atmosphere of the eighties. A wonderful celebration of friendship, and the hardships and joys of growing up. If I were the same age as those two nice kids here, this movie would have become cult for me like Rambo for these two little guys or like Patrick Swayze for Didier. I not only understand them, but in fact I openly envy them. I stand firmly behind the full set of stars (and why on earth not, since I awarded them) if only for that dumb, delighted smile that this picture engraved into my face for a long time after. And when I think that I didn’t go to see it at the movie theater when I was visiting Edinburgh, for fear that this promising theme might turn into something too childish... I still feel like giving myself a good spanking for that. P.S.: The explanation of the original name of the movie in the dialog after the credits is better than the dry, although true, official one. I’m curious how they deal with that in the dubbed version. (27/07/2008)

Lee Carter, a textbook example of a school deviant played by the annoying Eustace from Narnia, together with the naive and somewhat limited Will Proudfoot, decided to make a film that should win a young filmmakers competition. Well, I've heard worse combinations! I like films where someone tries to make an amateur film (like Super 8 recently), so I wasn't opposed to the idea. Will Poulter looks like he's had a face-lift and Botox combined, but he performs well within reason. I'd easily take the Frenchman out of the script, or at least not give him as much space. In short, this is the kind of made-for-TV movie that tells the story of a strange bond of friendship between two very different boys. (05/09/2011)