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Les diaboliques (1955)
It out-Hitchcocks Hitchcock!
I'm a massive fan of Alfred Hitchcock. For a long time my favourite films were Hitchcock's Psycho and Rear Window. I first heard about Diabolique when Hitchcock had mentioned it in his interview with Dick Cavett, where he said that a man wrote to him: "Sir, After seeing 'Diabolique,' my daughter was afraid to take a bath. Now she has seen your 'Psycho' and is afraid to take a shower. What should I do with her?" Hitchcock replied: "Send her to the dry cleaners."
That was where I had first heard of it. Then I saw online, some websites said that Diabolique may have even inspired Hitchcock for Psycho. That intrigued me even more. Then I saw Robert Bloch, the author of the Psycho novel, had said that Diabolique was his favourite horror film of all time. Then I knew I had to see Diabolique.
There was one 'problem.' Diabolique was in French with subtitles. I had never seen a foreign film with subtitles before, so I resisted it. And then I think I saw on the BFI website, Stephen King said one of his favourite movies was Diabolique, and somewhere else I think he said the ending of Diabolique was the scariest movie scene he had ever watched.
Finally, I got around to watching Diabolique. My first foreign film. Let me just say, absolutely brilliant. The ending especially really knocks it out of the park, such brilliance! If you are resisting foreign films because of subtitles, you are missing out on such great cinema. Since I first watched Diabolique, I watched it again a few weeks later. Still absolutely brilliant. It's not like The Sixth Sense where it's not worth watching multiple times - Diabolique was terrific the second time too. In fact I enjoyed it so much that I bought a whole book analysis on the film ('Les Diaboliques' by Susan Hayward), where it goes into detail some hidden messages Henri-Georges Clouzot possibly added in the film, such as a possible war subtext. It also goes into detail the making of the film. This book made me appreciate the film even more, and now I can say for sure that Diabolique is my favourite movie of all time. Terrific acting (especially from Simone Signoret as the icy-blonde Nicole), terrific direction from Clouzot, terrific cinematography, terrific plot, terrific everything! It's an absolute must-watch, especially if you're a fan of Hitchcock's work. In my opinion, I really think Clouzot did Hitchcock better than Hitchcock himself.
C'est magnifique... et diabolique! 10/10.
Freaky Friday (1976)
Better than the 2003 remake
This movie made me genuinely laugh and the acting is fantastic, but the effects can be quite cheesy and outdated (although alright for 1976). I like this version better than the remake.
Freaky Friday (2003)
It's okay, but the original is better
It's alright, but it also just feels like a cliche teen movie.
Gangsta Granny (2013)
Tries too hard
This movie just tries too hard to be funny and appeal to kids. It's badly made, its jokes are predictable and unfunny, but its emotional scenes are quite good.
But if you're looking for actually FUNNY entertainment, avoid this movie.
School of Rock (2016)
Another awful "comedy" TV show from Nickelodeon
I feel like Nickelodeon is now the king of unfunny sitcoms.
The School of Rock movie was a massive hit when it came out. So why the hell would it need a TV show based on it? The laugh track that plays pretty much after every line is in your face, and the jokes aren't even funny.
The only way to actually bare to watch an episode of this crap is to forget about the original movie.
Anyway, I highly DON'T recommend this terrible TV show to anyone. I don't even know how three seasons of this horrible show were even made. I hope it gets cancelled.
The Langoliers (1995)
A fantastic Stephen King adaptation
As soon as I started watching The Langoliers, I was hooked. The storyline and great directing really grabs you and pulls you in.
The only fault is the CGI, which is absolutely terrible.
Nonetheless, this miniseries will definitely entertain you for three hours, and you'll definitely remember it.