witster18

(2012-04-27 06:10:14)

wew...

I love foreign film. I love spy/espionage films. I love action films.I rented this one for all of those reasons.Watch this one for it's hot locales and high-production values. Pastthat - this movie is really, really bad.I have NO CLUE how this is scored this high here.The acting is as rigid as a treated 2 x 4. The script was written bythe same guy that wrote the "See Spot Run" book. Every detail of thefilm is repeated 5 times - as if the viewers have a 48 IQ.There is no plot. Kinda reminded me of one of those bad mid-afternoonBBC action series with slightly higher production values. Hong Konglooks great on film. I've been there. It's a beautiful place. If notfor the landscapes and couple of decent action scenes - I would havevoted this even lower.Do yourself a favor and pass on this one.The back-story is poorly put together, and the current story isnon-existent.Very disappointed.I usually put "If you like this you might like____ ____" lists on myreviews, but if you DID like this - then the chances of me recommendingsomething and you actually liking it is highly unlikely.39/100 WOrst "good" looking film I've seen in a long, long time.Think "Quantum of Solace" - only with even weaker acting, a weakerplot(is that even possible), and less action.

jotix100

(2012-04-26 21:48:05)

The adopted son

Some titles, such as the one for this film, can be baffling. Not havingany idea this production was based on a successful comic book that hasbeen quite popular in France, we had no inkling what to expect, but theprospect of watching Miki Manojlovic and Kristin Scott-Thomas in thesame picture was a deciding factor. As far as how authentic theadaptation is, unfortunately, not having read the source material, itwould be one's own guess.The film is full of action. It takes the viewer to a lot of places,covering a lot of territory. The selection of Hong Kong as the placewhere the action takes place proves to be an exciting destination,especially the last sequence where Largo, the hero of the story has asort of show down with the man commissioned to kill him.Directed by Jerome Salle, who also contributed to the screenplay withJulien Rappeaneau, works well as a thriller that takes the viewer to anumber of interesting locations. The film is helped by the brilliantcinematography of Denis Rouden and the music score by none other thanAlexander Desplat, a busy man working in movies today.In finding Tomer Sisley for the title role, Mr. Salle found a youngactor that is pleasant enough to involve the audience. The wonderfulMiki Manojlovic plays the self made billionaire that adopted Largo tobe the heir to the empire he built. Kristin Scott-Thomas shows why sheis one of the best actresses working today. The multi-national castspeaks in different accents and languages. The picture will notdisappoint lovers of the genre.

kosmasp

(2012-04-24 02:42:22)

The other comic book adaptation

I'm not aware of "Largo Winch" as a comic book (or is it graphic novel?I actually don't know), but I have to admit, hearing about anagent/hero movie, I did expect quite something different, than what Iactually got.While it was startling to watch this at first, it was nice watchingthis move along. You could never really tell where it would go (sometwists are foreseeable, but in general, you can never really say, wereit will end up going). A more than stellar performance from the leadactor and a really good support cast, make this an enjoyable watch. Notas action packed as some might hope or expect for a movie like that,but a really good mixture.

XavissimuS

(2012-04-23 20:39:16)

French but Good (Screen)

In my knowledge, Largo winch was a famous Belgium comics (never read)telling the adventures of a playboy, a sort of James Bond without thespy life! So, when I had to choose a movie for a 5 years-old kid, Ipicked it up because the kid was already a great fan of James Bond!But, just after the opening credits, I got heavy doubts: when Americanmovies offer amazing start, here, no action and a torrid sex scene …Then, the story get very complicated with financial moves… I thought Ilost the kid.But, strangely, he had been caught by Largo, and more than James Bond! Was it the excellent interpretation of Tomer Sisley? The difficultrelationship Largo has with his father? The multiple box story in whichthe friends are the bad guys, the bad guys are the friends? The exoticlocations of Honk-Kong, Yougoslavia? Dunno, but he really cares about Largo ("Will he get up?) and weenjoyed our moment.

Boba_Fett1138

(2012-04-17 08:03:55)

Really well made but with an average story and some weak acting.

This movie is a real mixed big. On the other hand it's one greatlooking and well directed movie, with a pleasant pace and some goodaction but on the other it's being a real average one with its storyand suffers from some weak acting as well.It's actually a movie based on a Belgian novel- and comic-book-series.And it's not really hard to see why they wanted to turn it into amovie-series as well. It has a very typical movie style and way ofstorytelling to it, that reminds you of movie-series such as the BourneIdentity and James Bond ones. It has a thriller type of plot, hotwomen, plenty of action and hand-to-hand combat and some exoticlocations as well. Yet as a movie this one does not really work outquite successfully. Also financially it was a disappointment but thatdidn't prevent them from making a sequel, with the poetic title "LargoWinch II", in 2011, which was not much of a success either. So it seemsthat the series is already over before anybody had really heard aboutit, unless some big Hollywood studio decides to pick it up and turn itinto a movie-series, since the potential is all definitely stillpresent in it.It's a movie in which a secretly adopted son has to proof hislegitimacy, in order to take over his murdered father's company, thatis worth billions and prevent it from falling in the wrong hands ofsome shady business people. Doesn't sound like the most interestingperhaps and you're right to think so. It's mostly being a Industrialespionage thriller, with backstabbing characters and ones with doubleagendas, with some action thrown in it to spice up things. It justisn't really the most exciting concept to begin with and besides, themovie its story offers little new or surprising really. It all has beendone before and better as well. It's all quite predictable, also in theway it's progressing.But the film-makers didn't seemed to be stopped in their ambitions tostill create a great movie, despite of its story. It's a real slicklooking movie, with a great visual style to it. They also handled theaction really well, with some good camera-work and nimble editing. I'ma fan of some good old fashioned hand-to-hand action and this movie hasplenty of that. Really, I can't say anything bad about the directingapproach of this movie. It also provides the movie with a pleasantlyfast pace, which ensures that the movie, despite of its story, won'tever start to bore you.And the movie also needed a fast pace, since it seemed to be coveringlots of ground. It's set in many different countries, at many differentplaces, with many different people. Yet they managed to fit it all intoa 100 minutes short movie. It might cause you to loose track at timesthough. I mean, it's quite hard to understand at times why our maincharacter is suddenly in a different country or how he got there in thefirst place.But something that really truly brings this movie down is its acting.Most of the actors really got poorly cast in this and seem to belong onTV or soap operas only really. Kristin Scott Thomas is an exception andBenedict Wong also does a decent enough job but the rest were reallystruggling to get their lines out convincingly. Perhaps this was alsopartly due to it that most characters have to speak in many differentlanguages. The movie mostly consists out of French, English and Serbiandialog, while some of the actors themselves aren't even French, Englishor Serbian. And hearing a French person utter some English words justnever really sounds convincing. The lead actor Tomer Sisley was alsoreally struggling with this and only seemed to be in his element duringthe action sequences.Not a great movie by any means but still worth giving a go when youhave run out of anything else to watch.6/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

dbdumonteil

(2012-04-16 19:53:20)

Simon where were you when he needed you?

Among all the comic strips adapted for the screen ,"Largo Winch" issomewhat better than the movies made before (Tintin,Asterix,MichelVaillant,Blueberry etc) .The reason can be found in the very nature ofFrancq /Van Hamme 's cartoon books :they are more "realistic " thantheir peers' works,their screenplays are cinema stories with astuteflashbacks blending the present with the past ,they are aimed at theteenagers/young adults market.The subject (dough is in the center ofthe plot) may repel some but Largo is not that much interested in itand the last sequence (faithful to the book ,except for a detail)showsa man talking with a little boy ,displaying nostalgia for a childhoodin a tender family.(the cover of the second book shows two Largo:as aman and as a boy,the man has his hand on his former self's shoulder.)The scenes in the prison are botched and the 100 pages of the book aretreated in less than an hour.So the necessity(?) to introduce a secondheir and to turn Scott-Thomas's character into a villain .Let's say it:the movie is not on a par with the book ;the story tookplace in New York,they chose Hong Kong instead ,which is not a badchoice ,but the purple passages lack the strength they had on thepaper:the death of the tycoon,sapped by cancer,the hellish Turkishprisons (a nod at "Midnight express"?),and the scenes on the islandwhich verge on melodrama .But the biggest surprise is the complete absence of Simon Ovronnaz whoappeared on page 19 and would be to Winch what Captain Haddock is toTintin.Some suggest they save the character for Largo Winch II which isto be released next February .

TrevorAclea

(2012-04-16 09:41:43)

Glossy and undemanding

Largo Winch is one of those big glossy disposable action films thatFrance regularly turns out to prove that they can do that sort of thingas well as Hollywood. Based on a hugely popular series of Belgiannovels and later comic books and clearly intended as a jetsetting JamesBond-like franchise, Anthony Zimmer director Jerome Salle's film kicksoff with Miki Manojlovic's billionaire murdered on his yacht, throwingthe fifth largest conglomerate into the world into panic until itemerges that he had a secret adopted son (Tomer Sisley) to whom he'sleft 65% of the shares. Of course, what with a hostile takeover bidfrom a shady Russian gunrunner (who helpfully introduces himself with"I'm the story's bad guy"), a traitor in the company's ranks and theodd attempt on his life, this is more interested in chases in exoticlocations from Hong Kong and South America to not-so-exotic Croatiathan boardroom manipulations. As such it's a slick, enjoyable andforgettable package with no surprises – it doesn't take much toanticipate each plot development before it happens – but which providesundemanding entertainment if that's what you're looking for. Like GroupW, the film's something of a multi-national itself, shifting fromFrench to English to Croatian to Spanish as the locations demand, withthe cast a similar mixture of French (Gilbert Melki, Melanie Thierry,Anne Consigny), British (Kristen Scott-Thomas, Steve Waddington,Benedict Wong) and East Europeans (Karl Roden, Radivoje Bukvic), but itmanages to avoid the usual indigestible Euro-Pudding feel by virtue ofits relentlessly globetrotting plot. A sequel's already in the works,co-starring Sharon Stone in an effort to get the theatrical release inthe English-speaking territories that this didn't manage.

Matthew Stechel

(2012-04-15 16:10:28)

Engrossing and well made but largely forgettable action drama

Only been maybe 4 days since i saw it and i've already forgotten themajority of it...The Heir Apparent won't be the most memorable filmyou've ever seen...but it was a well done enough action film of the"old school" french variety that will play very nicely on TV in yearsto come. Sleek enough to hold your attention and telling a story thatdoesn't insult your intelligence but won't really tax it either--themovie works well enough while its going, but once its over you'lleither have trouble believing what you just saw, or you won't reallycare what you just saw--you'll just wanna see another movie asap.Requiring a daring man of action to save the day but really just acontinuing series of action sequences barely held together by acontinuing storyline (ironically not unlike district b-13 which whilean awesome movie is much much more of an example of "new school" frenchaction film that's more in vogue right now.) The Heir Apparent issupposed to be more of an old school french action movie--like thiscould've easily been made with jean paul bellmondo in the 70's.Largo Winch is the adopted heir to the CEO and founder of thisgianormous company--when the ceo is found dead--its up the adopted heirto find out why, who, when, and if possible save the rest of thecompany. (Largo is a guy who loves breaking out of places--you see himas a kid running out the window of his bedroom--he hates being coopedup in one place...naturally a break out of jail sequence is includedhere, but with the nice twist that largo really really doesn't wantanyone to help him with it....he's also apparently fiercely independentwhich just makes you wonder why he's doing what he's doing but nomatter.) Anyways the bulk of the plot is basically Largo beingrecruited by the board of the company to do whatever he can to keep thecompany from being swallowed up by its main competitor. (this requiresbasically getting the majority of stock in the company back from theguy who owns the competitive company, but of course there's so muchmore to that then just going up to the guy and making him hand over theshares of stock) That's really all you need to know---anything else isstuff that comes up throughout the story that you just kinda roll yourshoulders and go with--otherwise you'll have too many questions and toquestion what's happening here is besides the point.Some of the action scenes are pretty cool...and the lead actor has anappealing what me worry? attitude that matches the tone of the movieperfectly. The reversals and double reversals that happen throughoutthe movie don't really add anything besides obstacles for the maincharacter to hurdle over--but hurdle them he does, and well. KirstenScott Thomas appears but adds nothing except maybe a sense thatsomething significant is supposed to be happening here, but its prettyclear its not. Ummmm the movie was entertaining enough--like it was funto watch, but after an hour or so it gets kind of dull, like you startto wonder what the point is, why is Largo Winch so perfectly willing tobe used by his father's board members when he himself has no interestin running the company at all anyways---there are flashbacks of himtalking to his father that are meant to give depth to largo's characterbut only serve to remind us that we could be watching a much bettermovie if Largo could just somehow get out from his father's company'sshenanigans. Anyways--it was an OK movie--but there were hints that itcould've been something more. As it is its not bad, its actually prettyfun to watch but i'll prob forget i saw it in a day or two.