A Complete Review of Jon Favreau's work

Cast : Pedro Pascal, Rosario Dawson, Ming-Na Wen, Gina Carano, Giancarlo Esposito, Timothy Olyphant, Werner Herzog, Nick Nolte, John Leguizamo, Jennifer Beals, Temuera Morrison, Mark Hamill

What was it about?
The travels of a lone bounty hunter in the outer reaches of the galaxy, far from the authority of the New Republic.

My two cents:
To be honest, I always had some mixed feelings about this TV-show. I mean, sure, it is fairly entertaining but I think its reputation has been artificially increased for two reasons. First, when Disney+ became available, it was the only original TV-show available for a very long time. Basically, there was nothing else to see exclusively only on this streaming platform. Second, everything released about Star Wars, arguably since the original trilogy, had been mostly disappointing so it was a rather low bar to achieve from the start. Still, there is no doubt that the Mandalorian is the coolest Star Wars character ever since Han Solo showed up already a few decades ago (too bad they made him remove his helmet at some point). It is also displayed Disney was willing to go really deep in their pockets to deliver some expansive TV-shows which could compete with your average blockbuster which was pretty exciting. Finally, it displayed that the Star Wars universe still had tremendous potential, especially if they finally let go of the Skywalker dynasty because, frankly, I think we can all agree that we had enough of them after a whopping three trilogies. Eventually, I hope they won’t milk dry this franchise for too long but I will keep watching it for the time being.

My rating: 07/10

Cast : Chiwetel Ejiofor, James Earl Jones, Seth Rogen, Amy Sedaris, Donald Glover, Beyoncé

What was it about?
After the murder of his father, a young lion prince flees his kingdom only to learn the true meaning of responsibility and bravery.

My two cents:
Before this movie was released, there was a nice buzz but after reading a massively negative review on Indiewire, I became rather cautious and even slightly worried. Well, eventually, maybe this review did lower my expectations but, to be honest, I don't think it was so bad as the guy from Indiewire claimed it to be. Of course, like 90% of this Disney live-adaptations, it was still completely unnecessary and probably even more misguided than usual though. I mean, the animation looked amazing but to see some animated talking animals has always been rather annoying and when they are really photo-realistic like here, well, it is even more cringe-inducing. Concerning the story itself, I have to admit that, in spite of its massive reputation, I have never been a huge fan of the original version to start with and since this version was about 95% identical, well, I still didn't care much for it. At least, Timon and Pumbaa completely stole the show once again, Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen were just pitch-perfect and I wish the whole thing would have been about them instead of these rather boring lions.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Scarlett Johansson, Giancarlo Esposito, Christopher Walken, Garry Shandling, Jon Favreau

What was it about?
After a threat from the tiger Shere Khan forces him to flee the jungle, a man-cub named Mowgli embarks on a journey of self discovery with the help of panther Bagheera and free-spirited bear Baloo.

My two cents:
Since this movie was another big box-office success for Disney, I thought I might as well check it out. First of all, the whole thing was visualy really impressive. Apparently, it was completely shot in a studio, all the animals were fully generated by computer and only the young actor playing Mowgly was actually the real deal which shows how far we have arrived with the CGI technology and the great things we can achieve if we use this tool properly. Concerning the tale itself, I have to admit it, at first, I had a hard time to really get into it. I mean, it's not that I really knew this story (in fact, it was different enough to the classic animated feature to make it entertaining), it was more the fact that I have never cared for this Disney features with some anthropomorphic animals and, once again, I was first slightly annoyed by all these talking animals. However, this time around, they did manage to give these animals some human attitude and behavior, and yet, they were still really realistic. Anyway, the whole thing slowly won me over and I was pretty much sold from the moment Baloo finally showed up on the screen (it did help that Bill Murray was the perfect choice for this character). Eventually, even though it never really blew me away, it was still a decent watch.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Jon Favreau, John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman, Sofía Vergara, Oliver Platt, Amy Sedaris, Robert Downey Jr.

What was it about?
A head chef quits his restaurant job and buys a food truck in an effort to reclaim his creative promise, while piecing back together his estranged family.

My two cents:
After directing quite a few blockbusters with some various end-results, Jon Favreau decided to go for something smaller this time. Well, it turned out to be a fine watch, in fact, it was easily one of the best movies I have seen about a chef and his restaurant. Indeed, the food was really gorgeous to look at, I don’t think I have ever seen anything like this before and the cooking process has never been displayed better than in this movie. Furthermore, I really liked this main character, Jon Favreau gave himself a very nice role and I believe he gave here the best performance of his career. Unfortunately, pretty much everything else in the movie was not really impressive, I’m afraid. Indeed, the story was really pedestrian and generic. Seriously, why does all these guys always have to be divorced? It is just a cheap way to add some fake conflict. The other thing that disappointed me was the fact that, even though the whole thing was about the main character getting a food truck, he actually drops it at the end to work again in a regular restaurant. Then, finally, the last thing that bothered me was that, except for the main character, all the other characters were rather poorly developed and some of them, like Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey Jr. and Dustin Hoffman should have been provided more screen-time or removed completely. Èventually, even though it didn’t completely work, it was still a decent feelgood feature.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Daniel Craig, Abigail Spencer, Paul Dano, Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde, Harrison Ford

What was it about?
A spaceship arrives in Arizona, 1873, to take over the Earth, starting with the Wild West region. A posse of cowboys and natives are all that stand in their way.

My two cents:
When you choose to watch a movie with such a title, you know you shouldn't take it too seriously. In this case, with such a title, should have we expected something really amazing? Anyway, first of all, this movie looked pretty good, there were some pretty cool action scenes and I think they made some effort to make the Western world look quite believable. Furthermore, the cast was rather neat. However, like anyone else, I was still not blown away by the whole thing. A part from Craig's and Wilde's characters which were interesting enough, all the other characters were just too stereotypical for me and they didn't do or say anything compelling during the whole movie. Furthermore, during the first 30 minutes, I was waiting for those aliens and when they finally showed up, all the characters were actually barely shocked. It was rather disappointing but I understand that they wanted to focus on the whole action blockbuster extravangaza and the makers were not interested in focusing on the characters psychology. Anyway, it was nothing great whatsoever but I thought it was still a fairly entertaining blockbuster.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Mickey Rourke, Samuel L. Jackson, Clark Gregg, John Slattery, Garry Shandling, Paul Bettany, Kate Mara, Leslie Bibb, Jon Favreau, Olivia Munn

What was it about?
With the world now aware of his identity as Iron Man, Tony Stark must contend with both his declining health and a vengeful mad man with ties to his father's legacy.

My two cents:
Following the impressive success of the first installment which would launch the almighty Marvel Cinematic Universe, it was obvious that they would come up with a sequel and the expectations were even higher this time. Personally, I really liked the first movie (after all these years, it is still by far one of the best stand-alone super-hero features delivered by Marvel so far) above all because Robert Downey Jr's performance was just really awesome and completely entertaining. Unfortunately, with this sequel, the story was not really compelling, there was nothing actually really new and the characters were rather poorly developed. Apparently, there were quite some tensions between Jon Favreau and Marvel as they pretty much forced him to increase the links between this movie and the rest of the MCU at the expense of the coherence of the film's own plot. As a result, Favreau would choose to decline directing the 3rd installment. Eventually, the only really interesting element in this movie was the introduction of Natasha Romanoff A.K.A. Black Widow. Indeed, even though some may have had some doubts about Scarlett Johansson pulling this off, she eventually completely nailed it and became one of the best characters in the MCU. Eventually, in spite of its flaws, the whole thing was still fairly entertaining but there is no doubt that it was one of the weakest movies delivered by Marvel so far.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Clark Gregg, Paul Bettany, Jon Favreau, Samuel L. Jackson

What was it about?
After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.

My two cents:
Nowadays, nobody would argue that Robert Downey Jr. was not the right guy to portray Tony Stark. However, many have forgotten that, because of his everlasting drug problem, Downey Jr. was blacklisted for many years and it was at the time really a gamble. Fortunately, this gamble worked out and this flick was a critical and financial success. It was the living proof that a comic-book adaptation didn't need to be gloomy like 'The Dark Knight' to be good. Indeed, it was easily one of the most fun super-hero flick I have ever seen. So, obviously, Robert Downey Jr. completely stole the show with a pitch perfect performance but the rest of the cast was also pretty good. And, of course, the special effects were quite awesome but that was rather expected. But there was a good pace and, even though there were plenty of special effects shots, they still managed to develop enough the characters and, as a result, the story was quite compelling to watch. My only critic would be that it was still too predictable which prevented the whole thing from becoming a real masterpiece. Still, it remains one of the best super-hero movies out there, even 10 years later.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Kristen Stewart, Josh Hutcherson, Dax Shepard, Tim Robbins

What was it about?
Two young brothers are drawn into an intergalactic adventure when their house is hurled through the depths of space by the magical board game they are playing.

My two cents:
Even though ‘Jumanji’ was rather poorly received after its original release, I always had a weak spot for this flick. Of course, it was nothing mind-blowing but I thought that the special effects were pretty cool, I enjoyed the whole chaos created by the plot and this chaos was a good match with Robin Williams’ hysterical blend of humor. So, when I heard they were making a sequel (sort of…), I was rather intrigued. Basically, the plot follows the same template as in ‘Jumanji’, except that, this time, the board game transports the players into outer space instead of a mysterious jungle. Unfortunately, I thought it was a little bit more underwhelming than its predecessor. I don’t know, maybe I have outgrown this kind of stories but I was missing something in the plot or the characters to make it really entertaining. I mean, ‘Jumanji’ was honestly totally wack but that’s why it was pretty fun whereas this flick was just way too straightforward. Still, it remains a fun flick with some pretty cool special effects and it was also pretty neat to see both Josh Hutcherson and Kristen Stewart both starring in this before their reaached stardom. Anyway, even though this movie was nothing really amazing, I still think it is a rather entertaining family feature.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Will Ferrell, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, Zooey Deschanel, Peter Dinklage, Amy Sedaris

What was it about?
After discovering he is a human, a man raised as an elf at the North Pole decides to travel to New York City to locate his real father.

My two cents:
You might find him terribly annoying and not funny at all but you can’t argue that Will Ferrell is one of the most successful and recognizable comedians of the last 2 decades. Personally, I have some mixed feelings about him. Indeed, he can be sometimes downright hilarious but he keeps playing over and over the same characters and it is getting less and less entertaining and more and more obnoxious. Anyway, 2003 was his breakthrough year, as he showed up in ‘Old School’ and in this Christmas flick which were both some tremendous successes. Honestly, I never really cared about Christmas movies. Indeed, even though I love Christmas, the movies dealing with this celebration usually bore me to death. However, when they put a dark twist, like in this one, it can be pretty enjoyable and, indeed, I had a good time watching this movie. There was a very good cast surrounding Ferrell and the whole thing was really entertaining. Of course, the plot was rather idiotic and it was nothing really amazing whatsoever but they managed to make a fun movie out of this. Not only was it an important movie for Will Ferrell but also for its director, Jon Favreau. Indeed, with his 2nd directing effort, Favreau continued to display some skills and reminded us he would be a director to be reckoned with.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Famke Janssen, Peter Falk, Drea de Matteo, Jennifer Esposito, Sam Rockwell

What was it about?
Two aspiring boxers, lifelong friends, get involved in a money-laundering scheme through a low-level organized crime group.

My two cents:
Before directing blockbusters such as 'Iron Man', Jon Favreau started out as a director with this modest comedy. This flick is also a good reminder that, a long time ago, Vince Vaughn used to be so damned funny. I mean, when was the last time you saw something hilarious starring this guy? My best guess would be 'Wedding Crashers' (which was fun but not really mind-blowing in my opinion) and it was back in 2006. Anyway, many many years ago, he used to be funny and, especially in this flick, I thought he was f*cking hilarious. Ok, the story itself was nothing amazing and completely predictable but I thought that Vaughn and Favreau made an entertaining duo and I was laughing throughout the whole thing. Anyway, for Jon Favreau, it was the start of an interesting directing career and I hope some day Vince Vaughn will eventually pick up something more entertaining than what he has done during those last years. Eventually, I really liked this movie, it is a very well made and sometimes hilarious comedy and it is definitely worth a look.

My rating: 07/10

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