La grande année

Librement inspirée d'un fait vécu, cette comédie ravira surtout les passionnés d'ornithologie, qui feront plus facilement l'impasse sur le ton moralisateur du récit, l'absence de tension dramatique et le pathos de certaines scènes. La réalisation de David Frankel est toutefois vivante et les interprètes sont à la hauteur.

The Big Year goes to a lot of different places, but they never really seem to have much of an impact on anyone. Alternatively, there's something interesting buried in the kind of mad obsession it takes to engage in such a fruitless and ultimately empty endeavor as trying to see a lot of birds. Yet Big Year never does anything more than a cursory inspection of that aspect of this story.

Apart from a few reliably hilarious sight gags — Mr. Black falls off a rock, rides a bicycle, paddles a canoe, etc. — the comedy of The Big Year is gentle and low key.

It's really a shame how much THE BIG YEAR wastes the talents of everyone involved. Besides Martin, Wilson, and Black, this also features Tim Blake Nelson, Rashida Jones, Kevin Pollack, Joel McHale, Jim Parsons, and more but alas, there isn't so much as a chuckle from any of them.

Au bout d'une 1h40 assis au cinéma, force est de constater que l'observation d'oiseaux n'est pas un bon sujet de comédie. Tout au plus, le sujet d'un petit film cute qui sera bien à sa place le samedi après-midi à la télé.

La grande année mise sur l'humour à travers ses trois personnages principaux: Owen Wilson campe un concurrent astucieux, Jack Black joue le rêveur sérieux et Steve Martin interprète le sage du groupe. Leurs péripéties loin de la maison ajoutent de l'aventure à l'histoire, et, donnons ce crédit aux acteurs, ils parviennent à transmettre le sens de l'émerveillement dont tout ornithologue va expérimenter en voyant une créature rare.

A genial, amusing and somewhat unfathomable about three guys for whom birdwatching takes precedence over all else in life.

Either you deliver heart and soul through character, or through unified theme. The Big Year goes too small on all scores to earn its wings, and, as a result, is little more than a flightless turkey.

Though it's more likely to inspire smiles than chuckles, this gently charming comedy about a trio of birders is based on a winning premise, likable performances and stunning natural vistas.