Terrifically hard to judge in its intended context (i.e. 1960s bourgeois sexual conservatism), but BELLE DE JOUR still hits the mark perfectly in its deconstructions of the societal double standards placed on women to be both Madonna and Whore. Catherine Deneuve is somehow still terrific as Sevérine even though her character is largely a cipher for a variety of fantasies and personas that hide a deeper, interior character that we arguably never get to meet during the film. She’s trying…

Awful in the way only bad remakes can be. There's nothing inherently wrong with the technical filmmaking on show, but the vulgar superficial warping of Park Chan-Wook's original film feels forced and unnatural where the 2003 movie is graceful in its inevitability. It also doesn't help that, while Spike Lee is no slouch cinematically, his visuals come off as sloppy when compared to Park's masterful, elegant compositions.

Other things that hurt the film include Brolin's detestable characterisation (who would want…