Amelie
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Movie Reviews of Amelie
Movie Review: Compulsively Comic
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a French romantic comedy set in Paris and almost told as a fairy tale. Is this a postmodern version of Cinderella? Close, perhaps, but the slipper seems to be a picture. Yes, you get to actually see places in Paris you might have visited. I was especially delighted for that reason.
I don't remember the last time I laughed so much while watching a movie. In fact, maybe it was when watching "What About Bob." Which proves psychological hilarity does appeal to my sense of humor to the extreme.
First you have two obsessive compulsive parents who never fully develop into characters you can admire or dislike. They simply exist in this movie as some sort of semblance of balance for the dysfunctional life Amelie (Audrey Tautou ) has woven her fragile existence between until her parents are torn apart by death. For the first part of her life, she is not shown normal affection and finally retreats into her own imagination. Deprived of love and basic childhood pleasures, like friends, Amelie lacks social skills in various areas, while she seems to survive working as a waitress in an eccentric café.
One day her life changes. She is watching the news and is so shocked by the revelation she drops something that rolls to a bathroom tile, that reveals a hidden treasure. She vows to return the treasure to the original owner.
There is something beautiful about Amelie's character. She embodies an innocence long forgotten and therefore her vindictive side in regards to the corner grocer will have you rolling on the floor. The man (Mathieu Kassovitz) she falls for is of course even more eccentric than she is and well, he works in a place that might not delight you and there are a few seconds here and there of adult naughtiness. They could have left out the dancer and the shop where he works because technically those items are not really woven well into the story. A more hilarious view is taken of sex in this movie and there are no serious love scenes to be sure. His character is not fully developed and they focus more on Amelie's life and longings.
Amelie sees herself as an angel/avenger. Half the time she is helping the eccentric characters find their way to happiness, while the hilarity comes from her attempts to "teach" other rather rude characters a good lesson. Then Amelie sends her father's garden gnome all over the world and this inspires him to travel. She seems to inspire others to follow their dreams.
In the process she discovers that having heart only shows her half the real picture in life. She needs a soul mate to complete her. Being the completely innocent character she is, she would of course find someone who is rather a nonconformist in a way. He spends some of his time collecting torn up pictures from a photo booth and is seeking to solve the mystery of his life. Who is the man who keeps appearing to have his picture taken?
Watch for a moment of pure spectacular creativity when water splashes all over the floor. There are artistic moments of bliss in this movie!
Nostalgic in places and poignant scenes that will catch you off guard as you find yourself suddenly crying and maybe relating to Amelie in some intimate way as you realize that you too have had dreams that didn't always come true just when you wanted them to.
Completely modern movie making and has academic nuances here and there to delight the poet in you. A cozy Parisian Soundtrack is included to match.
A similar experience to watching Moulin Rouge because you have an intense desire to watch this over and over again. I think it is just so visually stimulating and the details can hardly be absorbed in one viewing.
A feel good movie that leaves you with a sense that
there is still beauty and sweet innocence left somewhere in the world.
Or maybe that is just a fantasy...
~The Rebecca Review
Movie Review: Oh la la!
Summary: 5 Stars
SummaryOnce upon a time Amelie Poulin, a young lady unlike any other, lived in the heart of Paris. She underwent various difficulties in life such as witnessing the death of her mother in front of the Notre Dame church due to a woman who committed suicide from the heights of the church and landed on her. As well as having to hear her father endlessly talk about his obsession with a garden dwarf statue, she decides to leave this depressing home and live in Montmartre working as a waitress in a petit café. At the age of 22, Amelie finds her purpose in life, which is fixing other's lives. She invents all sorts of strategies to help people incognito.
Her mission is suddenly disturbed by the sight of a strange man, Nino Quincampoix, who works part time in a haunted house and in a sex-shop. He collects fractions of pictures found under photo-taking machines in the metro. Amelie is suddenly romantically moved for the first time, and decides to play a little hide-and-seek with Nino... Oh la la!
Movie Review
Le Fabuleux Destin D'Amelie Poulin, a truly delicious piece of eye candy, coming from the sweet heart of Paris, wrapped up in an innocent story of a young mademoiselle named Amelie. Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet; starring well known Audrey Tautou as Amelie, and Mathieu Kassovitz as Nino Quincompoix who give the movie zing of Parisian flavor and fantasy.
Amelie, at the age of 22 decides to leave her home and strike out on her own; tired of the conflicts she is surrounded by in her childhood home. She moves into a small Montmartre apartment, the epitome of French living, and thus begins an interesting adventure, of a girl's self-imposed mission to change others lives.
The choice of Audrey Tatou an actress with her own magical qualities was the perfect choice for leading role in the movie; truly embodying the character of this innocent and naive yet mystical girl. Rather than making her role one of a outlandish child, she portrays the magic and imagination that this movie offers in a smooth manner. Mathieu Kassovitz is the perfect complementary actor to Audrey as he portrays a nonsensical character with his own peculiar personality. Queer characters, up and out of the normal perspective, make this a dramatic yet romantic comedy unlike any other. Giving everyone a distinct story, filled with details, and a history, and broadening the horizon for an appealing cinematic work.
Jean-Pierre Jeunet uses special effects throughout the movie sparingly, making each one have an important role in the meaning of the movie. For example, when Amelie literally turns to water as she thinks about Nino because she is hopelessly in love. These small details not only make an impact on the audience, yet give the movie a variety of symbols. The camerawork helps the movie, making it in some way unrealistic which is what Amelie Poulain is all about. The director uses quick-cuts, and a wide spectrum of colors, depending on the mood of the moment creating a film that the viewer can appreciate visually, through the character's gests and also through the well thought out shades of colors throughout the movie.
Besides visual effects, music plays an important role in the mood of the film, offering whimsical and melancholy notes. The music is brought together by the synchronized sound of accordion, piano and guitar, giving the movie emotions through sound. As well as offering feelings it also gives the movie a typical Parisian scene, mixed in with the sight of the most fabulous neighborhood in Paris, Montmartre.
Voila! Amelie Poulin, a film leaving all ages with cheek pain due to over-smiling and laughing throughout the movie. Such imagination and enchanting qualities feed the eyes of the audience with a different film, one that reaches cinematographic summits, and take minds on a 2 hour escape to candy land. Encore!
Movie Review: Pure French Charm
Summary: 5 Stars
With its opening sequence of kalidescopic visuals and rapid-fire narration, viewers who do not speak French (myself included) are likely to find Jean-Pierre Jeunet's celebrated AMELIE a challenge, for it is rather difficult to watch the film and read the subtitles at the same time. That said, once you are able to sycronize these elements in your head, you are in for a treat: AMELIE is simply one of the most charming films to emerge from France in many, many years.Considering that the film is both foreign and subtitled, and therefore presumably has a somewhat limited appeal for English-only audiences, it's story has become remarkably well-known in a very short time among English-only audiences--a fact that attests to its power. Amelie is a shy, somewhat reclusive young woman, the product of an emotionally distant father and profoundly neurotic mother, who hides from life as a waitress in a small cafe while cultivating "small pleasures"--skipping stones over water, dipping her hands into sacks of grain at the local market to feel the texture, and the like. One day she discovers a box hidden behind the wall of her apartment bathroom, a tiny box filled with childhood toys stashed away by a long-ago childhood tenent. She sets out to return them to the now-adult man who hid and forgot them so many years before... and when she sees his pleasure she finds a purpose in life: she will secretly do things to make others happier in their life, thereby vicariously living out the happiness she herself is afraid to accept. In the process she not only brings life-changing joy to those around her, but she discovers her own need for happiness and the courage to change that she might experience happiness for herself.
The story is actually quite slight, but director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, his star Audrey Tautou, and a remarkable cast of supporting players give it tremendous style and an unexpectedly self-mocking sense of humor. The film is full of visual metaphors: at various moments we see the hearts of different characters beating inside their bodies, Amelie fantasizes about hearing herself lectured by the television, the object of her affection is teased by talking photographs, and in one particularly memorable scene Amelie's disappointment is envisioned by morphing her body into a column of water that collapses with a splash to the ground. The characters are mix of archetypes and glitchy eccentricity; the cinematography is shockingly beautiful; and everything about the film is gentle, sweetly funny, and sure to leave you with a Gallic smile and a wish that life were actually like that.
Tautou is a remarkable young actress who has been widely compared to both Audrey Hepburn and Leslie Caron--and indeed there is more than a passing similarity. But she plays the title role with a knowing quality that belongs to her alone, and although the role (and indeed all roles in the film) is essentially archetypical her performance has a youthful grace slightly tempered by unexpected self-awareness: extremely effective and extremely endearing. The film would be worth seeing for this performance alone, but fortunately AMELIE is remarkably rich in all its elements.
Those expecting "depth" may disappointed, for the life-lessons the films offers are not profound in themselves; others may find the film's odd mix of Brechtian distance, sly wit, and warmth a bit off-putting--and it would be easy to read the film as a somewhat diadactic comedy that doesn't entirely come off. But if you can grasp the thought that the film isn't about anything beyond making you chuckle, smile, and rejoice in the small pleasures of life, you will find it extremely, extremely enjoyable. The DVD comes with a second disk full of extras, including audition footage, outtakes, and the like that both cinephiles and Francophiles are sure enjoy. Recommended.
Movie Review: The Hello Kitty Movie
Summary: 5 Stars
Amelie is the Hello Kitty of movies. You've seen it in passing. You've given it a glance. You've thought 'geez, that looks kinda...' and you never in any of those times came up with a good enough word to describe what it actually is. Is the word 'sweet'? Is the word 'sappy'? Is the word 'stupid'? Most of all, you're pretty sure that you're just going to hate it- after all, who can pack so much attitude into one little box and still have it come out as something you can respect?
If you can get past your initial misgivings about the cute-sy factor of the lead actress (and those big, glowing eyes) then you're in for a real treat. The word you were looking for to describe how you might feel about this movie is going to be none of those I mentioned...instead, you might walk away and think 'sure-fire' or 'sha-zam!' or 'crap, I can't believe this movie made me think of those words...I never use those words!'
But they're very much applicable in this case. The story, the acting, the direction, the visuals...they all zing along at their own pace; it's a tempo just shy of break-neck and right above average. The visuals blend with that tempo, creating a whole storyboard that makes us feel as though we are on some wild roller-coaster ride that we didn't really ask to be on but can't help but be grateful for all the same.
All of the actors commit themselves to being the characters that they have come to play for the audience and each of them own their roles. When Mathieu Kassovitz's character is first seen digging under the photo booth, we never think 'what a weirdo' but instead find ourselves kind of drawn into thinking 'who is this strange man?'...lured into thinking it by the simple acceptance of the title character. Amelie is a unique young lady whose view of the world sets the stage for the entire movie; where some characters might annoy the audience in other movies, Amelie's acceptance and view of them make them real people who have real problems who really need saving.
That's what makes this movie so endearing, that it's a super hero movie without a super hero about real people with real problems stuck in their own real hell who are all saved by a person who probably could not ever exist. Amelie rushes from person to person, a preternatural understanding of the way they work and how to solve their problems guiding her through the whole movie, ricocheting from adventure to adventure, saving countless lives in a webbed intricacy that leaves us dizzy and dazzled...and again, what makes that work is our own need to be saved in our own real lives, in our own real hell, in our own...you get the picture.
But where it might become bogged down in taking itself too seriously with it's save-the-world attitude, the movie instead turns cute, cloaking it's external functions with jokes and winks that make us wonder if it's trying to be dirty or if we're just stuffy conservatives. When Amelie wonders to herself 'How many people are having orgasms right now?' that question is answered in a spectacular montage that is primed by Audrey Tautou's sheepish smile at the end of it. '15' she whispers to the camera. It's this sort of thing that makes the movie not only bearable, but also exquisitely delightful to watch.
Bottom Line: there is a special DVD set out now that has this movie in it; you can find it at any local Walmart...my advice is to go out and buy it because it needs to be a permanent part of your collection.
-LP
The PS Warning: this movie is NOT IN ENGLISH! For those of you who didn't already know that I did not want to be misleading by suggesting that Amelie actually said the word '15'. But! But! It is still 100% worth your viewing time.
Movie Review: Hopelessly Romantic -- Paris Never Looked Better!
Summary: 5 Stars
"Amelie" is the most wonderfully charming film I have ever seen. It's quite possible that, upon reflection, I'll consider this to be hyperbole inspired by a recent viewing, and I'll give "Amelie" a more reserved rating, like "it's one of the best films I've ever seen.""Amelie" tells the story of the title character, played with a seeming impossible combination of daring, reserve, romanticism, idealism, and fear by Audrey Tautou. In a performance where she is speaks very little (one of her struggles is that she is an observer of life who must eventually find a way to "live" her life rather than watch it go by), Tautou nevertheless steals the show.
Well, almost, 'cause the city of Paris gives her a run for her money. If you are a fan of Paris, you will absolutely love this film. Lovingly shot, the film gives us a Paris that is so perfect that it cannot exist in real life. Colors are slightly exaggerated through clever filters and lighting, and the charming little details (such as the elaborate cursive menu on a restaurant window) are evocative of the film's romantic spirit.
One of the most original plots in years, "Amelie" tells the story of a woman who has always sat on the sidelines. As a child, Amelie was so nervous when her reserved father touched her (only during medical examinations) that her pulse raced, leading to the misdiagnosis of a hyperactive heart. As Amelie grows into womanhood, she has always sat and observed, and with a wonderful imagination has created an alternate universe for herself. This imagination carries through to her adult life, and manifests itself in delightful ways (no other character in cinema could melt away into a splash of water at the sight of her true love).
Through a discovery of a long-lost box of childhood trinkets and the sad-yet-blissful restoration to its rightful owner, Amelie resolves to bring cheer and zest to the lives of her fellow Parisians. Not content to whisk a blind man down a crowded street, narrating all the peculiar sights, sounds, and smells of daily Parisian life that he can no longer fully appreciate, Amelie takes it upon herself to be, at times, a match-maker, an instrument of revenge against a local bully (hilarious comeuppance alert!), and a re-writer of heartbreak.
One of the most entertaining subplots of the movie has to do with her father, who even though he has the freedom to travel (he is a widower, brought about through the most freakish of accidents) refuses to do so. Amelie sends his beloved garden gnome on a travel across the world, including pictures sent from abroad to her mystified dad.
Of course, a romantic spirit like Amelie's can't avoid falling in love. But when she falls in love, it can't be a straightforward seduction. Elaborate courting, hilarious misunderstandings, and a boiling-over romanticism make for a powerful conclusion to a charming film.
Note: the DVD does not have an option for listening to a dubbed English version - if you don't speak French, you're going to have to work with subtitles. I don't speak a lick of French, but listening to the dialogue in French adds something to its romance, so I think this is an improvement rather than a burden -- if I had the option, I'd still go with the subtitles (this works with other foreign films, too, like "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Like Water for Chocolate," where dubbing just doesn't work). The DVD has some good extras, too -- we're not talking a Peter Jackson treasure trove, but they are worth it.
Easily one of my favorite movies, and one that you will want to watch again and again.