Merci Pour le Chocolat
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Movie Reviews of Merci Pour le Chocolat
Movie Review: Brilliant Huppert does it again
Summary: 5 Stars
The film isn't meant to be typically suspenseful. Isabelle Huppert plays the wife of a well known pianist whom she's known for years. A young woman from his past comes into his life and he becomes attached to her as a father-like figure. Without giving much away, Huppert gives the performance of a lifetime. Her latest films, including this one, have showed off her unbelievable and unique skill at playing strong yet not-quite-right heroines. In this film, her mastery of subtle perversion has the viewer squirming from something in the character they can't quite pinpoint. Ever meet someone who appears normal but gives you a very strange vibe? Huppert has figured out how to duplicate that person on screen and you'll finish the movie impressed by her as well as the pure and crisp art direction.
Movie Review: Both the "Chocolat" and the movie are good
Summary: 4 Stars
I have found lately I have been interested in the films of Claude Chabrol. I guess one could call him the French version of Hitchcock. I admit he seems to be a better follow-up to Hitchcock's work then say another great French filmmkaer Francois Truffaut.Many people have been rather harsh on this film, but, I found that I enjoyed it, and perhaps not for the same reasons other have. It's with this film the viewer is not only able to see how talented Chabrol is, but, also, we are able to see the way a movie should be constructed. The story-line may be difficult for some to follow but watch the execution in the delivery of suspense. The set-up is wonderful. The way Chabrol is creating more and more tension with each scene as it builds up for the climax is something all young filmmakers should see. And the choice of music play a major role as well.
I wanted to see this film when first released, but, never got around to it. One day I happened to stumble upon it on tv. It was the showtime woman's channel. I missed the very beginning of the movie but, as I say what caught my eye was the way Chabrol told the story, not necessarily what the story was about but the way things unfolded. I then was lucky enough to catch the film again, and this time watch it from the beginning.
Now, in it's opening moments I think many will get confused. The story is far fetched and that might turn off some viewers. I personally didn't like the way the situation was handled. Others may see it differently. But, once the story settles and we watch more and more of the film and sort of get a "hold" of what's going on I think many will enjoy the film greatly.
There are a few things going on in this movie so it's hard to explain the movie without spoiling it for everyone. I will try though. Isabelle Huppert plays Marie-Claire aka "Mika" Muller who has just married Andre Polonski (Jacques Dutronc). Polonski was married before and lost his wife in a suspicious car accident. His former wife also happened to be the best friend of his new wife. Now, in the first marriage Polonski had a child, Guillaume (Rodolphe Pauly). Many years later it is brought to our attention that perhaps there was a switch at the hospital. And Guillaume is not really his son but, he had a daughter, Jeanne Pollet (Anna Mouglalis)! Due to a switch at the hospital. And when Jeanne hears about this naturally she wants to meet Andre and find out what he thinks. Of course many of you are saying this all sounds too werid. But, give the film a chance to tell it's story.
"Merci pour le chocolat" is based on the novel "The Chocolate Cobweb" by Charlotte Armstrong, and was written by Caroline Eliacheff and Chabrol himself. For those who aren't familiar with Chabrol's films, fans feel his went into a slump in the late 70's and through the 80's. It wasn't until the 90's that Chabrol seemed to come back on track with films like "La Ceremonie", "The Swindle", and "L'Enfer". For those that are familiar with Chabrol's films I think that this is one of his best films. I feel no one will say this is better than "Le Boucher" or "Les Biches" but, if you enjoyed the suspense those films created than "Merci pour le Chocolat" is for you.
Bottom-line: One of Chabrol's best of recent years. A throwback to his earlier films. A wonderful example of how to build up suspense and capture an audience's interest. Young filmmakers need to watch this movie.
Movie Review: Spilled chocolat
Summary: 4 Stars
Simply put, a cold case is an old case where evidence and suspicions have dried up, and is virtually impossible to solve unless there are new developments.
And a clever cold case lies at the heart of Claude Chabrol's "Merci Pour Le Chocolat," a quietly intense little movie that allows nothing but the actors to carry the plot forward, and maintain suspense. No overwrought soundtracks or theatrics here -- it's a very slow, subtle build of tension and suspicion, with the brilliant Huppert gracefully carrying it along.
As the film opens, legendary pianist André Polonski (Jacques Dutronc) is remarrying his first wife, Marie-Claire "Mika" Muller (Isabelle Huppert), a chocolate magnate.
Elsewhere, a budding pianist named Jeanne (Anna Mouglalis) is a wee bit thrilled to find that she may have been switched at birth with Polonski's son. She goes to see him, and is warmly welcomed -- but her suspicions are oddly stoked a she sees Mika deliberately spilling the hot chocolate. Tests reveal that (drumroll please) there was a sleeping drug in it. So why's Mika doing this?
As Jeanne is taught by Andre at his home, Mika continues to hang around acting weird. The young woman becomes more and more suspicious of Mika's past behavior, especially when Andre's son Guillaume (Rodolphe Pauly) tells her how his mother died. But Jeanne's suspicions may be putting herself -- and others -- in danger...
Often suspense movies are turned into thrillers, and the bad guy always acts sinister and practically has "Evil" stamped over his face. Fortunately Chabrol doesn't resort to cliches or shortcuts -- there's not a single dramatic crescendo, crazy camera angle or brandished knife in the entire movie. The characters don't even raise their voices.
Instead, Chabrol films the entire movie in a very understated way -- it's almost like watching a long home video. Lots of quiet, realistic scenes of understated conversation and unembellished camerawork, and rarely even a soundtrack except for the exquisitely-played "Funérailles." Even the setting -- amongst the refined moneyed in a large country house -- is kept unembellished. It feels like looking into another person's life.
But he's still able to build quiet, subtle tension that shows in a hundred tiny ways, and the inevitable climax -- while wonderfully suspenseful -- is no less quiet. And Chabrol also drops plenty of little unanswered mysteries along the way -- such as Jeanne's parentage, Mika's motives, and so on. Those with short attention spans will be quickly bored, but it's fascinating to see how realistic he made this.
Isabelle Huppert is undeniably the queen of this movie -- she's quiet, friendly and inscrutable, with a faint undercurrent of jealousy whenever Jeanne is around. Dutronc is almost as good as the friendly, world-famous pianiste who starts seeing cracks in his seemingly perfect life, while Pauly and Mouglalis both do solid jobs as the dissatisfied son and the bright young musician.
"Merci Pour Le Chocolat" is a refined, old-fashioned suspense movie that relies on the actors rather than Hollywoodized gimmicks. A small treasure, though not for those who need thrills and spills.
Movie Review: Very good French thriller with a somewhat rushed ending...
Summary: 4 Stars
"Merci pour le chocolat", directed by Claude Chabrol, is an interesting French thriller with an abrupt ending, that is nonetheless worth your time. The reasons for that are many, including a superb cast, an engaging story, and a director that manages to make the spectator part of the story. You are not in the movie, but you feel involved in what is happening...
The story begins when Jeanne (Anna Mouglalis), a young and talented pianist, learns that she might be the lost daughter of André Polonski (Jacques Dutronc). Jeanne is intrigued by the idea, specially due to the fact that André is a very famous pianist, and she wants to learn from him. Jeanne visits André's house, meeting him, his new wife Mika (Isabelle Huppert), and a son from a previous marriage, Guillaume. Even though André is certain that Jeanne is not his daughter, he is interested in her, inviting the young woman to his home. That kind gesture sets off a chain of events that are dangerous, specially for Jeanne, and that could be linked to the death of André's previous wife, Lisbeth.
What is going to happen? And can appearances be utterly deceiving? "Merci pour le chocolat" makes you ask yourself those questions more than once. On the whole, I think that this is a very good movie, and I recommended it to those who love good thrillers and don't mind a somewhat rushed ending.
Belen Alcat
Movie Review: Movie: Very Good. Huppert: Great.
Summary: 4 Stars
Mika Muller, wealthy owner of a Swiss chocolate company (and played by Isabelle Huppert) has just married Andre Polonski (Jacques Dutronc). They were married briefly years before, but divorced and Polonsky married a woman he deeply loved and by whom he has a teen-age son. His second wife died in a car crash after enjoying a cup of hot chocolate with her husband and son at Mika's house. The movie proceeds with tensions, family complications and death -- with Mika calmly continuing the tradition each evening of making and serving her delicious cups of chocolate.
There's little mystery about what's going on, but the story drives with the question, "Why?" Why does Mika do what she does...and just what are all the things she's done? There's tension as it becomes clearer who should really be cautious about accepting Mika's hospitality. The pay-off is low key and, for me, just a little unsatisfying. It's still a movie I enjoy a lot.
The movie works because of Huppert's ability to seem imperturbable while you know deep and probably unpleasant things are bubbling away below the surface. Let me tell you...for those fans of Lindsay and Brittany and Angelina, Isabelle Huppert now 51 could chew you up and spit you out before you knew what was happpening. She's a first-rate actress and a great screen presence.
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