Amelie (2001)

So with the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival coming to a close this weekend, I thought it would be good to talk a much loved French film (and easily one of my favourites), Jean-Pierre Juenet's Amelie.

Amelie is set in Montmarte, Paris and is about a shy young girl named Amelie (Audrey Tatou) who sets out to improve the lives of the the people around her, while struggling to cope with a loneliness she's known since childhood. During this, she encounters Nino (Mathieu Kassovitz) and falls in love, but will her shyness prevent her from acting on it? (I love ending these with question marks, it feels like I'm creating fake suspense.)

You really feel for Amelie, she's got this beautifully over-active imagination and you just find yourself being swept up into her plans to better the lives of others. Audrey Tautou is marvellous as this sweet, naive girl. This is the role that launched Tautou's international career (unfortunately it was launched into Da Vinci Code territory). Throughout the story, you're also meeting these other wonderful characters, each with their own set of very entertaining issues that Amelie tries to fix.

The opening sequences of Amelie are a whimsical mix of images and sounds, narrated perfectly and highlighting the simple pleasures of life that we often forget. They make you smile and really draw you into the story.This film has a really

warm and fuzzy feel about it and it's quirky without being too confusing or weird. It has this visual sweetness that seems so inviting. I love the way it makes you laugh without being mean-spirited or crude, it's a bit childish but that only adds to the appeal.

And that is Amelie, in a nutshell. It's definitely worth watching, go rent/buy/borrow it from a friend/download(legally...please) it now

Till tomorrow, à bientôt