Amelie ****

Amelie
The fourth feature from director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Delicatessen, Alien Resurrection) is arguably his best, or at least his most publicly acclaimed. According to Jeunet, he had been wanting to make a "positive" film about his home country for 25 years and finally got the chance. Evidence of this is the incorporation of one of his short films from the early nineties, Things I Like Things I Don't Like. The script was written with Emily Watson (Breaking The Waves) in mind, but she backed out at the last minute leaving the door open for newcomer Audrey Tautou who is absolutely resplendent in the role. The movie had such an effect on people that even French President Jacques Chirac commented during a private screening that it was one of the finest evenings of his life. Abundant features on the DVD. French with subtitles.