Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain, Le (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001)

Amélie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001, International: English Title)
Rating: 9.7

I own this film and have seen it numerous times, but I was recently asked to watch it again and write a brief response paper for a class so I figured I'd post it here:

Amélie, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet is an imaginative film full of life and energy. There are no major obstacles to overcome, nor are there any extravagant action sequences. In fact a brief synopsis of the film may make it sound dull and uneventful, yet it is as kinetic as any other. Amélie is a young introverted dreamer, who becomes obsessed with helping others around her find small pieces of happiness in there otherwise mundane lives and falls in love in the process. The film is accompanied by flashbacks of her childhood, as well as her internal imaginative thoughts of fantasy involving special effects and sometimes stock footage. Jeunet incorporates several different techniques throughout the film including the handheld home movie-like intro of Amélie as a child, computer animation, third person voice-over narration, and Amélie herself talking to the camera and interacting with the audience in some instances. The film often seems purposely showy, with a beautiful score, brilliant camera work and cinematography. There is constant camera movement, whether it be the fast paced cutting, hovering overhead shots, zoom-ins, sped up action, spinning shots, or the more common pans and tilts. The film is visually stunning, filled with vibrant greens and reds, and is truly a cinema of attraction for the viewer.
Amélie is an interconnecting maze of destiny or random coincidences depending on how you interpret it. Jeunet keeps the audience involved in the story through entertaining and often humorous plot lines of eccentric characters, a mystery character to peak our interest, and unveiling more personal insights into the lives of certain characters as the film moves along. Sometimes the narrator reveals things we would otherwise never know, or they are revealed through brief vignettes. It is almost as if we are voyeurs into the characters lives much like Amélie herself as she interferes into the lives of others. We also witness scenes of other characters prying into the lives of others. For instance the painter looks into Amélie’s apartment, Nino collects discarded photos of strangers, and Joseph is always spying on his ex-girlfriend in the café. There are a lot of things going on in this film, and it’s hard to choose one distinct underlying meaning, but I think the most important thing the filmmakers want to convey, as cheesey as it sounds, is that you can’t let events from your past allow you to miss out of the simple enjoyments that await each of us in life. Amélie trys to fill the small voids in the lives of the people and bring joy to them, but just as they are missing something in their lives, so is she. With the encouragement of Raymond Dufayel along with the help of fate, she falls in love and doesn’t let the opportunity pass her by. This spectacle of a film is always a delight to watch and rewards repeated viewing and recommend it to all film enthusiasts.