Review of Amélie (2001) by Mistermagic — 19 Aug 2020

In any form of art, the work of an artist is exposed to unforgiving criticism. I am more of a music "expert" than a cinema passionate. However in all my years of watching movies, I cannot recall (for now) watching a movie with opinions as opposed as the ones concerning Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain.

Personally, I think this movie is one of the best french movies, and one of the best movies I have ever seen, and I have had the hardest time understanding why the negative ratings were so negative. People seem to find it either excellent, or absolutely horrible and void of any interest. I do not disrespect people who dislike this movie, forcing somebody to agree with me would be both stupid and impossible. I have thought about it for a long time, and after rewatching it several times, I think I understand.

This movie has a very unique style, story telling, characters. When I watched it the first time, if I had to use one word to describe it, it would not have been "beautiful", "fantastic", "moving", but something along the lines of "Atypical".

It is the kind of movie where you are either sucked in at the first second, or that completely bores you.

I personally was not a fan of cinema when I first saw this movie, and even today I am far from being a specialist. But I have found this story to be very touching, well told, the music in this movie is simply flawless, and I could relate so hard to the simple little actions that can make your day, such as helping a blind man to find the metro, diving your hand in a bag of seeds, or sending someone 40 years back with a simple gesture. The lighting and camera work is also very enjoyable, and the actors are perfect in this little world that this movie builds. I certainly love it, and will show this to my kids someday. For me, it has been an unforgettable experience.

(also this is my very first critique and I am half french, so there may be some mistakes in my writting, which I of course apologize for).