Review of Micmacs (2009) by Thomas W — 29 Dec 2010

There are momentary bits of magic within the (subtitled) Micmacs, the latest from the fantastical French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet who gave the world the sparkling, cinematic jewel Amelie (and introduced us to its beguiling/charming star, Audrey Tautou).

Amelie is without compare -- and that is both a blessing and a curse to Jeunet as his work will always be compared to that priceless treasure. Micmacs is a minor work of Jeunet's; but when likened to the work of other directors (many, many) who strive for anything close to a playful, colorful, mischievious or capricious whimsy that Jeunet has mastered it is still a marvel.

Like the director's other films, Micmacs takes place in the real world that is recognizable to the eyes of either you or me; but what makes Jeunet's work both so stupendous and enchanting is that he can simultaneously transport its audience into a world of pure imagination (he's like Mr.

Willy Wonka but without the candy). His films are a form of joy ... even when they are trite. Micmacs is about happy-go-lucky Bazil (Dany Boon - Joyeux Noel) who's life changes in an instant when he witnesses a fleeing criminal on a motorcycle drop his gun.

Bazil's fate is to be hit in the head with a stray bullet from that gun (his father's fate was also tragic as he was blown to bits by a land-mine some twenty-plus years earlier). As it would be too dangerous to remove the bullet, the surgeons decide to leave it lodged in our hero's brain.

Bazil's life does not return to normal (he loses his job and his apartment because people are mean and careless) but he gets by and is quickly befriended by a ragtag assortment of random Jeunet-characters ( such as a contortionist, a brainiac, a crafty scrap-metal inventor, a cook) who DO care.

Micmac's plot is set further into motion -- only as Jeunet's can unfold -- when Bazil makes the surprising discovery that "his" bullet was manufactured by a weapon/arms dealer with ties to the landmine that killed his father.

Bazil rallies his new-found friends in a plot to get revenge upon the dangerous weapon manufacturers. Micmacs is an obvious JPJ-film as it is comprised of all of his standards: peculiar characters (played by Jeunet regulars such as Dominique Pinon and Yolande Moreau), eccentric set design/art direction, a vivid use and dependence of color to set mood, a musical score that can bring a smile to anyone's face etc.

As its name may imply/suggest, Micmacs isn't as grand or far-reaching as JPJ's other works; but it is still one that can be easily admired as his brain is tireless and his imagination is broad.

Respectability, thy name is Jeunet.