Amélie

REVIEW
Shot in saturated color evoking the heightened reality of dreams, Amélie celebrates the infinite variety of human idiosyncrasy in a world where everyday serendipity oils the wheels of chance. Amélie (an effervescent Tautou) tweaks the course of destiny with whimsical Rube Goldberg-esque stratagems and fanciful ploys (traveling gnomes, breaking and entering), aimed at righting wrongs, enlarging limited worldviews and aiding the progress of attraction and love. A quirk of fate (what else?) sends her on a quest involving the mystery of the man at the photo booths and the longings of her own precious heart. Amélie is a delightful lark, both sweet and subversive -- intelligent, funny, insightful; reminiscent of Celine and Julie Go Boating in its charm and fancy, with an occasional voice-over that sounds for all the world like Lemmy Caution. Director Jeunet uses the medium to full effect, with invention and a warm humanism. The supporting cast matches Tautou in capturing the essential, endearing peculiarities of their characters. (French with English subtitles)