Script:
Amelie is a 2001 French romantic comedy directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and stars Audrey Tautou as the quirky and imaginative Amelie as she tries to find happiness and love in her life through acts of kindness for those around her. This was one of those films that I had always heard a lot of good things about, but never saw it until now, and I have to say, this film really lives up to the hype surrounding it. Interesting characters, unique cinematography, and a different take on the classic love story all help to make Amelie stand out among other films.
One of the first things I noticed about Amelie, was the important role the Butterfly Effect has throughout the movie. The butterfly effect is the concept that small causes can have large effects. In the movie, the unseen narrator states that Amelie’s quest to do good things for people started when she heard on the news that Lady Di was killed. This caused her to drop the cap to her perfume, which rolled into the wall, dislodging a piece that she moved away to find a small box of toys from the past, prompting her to find its owner. The fact that something so small and seemingly insignificant to the overall story can create a chain reaction that spirals into the plot of the entire movie is an interesting point to make. It seems like the movie is trying to show how everything in the world is connected, and that even the smallest action we take can lead to something momentous and important. It’s an interesting point to make in a romantic comedy, a genre that typically follows a more linear and tame structure, and really helps to set Amelie apart.
Another interesting aspect of Amelie, is the camera work. The color palette of the entire movie is filled with reds and greens, and rarely includes any blues. This creates a kind of soft saturation look on Amelie’s world, which actually fits the movie, as Amelie tends to look at her world in more imaginative and fanciful ways. Blue would create a sharper image for us as viewers, and take us out of Amelie’s imagination. Another interesting use of the camera throughout the film is the use of wide angle lenses. These are used in close ups of the character’s faces, oftentimes resulting in 4th wall breaks. The wide angle lenses also are used to keep everything in focus on the screen. Instead of having rack focuses throughout the film for wide shots, the film keeps everything in the forefront and focused, resulting in scenes where every detail seems important.
The way the movie was shot was also interesting. The camera was never stationary for too long in any given scene. There is a scene where Amelie gets justice for an abused store worker by messing with the mean store manager’s apartment, changing things slightly so that he feels like he’s going crazy. He first tries to put on his slippers, only to discover that they are too small. In that scene alone, the camera changes three times; first panning from his head, to his feet and slippers. Then it zooms in as he struggles to put his feet in the slippers. Finally, the camera quickly pans up above his head as he realizes that something is wrong. The level of camera movement keeps even the simplest of tasks intriguing, and really helped to turn the mundane into imaginative, which perfectly matches the atmosphere of Amelie.
Overall, the movie is a pleasure to watch, and very engaging for the viewer. The quirky and bold differences put into this romantic comedy help set it aside others in the genre, and are refreshing to see in a stagnant-camera centered world. Amelie is different and unique, yet still maintains the emotion and heart every great movie needs.
Sources: Richards, Evan. “Deconstructing Amelie – Evan E. Richards.” Evan E. Richards. N.p., 09 Dec. 2012. Web. 15 Mar. 2017.
The movie, Amelie, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet