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Amélie: Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain
Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain (known in the United States as Amélie ) is the story of a lonely young waitress in the Montmartre district who decides to devote herself to improving the lives of people around her. Isabelle Vanderschelden provides analysis and social context for the film and the reasons behind its success.
128 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 6, 2015
Two guys Jeunet and Carot made Delicatessen in 1991 which is an all time favourite of mine, then followed it up with The City of Lost Children four years later. Hard to believe, this second film is much weirder and much better, one of my top ten movies. (Not many other people liked it but I don’t care. Maybe they just made it for me. I think it gave people the creeps. It gave me the creeps but I like that kind of creeps.) So Jeunet and Caro had by now typed themselves as steampunk surrealists. Then Caro left to do something else and Jeunet’s next movie was the bad Alien film Alien : Resurrection. Yeah, he sold out to Hollywood, and it didn’t work out. But hey, with a big paycheck he could do what he wanted to do now, which was Amelie. And now you could see that Caro was the Lennon and Jeunet the McCartney.
As you no doubt know, Amelie is cutesy, fey, whimsical, a romantic comedy with no possible relation to real life, all goldenhued and cloying, which rhymes with annoying, and I expect has made more than a few people thwow up into their handbags. “A big fat dollop of saccharine fairy floss” says tombur1 on IMDB. “By the end of the movie you just want to reach into the screen and choke her” says AmomyBP. I see what they mean. The corn is as high as an elephant’s eye. Jeunet deliberately removed all the graffiti and litter from his exteriors by digital means. The more I think about this movie the sillier it is, but when I watch it that’s a different thing. So am I really saying that Ram is nearly as good as Abbey Road ? If there is a guilty movie pleasure this is it. (Leaving aside Italian nunsploitation movies, of course. We don’t want to talk about those. )
(Amelie unwittingly phones a sex shop to speak to one of their assistants but they mistake the nature of the call.)
It’s true my movie taste is all over the place. What? You dare to admit to hating The Green Mile AND The Shawshank Redemption AND Vertigo ?? Yes, that’s me. So are you one of those guys who only like Battleship Potemkin and Last year at Marienbad? No, I hate those too. What kind of monster are you??
(This is Amelie criticising old movies for not being realistic - she's got some nerve)
All right, so what we got – cute shy loner girl meets cute shy loner boy in a manner that redefined the words convoluted and contrived. At the end – oh, spoiler! – they chug off into the Montmartrian sunset, literally, on a white Lambretta. Laughing.
I can’t deny that – but I would say that a large amount of the movie is taken up with Amelie trying to fix other people’s problems (thus avoiding fixing her own). She does this by stealth and in so doing reveals herself to have psychopathic tendencies – she has no qualms in breaking into neighbours’ apartments and stealing stuff; once she conceives of an idea of improve someone’s life all normal rules of behaviour go out the window. Underneath the fairydust is a borderline-deranged passive aggressive type. The fairydust is mixed with ground glass.
YANN TIERSEN’S SOUNDTRACK
In keeping with the retro visual style is the lush accordion waltz soundtrack by this composer who was a new name to me. The soundtrack album is great. Any fans of Gus Viseur or Tony Murena will lap this stuff up.
POST-AMELIE
There have been three more films – A Very Long Engagement which bored me to death, Micmacs which is brilliant and The Young and Prodigious T S Spivet which is everything Amelie-haters say about Amelie – avoid, avoid.
THIS BOOK
Alas, we have the usual film studies lecturerspeak here. It’s crammed with banal clunkers such as :
The nostalgic appropriation of Paris in Amelie has enchanted, concerned or angered the viewers, and become one of the most critically discussed elements of the film. However, by recycling and stimulating the collective memories fed by many past pictorial and cinematic sources, and by bringing his own personal imagery of the city, Jeunet has successfully created an enticing postmodern cityscape, which contributed to the success of the film, and is part and parcel of his aesthetic signature.
I mean, who needs sentences like that in their life. Not you, not me.
Two star book, five star movie.
(I feel like that occasionally but then I lie down until the feeling passes.)
As you no doubt know, Amelie is cutesy, fey, whimsical, a romantic comedy with no possible relation to real life, all goldenhued and cloying, which rhymes with annoying, and I expect has made more than a few people thwow up into their handbags. “A big fat dollop of saccharine fairy floss” says tombur1 on IMDB. “By the end of the movie you just want to reach into the screen and choke her” says AmomyBP. I see what they mean. The corn is as high as an elephant’s eye. Jeunet deliberately removed all the graffiti and litter from his exteriors by digital means. The more I think about this movie the sillier it is, but when I watch it that’s a different thing. So am I really saying that Ram is nearly as good as Abbey Road ? If there is a guilty movie pleasure this is it. (Leaving aside Italian nunsploitation movies, of course. We don’t want to talk about those. )
(Amelie unwittingly phones a sex shop to speak to one of their assistants but they mistake the nature of the call.)
It’s true my movie taste is all over the place. What? You dare to admit to hating The Green Mile AND The Shawshank Redemption AND Vertigo ?? Yes, that’s me. So are you one of those guys who only like Battleship Potemkin and Last year at Marienbad? No, I hate those too. What kind of monster are you??
(This is Amelie criticising old movies for not being realistic - she's got some nerve)
All right, so what we got – cute shy loner girl meets cute shy loner boy in a manner that redefined the words convoluted and contrived. At the end – oh, spoiler! – they chug off into the Montmartrian sunset, literally, on a white Lambretta. Laughing.
I can’t deny that – but I would say that a large amount of the movie is taken up with Amelie trying to fix other people’s problems (thus avoiding fixing her own). She does this by stealth and in so doing reveals herself to have psychopathic tendencies – she has no qualms in breaking into neighbours’ apartments and stealing stuff; once she conceives of an idea of improve someone’s life all normal rules of behaviour go out the window. Underneath the fairydust is a borderline-deranged passive aggressive type. The fairydust is mixed with ground glass.
YANN TIERSEN’S SOUNDTRACK
In keeping with the retro visual style is the lush accordion waltz soundtrack by this composer who was a new name to me. The soundtrack album is great. Any fans of Gus Viseur or Tony Murena will lap this stuff up.
POST-AMELIE
There have been three more films – A Very Long Engagement which bored me to death, Micmacs which is brilliant and The Young and Prodigious T S Spivet which is everything Amelie-haters say about Amelie – avoid, avoid.
THIS BOOK
Alas, we have the usual film studies lecturerspeak here. It’s crammed with banal clunkers such as :
The nostalgic appropriation of Paris in Amelie has enchanted, concerned or angered the viewers, and become one of the most critically discussed elements of the film. However, by recycling and stimulating the collective memories fed by many past pictorial and cinematic sources, and by bringing his own personal imagery of the city, Jeunet has successfully created an enticing postmodern cityscape, which contributed to the success of the film, and is part and parcel of his aesthetic signature.
I mean, who needs sentences like that in their life. Not you, not me.
Two star book, five star movie.
(I feel like that occasionally but then I lie down until the feeling passes.)
April 14, 2015
I had the pleasure of attending the film, "Amelie: Le fabuleaux destin d'Amelie Poulain." As anticipated, it was magnificent! Nevertheless, as is the usual occurrence for me, I found the book to be superior to the film.
I must admit it took some time for me to manifest a connection with the character of Amelie. It was not she who kept me at arms length, but rather the gloom and dreariness I felt amongst her personal isolation that disturbed me deeply. I recognized that Amelie's isolation mirrored mine at the time. I wanted to have a greater association with Amelie, yet Somehow, I justified my detachment and need for remoteness.
This darkness did not last. Some chapters in, I found myself smiling and enjoying the comedic nature that is Amelie. When I finally pushed away the cloud that kept me from understanding and bonding with Amelie, I was able to give both character and story, the chance it deserved. She is a fabulous young woman. A character difficult to turn from and easy to love.
In Short, "Amelie: Le Fabuleaux destin d'Amelie Poulain," is a story about a young girl with blind resolve to make an enthusiastic difference in people's lives. As she works towards this impressive purpose, she is also struggling with her own isolation. It is at this interjection, that the story blooms and shares its charm with its audience.
The narrators quote of Amelie is a precise and true illustration of who Amelie is.
"Amelie has a strange feeling of absolute harmony.
It's a perfect moment. A soft light, a scent in the air,
the quiet murmur of the city. A surge of love,
an urge to help mankind overcomes her.
BEAUTIFUL!
The book is fabulous. It can be found on my Goodread's favorites bookshelf. I give this book 5 stars.
I must admit it took some time for me to manifest a connection with the character of Amelie. It was not she who kept me at arms length, but rather the gloom and dreariness I felt amongst her personal isolation that disturbed me deeply. I recognized that Amelie's isolation mirrored mine at the time. I wanted to have a greater association with Amelie, yet Somehow, I justified my detachment and need for remoteness.
This darkness did not last. Some chapters in, I found myself smiling and enjoying the comedic nature that is Amelie. When I finally pushed away the cloud that kept me from understanding and bonding with Amelie, I was able to give both character and story, the chance it deserved. She is a fabulous young woman. A character difficult to turn from and easy to love.
In Short, "Amelie: Le Fabuleaux destin d'Amelie Poulain," is a story about a young girl with blind resolve to make an enthusiastic difference in people's lives. As she works towards this impressive purpose, she is also struggling with her own isolation. It is at this interjection, that the story blooms and shares its charm with its audience.
The narrators quote of Amelie is a precise and true illustration of who Amelie is.
"Amelie has a strange feeling of absolute harmony.
It's a perfect moment. A soft light, a scent in the air,
the quiet murmur of the city. A surge of love,
an urge to help mankind overcomes her.
BEAUTIFUL!
The book is fabulous. It can be found on my Goodread's favorites bookshelf. I give this book 5 stars.
December 17, 2014
This is "with no exaggeration whatsoever" one of the MOST beautiful, amazing, wonderful, fascinating (etc.) movies I've ever seen in my life! (I haven't read the book.)
Strongly recommended to all!
Strongly recommended to all!
April 1, 2008
This is an amazing book. However, you must have a certain capability in French to be able to enjoy the original version, which is the best.
May 11, 2008
فيلم هوشمندانه اي بود و سبك روايت بخصوصي داشت
آدمهاي خاص و دقيقي را نشان ميداد مثلا كسي كه هميشه جلوي يك عكاسي از روي زمين عكس هاي پاره شده را جمع ميكنه مي چسبونه تا شخصيت صاحب عكس رو بررسي كنه و انگيزشو از اين كار بدونه چقدر استدلال و نظريه پردازي مي كنه و آخرش مي فهمه همه تحليل هاش غلط بوده و قضيه خيلي ساده تر از اين حرفا بوده
...
آدمهاي خاص و دقيقي را نشان ميداد مثلا كسي كه هميشه جلوي يك عكاسي از روي زمين عكس هاي پاره شده را جمع ميكنه مي چسبونه تا شخصيت صاحب عكس رو بررسي كنه و انگيزشو از اين كار بدونه چقدر استدلال و نظريه پردازي مي كنه و آخرش مي فهمه همه تحليل هاش غلط بوده و قضيه خيلي ساده تر از اين حرفا بوده
...
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June 23, 2007فضای جالبی داشت فیلمش.
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August 6, 2008در صورت تمایل، جهت مشخصات فیلمی که بر اساس این کتاب ساخته شده است؛ میتوانید از لینک زیر استفاده بفرمایید
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0211915
June 2, 2008
a bit too academic, but what did i expect?
January 19, 2010
کتابش رو نخوندم... اما فیلمش رو یه بار دیدم... فکر کنم تو برنامه ی سینما چهار بود... چقدر شخصیت دختره برام جذاب بود... مخصوصا اونجایی که نشسته بود روی پل
November 26, 2010
un grand livre et un film encore plus grande!!!!! une merveilleuse histoire d'une serveuse dont le seul intérêt est d'aider les autres.
November 19, 2017
J'ai adoré le film! ❤️
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September 11, 2017فیلمش رو دیدم
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews