Resenha - Amélie Poulain

The fascinating peculiarities of Amélie Poulain

        “Amélie” (originally Le Fabuleux Destin D’Amélie Poulain) is a popular French movie, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. The movie was nominated for several awards, including the Oscars, and has won many others. One of the most exquisite aspects of Amélie is the soundtrack, composed by Yann Tiersen. Starred by the French actress Audrey Tatou – also seen in The Da Vinci Code -, the film wasn’t a blockbuster when it came out in 2001, but has become a cult icon over the years and made the movie’s location a cultural landmark in Paris: a neighbourhood called Montmartre.

        Most of the movie is set in 1997’s Montmartre, where the main character, Amélie Poulain, lives. She is a sweet and introverted young woman, that makes her life’s goal to “fix” other people’s lives. But doing so, she ends up putting her own life on hold, a fact that is made clear to her by her neighbour, Monsieur Raymond Dufayel; he is a painter, who never leaves his house because of a medical condition that makes his bones easily breakable. Dufayel teaches painting to his protégé, Lucien, a disabled boy who is constantly bullied by his boss, Monsieur Collignon. Amélie works at the Café des 2 Moulins, with Madame Suzanne, Georgette, Gina – who is stalked by client and former lover, Joseph. Other targets to Amélie’s easy fixes are: Hipolito, the unpublished writer; Raphaël Poulain, her father; Madeleine Wallace, her heartbroken landlady; Nino, her love interest; and finally, Dominique Bretodeau, the one who started it all.

        The plot is presented when Amélie finds an old box hidden in her apartment, containing several belongings of a child of the 50s. She then puts herself on a quest to find that boy – who is now middle-aged Dominique Bretodeau – and return his things, without him ever knowing it was her. While doing her research to find him, Amélie has a brief and silent encounter with a peculiar man, who she thinks is very much like her. After she finds a way to return Bretodeau’s child relics, with the help of her neighbour, Raymond Dufayel, the satisfaction of doing something good for someone else makes her want to bring justice and peace to everyone around her. Amélie then starts to interfere in other people’s lives without them noticing, until one day she is put in a situation where she needs to take measures to fix her own life or she might let a big opportunity go.

        Even when she goes to extremes – like faking a lost letter from Madame Wallace’s late husband -, you can understand and relate to Amélie’s every action. Her need to fix her friends’ problems and bring justice to the world, but then run away from the reality of her own life makes it very easy for us to find ourselves within her character. That’s why this is my favourite film. The setting, the music, the language and the oddness of every character just add to the amazing piece of art that I believe this movie to be.

        Finally, I think everyone should watch Amélie at least once in their lifetime. Whether it’s in Dominique Bretodeau’s memoir of a nice childhood and mistakes to be fixed, in Madame Suzanne’s disbelief in true love, or in Gina’s desire to live life at its full, Amélie will make sure you find yourself in it.

Nome: Maria Luiza Novais Brito Gomes         RA: 00072269

Curso: Relações Internacionais                Disciplina: Língua Inglesa: Prática de Escrita