Customer Reviews

Chocolat

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Lasse Hallstrom's film version of the Joanne Harris' novel Chocolat is as delightful a confection as were the heroines' chocolate creations themselves. The plot is intricate and intriguing, carrying the viewer through the emotional transformations of each of the main characters. In a sleepy medieval French town where life has assumed a repressive structure that has created an emotionally frozen and empty life for even the most highly placed members of its society, the heroine Vianne and her daughter arrive to set up a chocolate shop. With her wonderfully concocted sweets she manages to liberate some of the denizens of the town, revealing their potential for greater happiness. The story has a sense of myth, fantasy, and fairytale about it that leaves the viewer with a feeling of personal satisfaction.

This is a film full of strong female performers. Judi Dench is especially wonderful as a curmudgeonly elderly woman estranged from her daughter and forbidden to see her grandson. Juliette Binoche does a fine job as the heroine. She is as fragile and seductive as Monroe in some scenes and as forceful and independent as Bacall in others. Lena Olin is wonderful as the abused wife who rises from the confusion and ashes of her own ruined personality like a phoenix under the influence of the heroine.

This is one of the best movies I've seen in a ling while, and I expect to order and read the book upon which it was based--something I rarely do.

Joanne Harris, the writer of the novel, Chocolat, is apparently a confectionery genius, for this story leaves a wonderful taste in your mouth. Although I have not read the novel, the movie is delightfully rich and creamy.

Vianne (Juliette Binoche) is a "chocolatier extraordinaire," having the best chocolate in all of France and possibly the entire world. She and daughter, Anouk, set up shop in a small French village rife with religious zealots led by the mayor, Comte de Reynaud (Alfred Molina), who is intent on keeping the town chocolate-less. It is the timeless game of religious piety versus sincere brotherly love as portrayed in the lead characters.

Vianne seeks to sweeten the lives of the villagers in town with her secret panacea, especially the religious rejects like Armande Voizin (Judi Dench). She is a crusty old woman, the antipathy of her daughter, forbidden to see her own grandson living in town. Moreover, there is an abused wife (Lena Olin), who finds refuge from her husband, not in the church, but in the chocolate shop. And finally, if this is not enough to drive a group of religious fundamentalists insane, there is Roux (Johnny Depp), a member of the River Rats, a nomadic tribe of gypsies, who develops an interest in Vianne. What will become of this little village? Will chocolate win out in the end, or will the town remain a traditional vanilla?

Binoche is sweeter than chocolate in the lead role, and equally impressive is Molina in his role as the mayor. Judi Dench and Lena Olin put in outstanding performances in their supporting roles as well.

This is a movie with substance, dealing with societal issues; and furthermore, showing the power of human kindness and tolerance for those with differing lifestyles. This one melts in your mouth, not in your hand.

"Chocolat" tells a fable-like story of a young single mother (played by Juliette Binoche) who, with her young daughter, drifts into a small French village in the mid-20th century. She sets up a chocolate shop, but her efforts to bring some fun to the repressed villagers bring her into conflict with the town's tyrannical mayor (well played by Alfred Molina).

"Chocolat" is beautiful to see and hear. The fanciful sets and the playful score by Rachel Portman enhance the fairy tale atmosphere of the story. Although there are some unsatisfying loose threads in the script, the story as a whole is delightful. And while the film's message--about the importance of tolerance--may be a bit obvious, it's still worth thinking about.

Director Lasse Hallstrom showed his skill at handling a large ensemble cast in "the Cider House Rules," and he does an equally satisfying job here. And what a cast! Juliette Binoche is excellent in the lead role; both elegant and earthy, she is an enthralling screen presence. The great Judi Dench sinks her teeth into a supporting role as a grouchy landlady who has a tender spot for her young grandson. Johnny Depp is charming as Binoche's love interest, and Hugh O'Conor is absolutely delightful as the baby-faced village priest who secretly loves the music of Elvis.

To sum up, "Chocolat" is an appealing comedy-drama with some real touches of magic.

First big suprise with this film was that it was filmed in English language, not French, so there are no subtitles. I've read that more and more movies are being shot in the English language simply because the potential box office profit is so much huger. Put simply, this is a delightful film which many critics are probably grading downwards because it is "just" a simple story that is simply (but beautifully) told. I am hardly ready to number myself among them! Lasse Hallestrom, who first distinguished himself with the marvelous "My Life As A Dog," knows his way around a film script and with actors and it shows. Playing much like a fable or fairy tale, Juliette Binoche is a woman, Vianne, who wanders from place to place with her daughter, Anouk, setting up shop as a chocolatier. This time she sets up shop in a peaceful French village in the winter of 1959. Delightful as the love story portion is with the river rat, Gypsy-like Johnny Depp, it is the hilarious war waged on Binoche by the town's mayor, played by Alfred Molina, who will reduce you to complete gut-busting laughter. His wife left him and his inability to deal with that fact fuels a lot of his animosity towards Vianne and the general air of sensual repression he wishes to foster in the village. All of the villagers are delightful characters and Binoche is pulled into relationships with them. If you need to brighten up your day, this is the movie to get.

This adaptation of Joanne Harris's novel lacks the seductive charm and magic of the original, but it succeeds on its own as a quiet film about a French village rife with personal crises. When the mysterious Vianne (Juliette Binoche) and her daughter Anouk (Victoire Thivisol), dressed in red capes, arrive in town on a day the wind from the North gusts open the church doors, interrupting the sermon on the first day of Lent, something begins to stir. The pious mayor (Alfred Molina) knows it better than anyone. Vianne opens a chocolaterie, serving up exotic confections designed to bring out the best in people, and relationships in the grim town shift. Vianne seems immune to her own magic - until a band of gypsies and their leader Roux (Johnny Depp) set up camp on the edge of town.

Director Lasse Hallstrom excels in his evocation of a small French village in 1959 and the people inhabiting it. Despite its Swedish director, British author, and international cast, this film feels authentically French. Its rhythms are mostly gentle, and its focus is on character rather than an intricate plot. Juliette Binoche turns in a fine performance, even though her smile at times seems too vapid and easy for such a complicated character. Judi Dench makes a memorable appearance as Vianne's landlady, a crotchety but spirited old woman who is estranged from her uptight daughter (Carrie-Anne Moss) and her grandson. John Wood and Lena Olin also turn in strong supporting roles.

Art house film addicts will want to see this, but more mainstream viewers may be bored. Recommended for viewers who enjoy the leisurely unfolding of a quiet drama.

This is an American movie directed by Swedish born director Lasse Hallstrom (The Cider House Rules, 1999; Something to Talk About, 1995), set in France with a distinct French flavor. The cast, headed by the very talented Juliette Binoche as Vianne Rocher, a wandering proprietress of chocolate, is highly accomplished and very much worth watching. Judi Dench has a substantial role as the cranky Armande, and Johnny Depp makes a belated appearance as Binoche's love interest, Roux, the River Rat. Alfred Molina plays the small town's semi-fascist Catholic mayor, Comte Paul de Reynaud. With his slicked-back, straight black hair and the precise black mustache and his imposing countenance, one is somehow reminded of Count Dracula. Leslie Caron (An American in Paris, 1951; The L-Shaped Room, 1963), now in her seventies, has a small part as the widow Madame Audel. Carrie Anne-Moss of Matrix fame (but I recall her most memorably in Memento, 2000) plays Armande's strait-laced and estranged daughter. Noteworthy is the captivating Victoire Thivisol as Anouk Rocher, Vianne's nine-year-old daughter. Thivisol won the best actress award at the Venice Film Festival in 1996 for her work as a four-year-old (!) in Ponette (1996). She is surely the youngest actor ever to win such an award.

Chocolat is also a kind of modern Dionysian morality tale in reverse with the Catholic church and small town narrow-mindedness as the bad guys. It gets more than a bit sappy at times, and the unrelenting celebration of outsiders and non-conformists is wearisome and sorely tried my patience throughout. However, just as is the case with chocolate with its uplifting qualities amidst the lure to overindulgence, the good surely outweighs the bad. Hallstrom is an ambitious director who is comfortable playing to an adult feminist audience. He attempts the complex and the unlikely. Here, there is more than the usual Hollywood seduction of the intended audience. There is underneath the surface a strong symbolic presence, giving the story a kind of resonating, fairy tale existence.

Chocolate of course serves as the Dionysian wine, but it is also a semi-addictive substance from a tropical American plant, the cacao, rich in sumptuous oils and theobromine, a heart and general nervous system stimulant similar to caffeine. Cocoa was the first stimulant drink to break the unrelenting hold of beer and wine on the European palate. It was quickly followed by coffee and tea. Prior to the rise of these cerebral drinks, it was commonplace for Europeans to drink beer for breakfast, and indeed to drink beer and wine throughout the day. Many believe that caffeine was a handmaiden of the Renaissance, which of course led to the eventual weakening of the hold of the Roman Catholic church. Vianne, who is the daughter of a central American mother and a European father, represents the shamanism of the New World, leading the populace away from the narrow confines of the medieval mentality with her irresistible confections made with the seed of Theoboma cacao.

The problem with the movie, and the reason it did not achieve a more wide-spread acclaim, lay not only with its cloyingly unbalanced feminist viewpoint and its anti-Catholicism, but with the difficulty Binoche (and Hallstrom) had with her complex role. Her character is a woman who wants desperately to find a place in society and to be accepted by the petite bourgeoisie while maintaining her personal sense of value (and her red shoes!). She is, in a sense, a gypsy fortune teller (recall the spinning plates) who longs to be a pillar of the community. She is worldly wise, kind and forgiving, but partly a shopkeeper with a shopkeeper's need to set down roots. She is also a Mayan princess born to wander with the sly wind that ushers her about. So, underneath all else, this is a story about finding a home. Because Vianne is frequently attacked for her lifestyle while being the sort of person who does not return insult with insult, Binoche is reduced in many scenes to a kind of tolerant, slightly superior, patient smile that becomes wearying. It is only when Johnny Depp appears that we see the real Juliette Binoche and a true indication of her ability. Incidentally Depp is excellent as a gypsy musician who understands himself and his place as a counter balance to a conservative society. He is an inspiration to Vianne because he alone is not transparent to her; she only discovers his "favorite" chocolate by happenstance after two wrong guesses. Depp also serves to save this film from the near monotony of inadequate males and dissatisfied females. When he appears I can almost hear the audience sigh.

Incidentally, you might want to compare this to Babette's Feast (1987) in which the narrow-minded and in need of liberation are northern Protestants, while the woman with the tempting goodies is an exiled Catholic chef from France. If Hallstrom had taken a clue from Gabriel Axel, who directed Babette's Feast, and followed a more objective and balanced treatment, Chocolat might have been a great movie. As it is, it is a very interesting one, and one you're not likely to forget or to feel neutral about.

Chocolat is set in a small town in Framce, where Juliette Binoche plays Vianne and her little girl, Anouk transforms the convention upon opening their confectionary shop that threatens the local mayor (played by Alfred Molina) and his rigid hold on propriety. The movie, directed by Lasse Hallstrom falls no short of magical charm - and plays it well sublimely with a great supporting ensemble like Judi Dench, Carrie Anne Moss and Johnny depp as Roux, her love interest to branch the subplots that made the movie a tantalizing delight.

It is the acting that shines, Binoche plays Vianne with a subtle charm and resilience that illuminates alongside with Lena Olin as a battered wife. Judi Dench spices the screem with wit and hard emotions and Alfred Molina is aptly casted as the mayor with the prim and proper decorum. Chocolat is simple as a story that dissects the quandry between temptations and morality, and a lighthearted note on human emotions. Forgivance is seen in the mother and daughter feud, hope when Vianne sees Josephine (Lena Olin) as a friend. It is all heartwarming and yet the correct amount of saccharine to make this movie a delight. Not forgetting the passionate Johnny Depp as her love interest, yes predictible though it may be, Chocolat is indubitably spellbinding with charms.

This was actually the first dvd that I have ever included in my library, and I'm glad to say that it was. Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp are utterly amazing in this film; Carrie-Anne Moss did a fantastic job as well. This is one of those feel-good movies that, after watching it, make you want to open up your own little chocolate store in some rural French or Italian village. The story was genuine and original; the chemistry between the characters Vianne and Roux is fantastic, and might I add that Johnny Depp is mesmerizing? Honestly among my favorite movies of all time!

"Chocolat", chocolate in french, is one of the few quality fables filmed in history. Its sweet tooth theme is perfect with the characters' emotions. The old town french town was wonderfully crafted. The fashion designers crafted the costumes perfectly to look 1959. Lasse Hallstrom directed this movie brilliantly. The writers give the movie the extra unique touches that most other today's movies need. They make all the events fit together as one.

Juliette Dimoche was the perfect actress to play Vianne, a chocolate cook whom most of the town calls her "Satan" for no reason. Judi Dench wonderfully portrays a cranky old woman whose fate becomes unexpected. Both deserved their Oscar nominations. Johnny Depp proves that he's improved greatly in the past few years in his role as a river drifter who falls in love with Vianne. Lena Olin plays a battered wife emotionally.

***Important word of caution: One will become very hungry while watching this movie. A small bowl of chocolate will cure the craving and will give the experience an extra touch.

No matter how good a film is, there will always be those who find something negative to say about it. Like all other pictures, this is far from perfect, but in my view, it is suprisingly good. Though it has garnered mixed reviews, the positive far outweighs the negatives, and justly so. It has likeable characters, world-class actors, and never loses its intention of being a comic fable. I completely disagree with those that say this is shallow and predictable (please look up the word "fable"). This is a thoroughly entertaining feel-good movie, and I left the movie wanting a candy bar but mostly, delighted at how people come together. Too bad some of us have become too cynical to even enjoy a charming fantasy.