Delicatessen

1991
Jean-Pierre Jeunet & Marc Caro

10/10

This is one of the most original and inventive films of the last twenty years, made by the creators of the equally unique “Amélie” and “The City of Lost Children.” It is about a tenament building in a vague post-apocalyptic French future where food has become so scarce that the local butcher has begun luring “workers” to the building in order to kill and eat them. And it’s a comedy. (Sounds hilarious, right?)

The main character is Louison, interpreted by Dominique Pinon in a Chaplin-esque performance. He is an ex-circus clown that is now working in maintenance, and he provides the majority of the film’s spark and laughter, combining a sweet temperament with outstanding physical comedy. Besides Pinon, the main draws of the film are the imaginative story, which boldly creates laughs amid what should be pure terror, and the striking visual production, which straddles the line between cartoonish and sinister.

The whole movie is a very fun, slightly scary, bad-trippy sort of place to spend 100 minutes, and it’s downright hilarious. If you’re anything like me, in addition to greatly enjoying the film, you will be pleasantly surprised and comforted that such artistry still exists in the world. People who don’t like it are anti-fun, also known as LAME. See it, you’ll be better off.

19 March 2010

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