Alain Floret Movies
One woman decides to change the world by changing the lives of the people she knows in this charming and romantic comic fantasy from director Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Amelie (Audrey Tautou) is a young woman who had a decidedly unusual childhood; misdiagnosed with an unusual heart condition, Amelie didn't attend school with other children, but spent most of her time in her room, where she developed a keen imagination and an active fantasy life. Her mother Amandine (Lorella Cravotta) died in a freak accident when Amelie was eight, and her father Raphael (Rufus) had limited contact with her, since his presence seemed to throw her heart into high gear. Despite all this, Amelie has grown into a healthy and beautiful young woman who works in a cafe and has a whimsical, romantic nature. When Princess Diana dies in a car wreck in the summer of 1997, Amelie is reminded that life can be fleeting and she decides it's time for her to intervene in the lives of those around her, hoping to bring a bit of happiness to her neighbors and the regulars at the cafe. Amelie starts by bringing together two lonely people -- Georgette (Isabelle Nanty), a tobacconist with a severe case of hypochondria, and Joseph (Dominique Pinon), an especially ill-tempered customer. When Amelie finds a box of old toys in her apartment, she returns them to their former owner, Mr. Bretodeau (Maurice Benichou), sending him on a reverie of childhood. Amelie befriends Dufayel (Serge Merlin), an elderly artist living nearby whose bones are so brittle, thanks to a rare disease, that everything in his flat must be padded for his protection. And Amelie decides someone has to step into the life of Nino (Mathieu Kassovitz), a lonely adult video store clerk and part-time carnival spook-show ghost who collects pictures left behind at photo booths around Paris. Le Fabuleux Destin D'Amelie Poulain received unusually enthusiastic advance reviews prior to its French premiere in the spring of 2001, and was well received at a special free screening at that year's Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, (more)
- 1986
An unusual assortment of characters is brought together in this film noir influenced story: Petrus (Claude Brasseur) spends his life escaping the gamblers he cheated at the card table. Manuel (Richard Berry) has an ambition to open a tango school, but in the meantime he drives a cab for a living. And Corrine (Charlotte Valandrey) is Petrus' daughter, a waitress and a dreamer. As the lives and challenges of these three protagonists interact, each heads for their own moment of truth. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claude Brasseur, Richard Berry, (more)
- 1986
This thriller concerns Freddy (Michel Boujenah), the unsophisticated manager of a porno theater who has fallen in love with the young striptease artist who supplies entertainment between hardcore films. But unknown to Freddy, she is also involved in a drug ring. One day Freddy is shot during a hold-up and is hospitalized. An inept and amusing police inspector checks out the crime scene, though he's no protection when drug dealers show up to ask Freddy what happened with their last shipment. It seems a valuable drugs shipment has come up missing; although Freddy has no clue at first, he starts to figure out who might have the dope, and gets in way over his head. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Boujenah, Vincent Lindon, (more)
