Juliette Binoche plays a brazen chocolatier in a small repressed French town in the 50's. She blows into town on a 'sly north wind' and sets up her chocolate shop during Lent. This brings her immediate difficulty from the town's mayor, played by Alfred Molina. He belongs to the 'fun is sin' school of thought and gains strong personal satisfaction through his Lenten fasting.
Binoche brings a daughter with her though she openly proclaims that she's never been married. Together the two of them run the shop. They offer everyone a bit of chocolate based on their inner desires. The sweets unlock the townspeople and set them free. Eventually, Johnny Depp shows up as a kind of river gypsy and adds to the fun.
Boy, this movie didn't do much for me (sorry Mom!). Binoche and Depp are both underwhelming in their performances. Depp in particular sports an accent that can't decide between Irish and non-existent. And he's supposed to be French! The story was somewhat cliched as well. Go back and read the first sentence of this review and tell me if you know the end of the story.
There were some nice things. The town is very charming and the minor are very nice. The score is very good. The shots of chocolate are luscious and inviting. It just wasn't enough for me.
2 comments:
Sorry it didn't do it for you, Peder. The Oscar judges agreed with you - but I still like it.
One thing I liked was the theme song. Another was all of the chocolate.
I didn't much care for this movie, either. But I DO like at the end that she stays put and ignores the wind. That resonated with me.
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