Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Chocolat, but not Johnny Depp, 22 April 2004
Chocolat is a film we've studied at uni. It isn't quite what you wouldexpect from a film, but then again the French film industry is verydifferent to that of Hollywood. The aim of French cinema is to make theaudience reflect on the content of the film, not just to spell everythingout for you. This film certainly leaves you thinking. Firstly, most of thefilm ios a flashback to when France (the young woman) was achild.
Protee, the young house servant to the family is somewhat anobject of desire. Aimee, the mother, is left with all the localinhabitants of the colony, her husband belongin to some part of the Frencharmy / services. As a result, Aimee and her husband spend lots of timeapart, as he is always needed in other little towns in the area. One day,it is suggested that Aimee has "a nice boy", meaning Protee.(...)
Protee rejects Aimee, who then gets her husband to punish him,and as a result, he ends up being put to work outside in thegarage.
There is, however, a lot more to this story than that. Franceis a young girl, has no siblings and no friends. At times when her fatheris away, she also has no dad. But Protee steps into these many differentroles and does an excellent job of fulfilling them.
This film was interesting, typical of the time it was made and as adebutant director, Claire Denis has done a fantastic job. You see theeffects also of how children sopy their parents.
Definitely worthwatching!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A rare gem, 1 Sep 2007
I know there is a lot of symbolism, but I was drawn to the beauty of the film. It also has a real coolness which is a distraction from The Fonze, basically the French family is put in a test-tube, and Africa is used as a contrast. This could be the most stylish film ever, it uses a soft knive to cut up Imperalism which uses a much sharper knive.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Private lives entwined with the aspirations of a people, 13 Aug 2007
The litle French family (born and bred in West Africa during the period of French colonisation - the husband represents the French Republic and administers and enforces on its behalf in his region) has a paternalistic atitude to the African population. They think their relations are good, and cannot understand why some 'natives' are 'stirring up trouble', holding meetings of a political nature, which can only bring them into conflict with the French state. But then a plane carrying French tourists from France crashes in the area, and the passengers, accomodated by our little family in their rôle as representatives of the State, demonstrate such outright racism, arrogant ignorance and rejection of African mores and culture that this brings home to their hosts the truth of the brutality of the relationship between France and its colonies. There are many scenes, many incidents, which bring aspects of this perverse relationship into sharp - and often comic relief. The film is structured around the return of the daughter of the family, now a grown woman, after the Independence of the West African country in which she grew up, and her memories - in the form of extended flashbacks - of what things were like during her childhood there. It is a striking demonstration of what the concept of Independence really means: the men who had been houseboys for our heroine's family have fairly menial jobs now that their country is independent, unloading luggage at the airport - but as you look at them, you see that they are free men, free human beings, whereas in the first part of the film, depicting the period of colonisation, there was no part of their (even most intimate)lives which was not subject to the interference, the orders of the colonial power; they were CONSTRAINED, they had no sphere which was truly private. The film speaks for itself, subtly, through images and symbolism rather than explanatory speeches - indeed, some of the most powerful scenes are those where no-one speaks at all - and the film-maker remains discreetly in the background, showing rather than telling. A powerful and moving film.
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