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Rating:  - I Love Chocolat!!
This movie is visually and mentally appealing I could almost taste the chocolate.
The message is as good as chocolate!
Rating: - Chocolat...DVD
Watched this years ago, after Juliet Binoche lost the Emmy to Julia Roberts . i had not heard of the movie til then. Now it had my curiosity.
The story line is so different, it is a combination of a little intrigue, a little eccentric town and a twist that will surprise you.
Johnny Depp appears in a small role, but is charming.Chocolat (Miramax Collector's Series)
Rating:  - bittersweet 'Chocolat' for me.....
First, let me start this review by saying how much I adore chocolate (the food). I mean, there is a reason that women love this stuff. Personally, I would even be so bold as to say I prefer my chocolate dark and bittersweet (I can get more antioxidents from this, too--another incentive). Now, moving on to the movie. How would I describe CHOCOLAT if I were to compare it to a bar of the dark stuff? Well, I can't say it tastes authentic. My favorite type of chocolate isn't even European, or French, for that matter. It's Ecuadorian, with a cocoa count of [at least] 75%. CHOCOLAT wants to be this kind of chocolate. Instead, it ends being more of a blend of Hershey's milk chocolate (to please the American consumers) with the sensibility of a dash of French dark. In other words, not really smooth or memorable, but it wants to be!
I'll add in just a dash of synopsis, here, to get a sense of the recipe. For starters, director Lasse Hallstrom (or should I say "sous chef") paints the picture of a conservative little French town that Vianne Rocher (Juliette Binoche) swoops into, with her daughter, Anouk (Victoire Thivisol). This ultimately poses a great challenge to the Comte (Alfred Molina) and most everyone else. Why? Because Vianne has set up a Chocolaterie (chocolate shop) during Lent--an observance that the devoutly Catholic villagers strongly uphold. This is a time when they abstain from indulgences (especially foods like chocolate!). This also co-stars Johnny Depp.
Though, CHOCOLAT delivers in terms of visual beauty and spectacle, and the chocolates look divine, the storyline and most of the rest of this film leave a lot to be desired. Yes, a lot of you will think I am being harsh. Yet, while I sat there, watching this film (I won't even lie to you--I saw it twice), I couldn't help but feel that CHOCOLAT stole gimmicks from virtually every film genre focusing on mysticism, magical realism or food and claimed them as their own. The filmmakers desperately wanted to make the story something for everyone. We have a swashbuckling pirate (Johnny Depp), who is Irish, nonetheless. We have the mysterious stranger who sails into a town with her daughter, and no one knows her background. Is she a heretic? A witch with a cauldron of chocolatey sacreligious goodness--made to saturate and corrupt the palates of the unsuspecting villagers? We even have a subplot alluding to a battered wife (Lena Olin). Good lord! The gimmicks boggle the mind. Okay, dear readers. Thank you for sticking with me on this review. Those of you who were diligent enough to read it, I have a verdict for you. Skip this film and watch.....I am thinking LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE. Hey, it even has chocolate in the title, and you'll never look at wedding cake quite the same way again.
Rating: - Chocolat
I saw Chocolat at the theater when it was new, now I've bought it for my collection. I love Chocolat every time I watch it!!
Rating: - Wonderful Message in this Movie
The philosophical sophistication of this movie is refreshing and welcome. Wonderful story, and an encouraging film for Agnostics and Freewill.
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