Chocolat

Lasse Hallström can create a somewhat romantic atmosphere, or a little-town idyll. What was missing in most of films of his that I’ve seen is the necessary emotional power, or perhaps the magic, that can leave a lasting impact on a person. Chocolate is the first one that has somewhat succeeded in this. It is impossible to resist comparing it to the similarly romanticized The Cider House Rules, which, despite its sunny shots and “cute” faces, had almost no emotions and ended up labeled as “overly sweet”. Chocolate is just right, considering its name, it even has a slightly bitter taste at times. Nevertheless, it maintains an irresistibly romantic mood throughout, full of good-hearted individuals of all ages and the fact that a woman's heart can possess the same amount of strength as ten sumo wrestlers. (12/11/2007)

Definitely not a movie to give out free with the purchase of a 3-pack of candy bars... which is how it ended up in my hands. So I put it on, thinking it was a cheap movie. It somewhat surprised me, but really only somewhat. Maybe I'm just biased, which is why I'm going to watch it again. For now, 3.5 stars. (02/11/2011)

At the end, a smile, a craving for something sweet, and good mood will remain. The most interesting flavor is the surprising way of shooting at arrogant bigwigs, the most delicious beautiful Juliette and the sharpest yet good one is the fabulous Johnny Depp. Don't refuse this delicacy, the craving for it tends to return. (07/16/2007)

A nice, sweet, and fragrant film - no surprise, given the abundance of chocolate... Of course, the film can be criticized for being overly polished and having a happy ending; it's evidently a sugary film, but that's Lasse Hallström's style - one shouldn't expect a dark film from him. And every once in a while, it doesn't hurt to indulge in sweets or a romantic film of this kind. Especially when it stars Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp... Overall impression: 85%. (06/20/2006)

A lovely film that will make you as feel good as eating a chocolate treat. Binochet is sweet (from a male perspective), Depp is sweet (from a female perspective), the story rather bitter, but the milky part is waiting at the end. The problem with the film's chocolate is that its flavour wasn't distinctive enough to make me want to revisit it after a while. Which is something that can't happen to me with normal chocolate :) Therefore "only" for four rum truffles. (12/25/2003)