Amelie is a French movie set in Montmartre, Paris, France.  Amelie won Best Film at the European Film Awards; it won four César Awards, two BAFTA Awards and was nominated for five Academy Awards.

The story unfolds with the life of Amelie Poulain who because of her unusual upbringing becomes a shy introverted young woman but also has an incredible imagination.  You gain an understanding of how she became so introverted as we are introduced to her earlier life of home schooling and lack of childhood friendships from the onset.  As an adult she moves from her father’s house and becomes a waitress for a café in Montmartre.  One night she finds a box in her apartment hidden by a child forty years ago.  She determines if she finds the person and they are moved by receiving the box, she will devote her life to change the lives of people around her.  What unfolds is a number of events that Amelie dramatically and imaginatively orchestrates to improve the lives of people around her.  Regardless of helping others and gaining pleasure from this she still lives with her own loneliness.  However, someone is watching over her and helps her gain courage to make the change in her own life.

Mind Stars – Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Yolande Moreau

What we like

• The ingenious ways that Amelie finds to change the mindset of those around her without even letting them know she was part of it.  One of our favourites is the gnomes travel photographs
• How we all have the power to make a positive change in people’s lives both within and around us

Mind Experience

• In the movie you are introduced to life around Montmartre.  We have visited and stayed at Montmartre and have found the place as enchanting and a perfect setting for the movie.  In an unusual fashion the movie mentions the nuns from Sacré Cœur.  We had a very uplifting experience one day when we happened to stumble over the nuns singing in the church. Like some of the experiences in the movie sometimes the things you stumble over have a profound effect on you

To think about

• Amelie receives a phone call and she answers it.
  Raymond Dufayel:  Go into the bedroom Miss Poulain.
  Amelie walks into the bedroom to find a TV set up with candles around it.  She plays a video.  The recording shows Raymond Dufayel speaking.
  Raymond Dufayel:  So little Amelie.  Your bones aren’t made of glass.  You can take life’s knocks.  If you let this chance go by eventually your heart will become as dry and brittle as my skeleton.  So go get him for Pete’s sake!

Map the mind movie location
Map the photograph location