Delicacy

This is a lovely, cute French romcom with gentle humour, tenderness and ... well, delicacy. Audrey Tatou is always lovely to watch - a talented beautiful actress, who plays emotive very well. This story gives her scope as she is mixed up, grieving and in a bit of a state. Francois Damiens was for me the highlight of the film, his humour and sweetness, and mobile features were a comedic delight! Overall, however, the film was missing something - passion, or some sort of flow. The jumps in the narrative were clever, but the Oscar for this film goes to the cinematographer; artful, beautiful and clever shooting. Overall an attractive, sweet film. Recommend, if you are okay with subtitles.

What a beautiful movie. I will admit that when I was younger I may not have seen this for the gem it really is. However, it is a winner. After years of mourning her husband, a successful and beautiful young woman develops a friendship, in the oddest of ways, with a rather ordinary looking, balding, clumsy and unambitious man who is a bit older than her. Her friends are chic and successful and they find it an odd and discomfiting match, but her beloved grandmother sees the truth... that her granddaughter has found a wonderful and honest, loving friend... In only having lived a life with many ups and downs, will the truth of loving someone who is kind and generous, honest and honourable, rather than dashing and handsome and rich and ambitious have real meaning for you. I'm so glad someone made this lovely film.

I wonder who decided to name this film "Delicacy" in English... Since the French title "La Délicatesse" means literally "Gentleness" and the story is all about gentleness in the relationship between the main characters. A very French film, a gentle film about gentleness and love. Good writing (the film was deservedly nominated for a César award), good acting, catchy soundtrack. I enjoyed it very much, but it's not your typical romantic comedy... I would say that it is not a comedy at all, but rather it is a deep and delicate drama about people who have been hurt in the past and how they need to recover gently, slowly, in order to be able to love again.

I've seen this movie at a theatre mostly because of the always extremely funny Francois Damiens, even if the story seemed interesting. Overall it's a good entertaining picture but in my opinion more of a "chick flix" made for woman viewers, some peoples like me might find it a bit too long. Basically the story is about a woman named Nathalie who is in love with her boyfriend when he die after being hit by a car... Her boss named Charles Delamain try to seduce her all through the movie, but she always refuse saying he's not her kind of guy. Finally she meet Markus, and something begin to blossom between them. Audrey Tautou is very competent as Nathalie whom she portay with energy, which is not the case for Francois Damiens who is really sleeping and don't add much... Overall it's still 5 times better than atrocities like "La Graine et le Mulet" whom I couldn't bear watching more than 30 minutes, but in my opinion it's still a bit too long, considering it's only an average love story movie...

I generally enjoy most of the French films that I see, but given the so-so ratings, I didn't know how satisfying this experience might be. I'm thrilled to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this one from start to picture-perfect finish. Though it's a bittersweet slice of life, as the story unfolds, you begin to feel that if you stay true to your ideals and your heart, sometimes life surprises you with a bonus when you least expect it. Audrey Tautou was as captivating as ever and you can truly believe why the other characters here - both women and men- are in awe of her. But she's more than just a pretty face - she's loyal to a fault and has the smarts to appreciate the true value of someone beyond a fancy façade. Francois Damiens is a revelation. This film truly showcases his comedic flare and without trying too hard, he elevates every scene he's in. As the low-key Swedish dumpling, it doesn't take long for an audience to fall in love with Markus either. In real life, opposites attract now and again so I found it completely believable that Nathalie would be floored by his intellect, humour, humility and low-vanity ways as much as he's besotted with her. If more people took their wise approach to relationships, it'd be a much happier world. All in all, this is a brilliantly crafted film. The characterization of office folks is realistic and hilarious. The music is the perfect accompaniment: refreshing and anticipatory. This timeless tale of rediscovering happiness after great loss has so many subtly funny moments. About the title: I'm wondering whether it alludes to Markus being a special fish out of water, far away from his Swedish homeland. Or perhaps, delicacy is a reference to how in matters of the heart, we ought to take extra care with others and refrain from judging by external appearance since we all have our own quirks and had our share of heartaches that leads to a desire to self-protect and maintain a sense of balance. All I know for sure, is that this film is a rare treat, not at all your garden variety offering. It's one-of-a-kind. Hooray for the underdogs. Hooray for storytelling that doesn't sock you with gratuitous violence, nudity, or foul language just to appear edgy. This film is the magic of small moments and ordinary people that reaffirm your appreciation for both the brevity of life and seizing golden opportunities while you can- even if it bucks conventional wisdom. We all have just one life to live- so we best enjoy!

This film is about a young successful career woman, whose life grinds to a halt when her husband dies in a traffic accident. I was expecting "La délicatesse" to be a more uplifting romantic comedy, but it was more of a down to earth, modest romantic tale. It tells an unlikely love story between a beautiful woman and her unattractive subordinate. The film focuses on their interaction, which is real and authentic. It is just like the interaction that normal couples have. However, this also means that the story is plan and can be uninteresting at times. To be honest, it lacks the sparkle that is normally present in Audrey Tautou's romantic comedies.

This French woman loses her husband in an accident. She doesn't date for three years; then this Swedish co-worker turns up. She hasn't noticed him before. Films about male heartache are rather rare, especially in France. If you're a Swede, you find it however hard to believe in this corny Swedish character. He's so very Swedish. Audrey Tautou has been cached in a genre, there she has to repeat herself. We've seen her as the goodhearted Parisian girl many times now and this is another one in a quite long row. Maybe too long. Light comedies yes, but there must be something else for her.

Some movies are best seen in their original language without subtitles, some dubbed in your own language and some just with subtitles. La Delicatesse is a film which should be seen in French without subtitles which is how it impacts the viewer most. And rather than the 6 it gets on average rises to a more deserved 8.5 IMO. Romantic comedy for those in need of love. Works if you're in or out of a relationship. I still don't get the reason Nathalie kisses Marcus but everything after that makes sense, even feels very realistic as I can associate with most of the elements of the central theme of the movie, from Marcus's point of view to her boss's point of view having encountered both situations. The film is sweet and carries you on a dream, but isn't this what films are best for? Makes very nice viewing on cold winter nights.

In retrospect Amelie was probably something of a mixed blessing in the career of Audrey Tautou. Prior to that breakthrough role she was getting decent roles in quality movies such as Tonie Marshall's Venus Beaute where she could coast in the wake of a heavy hitter like Nathalie Baye and let her carry the movie. After Amalie it was of course Tautou herself who had to pick up the ball and run with it and the results have been mixed at best and along the way she has had to watch as others - Isobel Carre for example, in Romantics Anonymous - have excelled in roles tailor-made for Tautou. Delicacy helps restore the balance and despite the inexperience of a first-time director there is still sufficient charm on hand to lift it out of the run-of-the-mill and it does no harm at all to have Ariane Ascaride along for the ride albeit wasted and underused at one and the same time. As time-passers go and antidotes to the cgi fodder this is as good as any and better than most.

'La délicatesse' is a lovely French dish written by David Foenkinos and directed by both David and Stéphane Foenkinos. Much of the success of this slightly to the edge story of the vagaries of love and life as they intertwine is due to the presence of the irresistible charm and charisma of lead actress Audrey Tautou. She is able to take this story that at times seems impossibly off track and keep it grounded in her sense of lightness and focus, making us believe that what actually happens to this character is truly quite possible. Nathalie Kerr (Audrey Tautou) is a successful businesswoman who happens to meet the rather unkempt but impish François (Pio Marmaï, an irresistibly charming actor) quite by accident (and an order of apricot juice) in a café. Nathalie is literally swept off her feet and rather quickly this spontaneous meeting of hearts results in blissful marriage. The perfect scenario ends tragically when François is accidentally kill. Nathalie's heart seems irreparable and she trudges through life bathed in grief and longing. Even her handsome boss Charles (Bruno Todeschini) can't woo her: Nathalie is frank in her objection that Charles is a married man. Then the door to her office opens and a subordinate nerdy appearing geek named Markus Lundi (François Damiens) walks in and Nathalie impetuously greets him with a passionate kiss - an act she represses thinking that such a deed was impossible. And this apparent one- sided accidental occurrence lightens Markus' life and he is committed to falling in love with the resistant Nathalie. The 'courtship' leads to Nathalie's recognition that love and happiness can happen in the most unexpected places and ways. Summarizing the story makes it sound trite and bordering on silly, but it is the delicately French manner in which it is told that makes the film so refreshingly endearing. The entire cast is first class (director Stéphane Foenkinos is best known as one of France's best casting directors!) but it is the glimmering lightness of Tautou and Marmaï and Damiens that make it sail. A perfect Valentine. Grady Harp