Four star
AFTER the international success of Amelie, director Jean-Pierre Jeunet and his star, Audrey Tautou, reunite in this First World War-based drama.
Tautou plays heroine Mathilde, a beautiful but nave young woman who longs for the return of her beloved fiance Manech (Gaspard Ulliel) from the trenches.
Despite all the evidence pointing to his death, Manech is actually court-martialled for alleged self-mutilation and is sent to the front to face near-certain death in no-man's land.
The polio-stricken Mathilde goes in search of her love, slowly building up a picture of what might have happened to him.
Employing the same distinctive style that characterised Amelie, Jeunet has fashioned a beautiful love-story which sensitively recreates the horrors of war.
Some viewers may find this two-and-a-half hour film a little long but this is a minor criticism when considering the quality of the piece.
The film achieves a near-perfect balance in the striking offset of the tragedy and senselessness of war by the magic of love.
CS
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