What makes a good film? My favourite film, (right now), is 2001’s ‘Amelie’. The aspects of this film can define what makes a good film, and for me this is controlled by Cinematography; narrative and character/theme.

Cinematography

A good film has good cinematography. Cinematography can flesh out a narrative, describe a character and in short can convey pages of words worth of description with a few simple shots.

One scene Amelie is famous for is the skimming rocks scene. The Actor herself couldn’t skim rocks, so what you see is CGI- impressionnat, non?

As well, the camera is dynamic and smoothly moves over and infront Amelie as rocks are skimmed along the canal.

Lastly, a one point perspective keeps Amelie as the centre and accentuates the beauty of the Parisian Canal she skims stones in.

In this shot here, the camera distorts our depth of field and homes in on Amelie. This feels like a POV, and it is the introductory shot of our main protagonist. As she turns around, the accompaniment of ‘And in the next 48 hours, her life will be changed forever’, dramatizes this shot and stages it almost like a more relaxed action film. The framing of her centrally as well and her extra-diegetic gaze toward the audience makes her look angelic.

Overall we see how beautiful shots, with dynamic movement and framing, sets the charm of ‘Amelie’ and makes it a good film.

Narrative

A good narrative makes a film that isn’t boring. At all. Amelie is the story of, well, Amelie: and her life in Paris in 1997.

We follow her as she directly manipulates other people’s lives for the better.

Amelie’s first act of kindness is to return Mr Bretodeau’s childhood time capsule, where we recounts his memories of school and feels great nostalgia.

Eventually Amelie herself is given back everything she gave when she finds Nino, her boyfriend.

Amelie’s narrative is never depressing, and always wholesome. A good film doesn’t necessarily have to have a happy ending, but it does need a meaningful ending, such as Amelie’s.

Theme/Character

Theme and character is hard to define, but Amelie is a great example of this. When you sit to watch Amelie you are taken back to Paris in 1997.

This scene in the metro shows how colour and familiarity is used to create this theme. We see a Parisian metro, a map of Paris and huge extravagant billboards with Art-deco style posters on them. The colours are warm and vibrant, and there is a feeling of appreciation conveyed.

In this scene, colour and perspective accentuates beauty once again. Amelie is framed centrally and solely, she is at eye level as if we were speaking to her, and she is lit naturally. Behind her is a pretty little garden that is covered in flowers and greenery with a backdrop of cottage-like houses. This displays beauty once again, and allows the audience to take in Amelie and her surroundings.

To conclude, we have seen how Amelie is a film that displays the aspects of a good film perfectly, and conveys an emotion more than just a motion picture.