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Nominated for 5 Academy Awards(R) including Best Picture, Best Actress (Juliette Binoche -- THE ENGLISH PATIENT), and Best Supporting Actress (Judi Dench -- SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE), CHOCOLAT is the beautiful and captivating comedy from the acclaimed director of THE CIDER HOUSE RULES! Nobody could have imagined the impact that the striking Vianne (Binoche) would make when she arrived in a tranquil, old-fashioned French town. In her very unusual chocolate shop, Vianne begins to create mouth-watering confections that almost magically inspire the straitlaced villagers to abandon themselves to temptation and happiness! But it is not until another stranger, the handsome Roux (Johnny Depp -- SLEEPY HOLLOW), arrives in town that Vianne is finally able to recognize her own desires!

Studio: Miramax

Format

Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC

Number of Discs: 1

Running Time: 122 minutes

Languages

English (Original Language), French (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled)

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« Mmmmm Chocolate... » Loved this movie. It's cute and simple, yet has a lot of messages about life and people and religious dogmas. Total chick flick. My boyfriend didn't make it through. .:. Rating: 5 / 5

« A delicious treat » Based on the novel by Joanne Harris, the film "Chocolat" takes a lot of liberties with the book's story, but is still a very good film. The movie revolves around a mysterious woman, Vianne (Juliette Binoche), who arrives rather suddenly to a remote French village with her young daughter in tow. Vianne quickly settles in and establishes a chocolate shop, which instantly becomes the talk of the town. While certain people are intrigued by this fascinating woman and her sinfully sweet candies, other townspeople see Vianne as an immoral person who threatens the village's core principles and values. When a band of "pirates" (a.k.a. Irish gypsies) arrive in town, Vianne immediately befriends their leader (Johnny Depp), causing other people in the town (especially the mayor) to resent her even more. Eventually Vianne is tempted to flee again in search of another new start, but this time she may have found something worth staying and fighting for. As I said, there are some major differences between the film and the novel. Usually when filmmakers deviate from the books their films are based on, they end up with a gigantic mess. However, that isn't the case with "Chocolat," which is an endearing film with a wonderful cast. I highly recommend it. .:. Rating: 4 / 5

« Extending Grace » "Chocolat," in my view is all about grace. The most gracious, and therefore, most appealing characters, are surprising, because their histories do not necessarily lend themselves to producing such winsome people. The characters who should be gracious - because they have "sort-of" connections with the God of grace, are judgmental, legalistic and mean-spirited and wound-too-tightly. Hence the tension in this film is nearly palpable. I recommend it highly. .:. Rating: 5 / 5