DELICATESSEN is a film that I only really caught pieces of it when it was on cable, but always ended up coming into it, halfway into or toward the end of the film. It’s always been a film everyone always said I should sit down and watch, as it’s a film that is both artistically funny, and suspenseful. DELICATESSEN is a film that was made in France and yes it is all shot in French so if you were to watch it, you would have to read sub-titles. But it is one of those films that’s worth the time.
DELICATESSEN has a very odd plot, but one that is worth taking the time to understand. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic time in an apartment building. On the bottom floor of the building, the building’s landlord runs and owns a butcher shop/deli. During these hard times coming across any kind of animal to harvest meat from is not an option. It seems as if all the animals are either gone or are a rare and expensive find. For the most part the country is suffering from a meat shortage and any meat that is found is used as currency. When the butcher decides to take on a new tenant in the place, he also hires him as the building’s handyman. The man is a former clown and on his off days he spends time creating new gimmicks and joke. This interests the butchers daughter and they hit it off. The problem is however, is that the butcher planed on keeping his new tenant around for a while before cutting him up and feeding him to his customers. But his daughter feelings get in the way of her father plans. Meanwhile a underground group of grain eaters known as the “troglodytes” to take down the butcher and his odd and evil ways at the butchers daughter’s request.
The screenplay is written by Gilles Adrien , Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Caro and Jeunet also directed this film together. The screenplay is great, it’s full of a lot of wit, humor and a taste of the macabre. Sure to many the story might be bit confusing, but it’s one of those scripts where you really need to watch the film and pay attention to every detail. You might even want to go back and watch the film a few times over just to really try and get the idea of what the films about. Sure; it is very strange, but it’s a very well written story with wonderful characters and great dialogue.
The films acting is one of it’s strong points. Although many of the actors in the film are not really famous faces here in the United States, their skills as actors is very apparent in this film. Jean-Claude Dreyfus who plays the butcher is wonderful in his role as well as Dominque Pinion and Marie-Laure Dougnac in their roles. The films supporting cast really lends a big hand in the films overall performances as well, without them I don’t think this story would of worked so well with just three good actors in the main roles. The supporting cast really makes this film what it is.
The film has wonderful production value, everything from the overall dark noir-like settings, to the great set design and costumes, and the overall look and feel of the film. It’s just overall a very visual film to watch. The film does have some pretty good make-up effects as well and yes their is even a body part or two here and there. When it all comes down to it, DELICATESSEN is an overall very well made film, with very few flaws. I think my only gripe with the film is that the story can be very confusing even if you turn your head from the screen for one second, you tend to really miss a lot about what’s going on in the film.
Overall, while I really can’t say that DELICATESSEN is a full out balls to the wall horror film, it does have it’s moments that are somewhat brutal. The film also has black humor side to it as well, which is made very apparent. Overall, It is a true masterpiece of cinema, and a film that really shows the talent of the filmmakers involved in this picture.
The DVD has many special features which include English and Spanish subtitles, Fine Cooked Meats: The Making of Delicatessen, The Archives of Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Commentary with Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and many more features. The DVD is well worth the buy for fans of this film as it really does have a lot of information about the movie and tons of features both big and small. I practically like box art and the overall layout of the DVD in general.
– Horror Bob
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- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
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- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
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