Amélie

I sat here with all intentions of writing about a completely different soundtrack until I just happen to play the first track of an album that makes me feel the most nostalgic sensations that I can’t quite explain. I’ve said it before and as time goes on, I continue to prove to myself that I have a very strong affinity with music from yesteryear with the choices I make.

So, with a slowly disappearing glass of red wine making stains on the table next to me, I am over the moon to bring you this weeks Cover Soundtrack from the equally amazing film from 2001, Amélie.

I doubt that there has ever been a more adorable character on screen than the portrayal of Amélie Poulain by the…how do I put this…quaint, gorgeous and painfully shy, Audrey Tautou. I fell so totally in love with Tautou in this film that she now represents what I think my wistfully enchanted life in France would be like in the wonderfully make-believe world of my sepia stained, piano accordion playing imagination. With the magnificence of director JeanPierre Jeunet [Delicatessen & City of Children], she embodies the inner child inquisitiveness with a performance that is seamless.

So what kind of music do you accompany such a film with? Why something typically French of course. Although, in the hands of avant garde musician Yann Tiersen, it becomes something more. He has described his contribution to Amélie as primarily being made up of tracks taken from his first four studio albums. Hmm, well, there you go then huh. I did not know that. [I have Peter Griffin’s voice in inside my head everytime I say that].

Really though, it’s just a beautiful soundtrack. It’s not for everyone. It seems to be a rare occurrence for people to pop on a soundtrack at home. No singing. Just instrumental pieces. But if you’re like me and you get on occasion the opportunity to sit at a cafe, somewhere like Degraves St, pop some headphones in, play this soundtrack and watch the people go by. Like the film which is centred very heavily on Amélie people watching and deciding to interact with a chosen few, this soundtrack really does bring out the light hearted side of watching the world through a window.

It’s very french. It’s probably the overt use of a Piano Accordion. But it’s upbeat. Happy. All the track names are in French a well, so I have no idea what they’re called. All I know is the ebb and flow of this album from one track to another. I sorta like it that way. But not all the tracks are quirky. There is a beautiful piano piece called “Comtine D’un Autre Ete: L’apres Midi” [see what I mean] which breaks up the album and gives it some real authenticity.

Reminiscent of ‘Mad World (feat. Gary Jules)’. Add to that a track called ‘Guilty’ that is straight from your 1930’s gramophone [crackling included]. It really is sweet.

There is a reason that this film has won somewhere in the region of 50+ awards and was nominated for another 50 odd. Any fan of Jeunet & Caro know how brave they are in their vision, and I think this has bled into the final aesthetic of Amélie. If you haven’t seen this movie and you can wrap your head around foreign films, please please please, take the time and enjoy this tiny masterpiece. You will enjoy the soundtrack all the more for it.

Oh, and it doesn’t take much to fall [back] in love with Audrey Tautou.

M /