Delicatessen

http://www.youtube.com/watch'v=QZPykJJ2l_g&feature=player_embedded Analysis and Criticism Final Project Analysis 2011 Miles Taylor Block II Delicatessen Marc Caro/Jean Pierre Jeunet France 1991 99 minutes. I selected Delicatessen as my final project because it intertwines everything I love as an art student. I have always been attracted and drawn into dark visuals and sinister cinematography, this fascination being rekindled in this film Thematic lighting coupled with interesting plot twists maintain my high level of intrigue, which is why my objective with Delicatessen is to understand why Caro and Jeunet use cinematography in the way they do, and to such a precise level. SUMMARY Delicatessen begins in a dilapidated apartment building in post-apocalyptic France. Food is in short supply, with grain used as currency. In the ground floor of the apartment building is a butcher's shop, run by the landlord, Clapet (Jean-Claude Dreyfus), who posts job opportunities in the Hard Times paper as means to lure victims to the building, whom he murders and butchers as a cheap source of meat that he sells to his tenants. Following the "departure" of the last worker, unemployed circus clown Louison (Dominique Pinon) arrives to apply for the vacant position. During his routine maintenance, he gradually befriends Clapet's daughter, Julie (Marie-Laure Dougnac), a relationship which slowly blossoms into romance. Aware of her father's motives and Louison's imminent death, Julie descends into the sewers to make contact with the feared Troglodistes, a vegetarian sub-group of French rebels, whom she convinces to help rescue Louison. Following the apparent death and butchering of an old woman, the Troglodistes return, and Mr. Clapet, with the remaining tenants of the building, storm Louison's room in an attempt to murder him. Louison, aided by Julie, resists by flooding the bathroom until Clapet opens the door and he and the other tenants are momentarily carried away by the ensuing flood. Louison is able to narrowly avoid death as Clapet inadvertently kills himself with Louison's weapon. The film ends with Louison and Julie playing music together on the roof of the now peaceful apartment building. POINT As Delicatessen's storyline explores murder and mystery, it requires the viewer to look past the murderous tendencies of the landlord in order to see Clapet's daughter's love for the new victim. Louison, a small ex-clown, find himself in the position of maintenance for Clapet's apartment complex. Their first encounter is very awkward, and shows signs that it won't get any less awkward over time. Louison's first meeting with Clapet's daughter is similarly awkward, brought into the film during a delivery from the local mailman. CULTURAL Delicatessen relies in part on a universal theme that many movies crave to convey- the feeling of true love. Louison, nearly at first sight, begins to fall for Clapet's daughter Julie.  TECHNICAL Delicatessen opens with a consecutive series of ever narrowing wide-angle shots. One hears the sound of a butcher’s cleaver being sharpened and the sound of it carrying up through the arterial pipes of the large apartment building that the shop occupies. Through a series of lap dissolves in which the camera seems to travel up through pipe work (again in that weird yellow light) on into the boarding room of a nervous young man, bug-eyed with fear played by Pascal Benezek who was cast with his bug eyes in mind. The opening credits are then displayed in one great continuous swooping shot, displaying the names of the people responsible for this film. Much like City of Lost Children, the concept of color is very strong. In this film, sound also plays a major role. The first time we are introduced to Louison, there is circus-esque music playing the background. Later in the film, we discover this is relevant because Louison is an ex circus clown. This music is used to give foreshadow towards Louison's previous life and job previous to working for Clapet. Many, if not all, of the small sounds such as the thud of the bags hitting the ground are also heavily emphasized, the weight of the bags symbolizing the real weight Louison is carrying. Visually, the film's characters in the foreground are in focus, where as the background is foggy, dusty, and indistinct. This raises slight confusion about the apartment's setting and characteristics, which are not clearly evident to the viewer. the green tint is also very strong in this. Coloring in Delicatessen is very dull, and does not attract much visual attention from the viewer. Reds appear as a dark rust color, hinting that this building has aged heavily and that these events could have been going on for quite some time.