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He also has a love for cinema history as evident with the many references peppered throughout his films, but here he gets to indulge himself unabashedly as he has a main character to play with who is as much a film buff as he. One scene in particular will almost have you crying with how tenderly sweet and wonderfully entertaining it is as it pays homage to all the physical silent film comedians. The simplest scene of Bazil being hungry and needing a meal but having too much pride to ask for a hand out plays out beautifully without a single line of dialogue to first time composer Raphael Beau's energetic score. Why can't more movies be like this?
Sure Jeunet could take all the credit, but he has surrounded himself with so many of the same people throughout his years in the business who buy into what he is doing. And because of that trust and that camaraderie, Jeunet always has a cast of all-stars in front of and behind the camera. Many familiar supporting faces pop up and deliver just as they always have, but it's Danny Boon's Bazil that anchors this ship. The film could have been a fun and flighty caper made for easy digestion, but Boon's portrayal of Bazil as a complex and damaged man is wonderful. The fact that he is a man of few words is a further credit to the performance and the Boon's talents.
But really, there's no weak link here and, as much as I hate to oversell a movie, I simply loved this.
--Greg MacLennan