Chocolat

A new chocolate shop in a small French village precipitates a battle for the hearts and minds of the villagers between the shopkeeper (Juliette Binoche) and the village’s straitlaced mayor (Alfred Molina). Adapted by Robert Nelson Jacobs from Joanne Harris’ novel and lovingly directed by Lasse Hallstrom, this is one of the most perfect movies of the year—a glorious, big-hearted parable of love and acceptance, spiced with the poignancy of human frailty, sweetened by the magic of everyday life and brimming with the milk of human kindness. Binoche and Molina head a dazzling cast (Lena Olin, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Carrie-Anne Moss, Peter Stormare, Leslie Caron, John Wood), and the film is lusciously photographed by Roger Pratt, making Binoche look as delicious as one of her own confections.