‘Delicatessen’- Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Jean-Pierre Jeunet-
Filmography
According to the Internet Movie Database, Jean-Pierre
began as a self-taught French film director and made his debut in the late 70’s
with TV commercials and short video clips.
During this time, he met
Upon further research on IMDb.com, I found that Delicatessen proved to be a success with
having been nominated for 23 different awards; 13 of which the film won. Among these awards are 4 Césars which include best
first work (director), best screenplay (original or adaptation), best
production design, and best editing. When
exploring Jean-Pierre’s official website (jpjeunet.fr), I found a list of his
film works; most notably his feature films. Jeunet directed four more well-known films
after Delicatessen, which are titled,
The City of Lost Children (1995), Alien:
Delicatessen
as a Food Film…..But where’s the food?
Every movie we have watched in this class, so far, has
shown the preparation and eating of elaborate dishes and meals. If this is the norm to be seen in food films,
it leaves one wondering how Delicatessen
fits into such a category. In this
movie, there are very few scenes of characters eating; and most of what we see
them eating is not appealing. For
example, the man who lives in the flooded basement is seen eating one of his
slimy roommates; a snail. He says to the
snail before eating it, “My dear Hercules.
Every man for himself.” This
quote nearly sums up the attitude of most people’s views on survival, with some
(more than) willing to eat humans. The
only scene we see food appearing to be tasteful is when Louison and Julie enjoy
Food is talked about and referenced often in this film, and becomes motivation and drive for the entire plot. Each character is affected by food somehow. Corn kernels, lentils, and beans are used for currency by the people who live above ground (referred to as
In contrast, those that live underground (referred to as
“Troglodytes”) refuse to eat humans and are banished to the sewers and
Names (mostly code names used when communicating with the
Troglodytes) frequently come from some type of favorite French cuisine. Examples include artichoke, cordon bleu,
onion snipers, sauce master, artichoke soufflé, and tapioca (the last name of a
family of tenants). The Troglodytes even
comment about the selection of code names and language being used over their
communication device by saying, “Must be cooking up there.”
In conclusion, Delicatessen
is not your typical food film. Instead
of seeing people cook and enjoy eating fabulous dishes, we see people fighting
for food and the chance to survive- no matter the costs. Despite there being little food shown in the
film, the entire plot revolves around food in some manner; whether it be
obtaining food or trying to not become it.
Works
Cited
Delicatessen. Dir.
Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Perf. Marie-Laure
Dougnac, Dominique Pinon, and Pascal Benezech.
Miramax Films, 1991. Film.
Lett
Motif. Jean-Pierre Jeunet official site.
LettMotif, 2011. Web. 8 June 2014.
http://www.jpjeunet.fr/GB/
My question for the panel:
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think is the significance of the "rhythm scene", where the tenants are all doing their tasks in rhythmic unison? Or is it just a clever editing technique?
Great question. In my opinion I believe the rhythm scene is to show how the sound travels through the pipes and how the pipes play a role in the film. The rhythm scene's give the movie a funny light "coorky" side of the characters and also the movie.
ReplyDeletePanel question:
ReplyDeleteDo you think the movie was intentional in the idea that it portrays vegetarians as the good guys versus bad guys, the carnivores?
If by intentional you mean an attempt to promote vegetarianism in general, I'd say no, though I wouldn't completely rule out. I'd also point out the "Troglos" aren't entirely admirable either (though they don't eat people which is definitely a point in their favor). In their less vicious way, they seem as ridiculous and as devoted to their system as those in Clapet's building. Neither group really wins; Julie and Louison simply rise above everyone else.
ReplyDeleteJulie and Louison, are really survivors in the truest sense of the word. The "Delicatessen" group and the "Troglos" group do look to be separate entities. The way the movie plays the "Troglos" is as they are the French resistance and the Delicatessen appears to be the "Vichy"(Nazi sympathizers, during WWII) So they are fighting against each other. Not in war, but to survive the devastation of what has happened.
DeleteYes, I do believe this was an attempt to promote vegetarianism. The Troglos, the vegetarians, are portrayed as the good guys throughout the film.
DeleteThe comical "springs" episode demonstrates the effects of Clapet's system, and his control. Everyone lives in his rhythms and follows his lead.
ReplyDeleteIt also reveals their interconnectedness despite their focus on their own plight over everyone else. Only Julie and Louison are able to see a way outside of Clapet's reductive and ultimately self-destructive vision of life.
ReplyDeleteMy perspective on how I took the movie that were both sides were just doing their own thing to be honest they both had their set rules as well as how they survive. Whether it is eating humans or simple corn. It made it seem like the "human eaters" were bad but like Professor Kaufmann said the "Troglos" were not admirable either. We did not know much of their background either to give them I guess a hero, good guy label if that makes since.
ReplyDeleteThe rhythm scene seemed as much an homage to Busker Keaton movies as anything else. It's vaudevillian.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ashton here that both sides were kind of just doing what they thought was best. I also thought the situation was a bit overblown in the area these people lived. Louison says (if I remember correctly) that Livingstone ran away after their last performance and that he came to the deli/apartment right after that. To me that means that people are still going to performances and that things may be tough, but not nearly as tough as Clapet would like his tenants to believe.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statement, Casey. I too, feel the "good vs. bad" is not so clear cut. I think it is more of a comical take on a supposed "post apocalyptic" France where people are forced to take desperate measures to survive. Even then, we are not sure as to how bad it really is. We are limited to a very narrow perspective; as limited as the perspectives of those living under Clapet's thumb.
DeleteYes, we only see a very limited view of the post apocalyptic world. There's a scene where one of the tenants who is behind on rent shows Clapet his bullshit detector and his rat call. Clapet comments what good is the rat call because all of the rats are dead...leading me to think that they had already consumed everything else that was available.
DeleteI did pick up on what Casey said about people still going to performances. I also thought it was odd in a post apocalyptic world that people were watching tv,