DELICACY

This charming French romance runs the full gamut of genuinely portrayed emotion, from devastating loss and grief to heartwarming joy and hope. Audrey Tautou plays the beautiful and waifish Nathalie, a woman blissfully married to her soulmate until an accident takes his life. Three years on, and Nathalie is now a workaholic executive at a Paris-based Swedish company. One day while caught in a daydream, Nathalie passionately kisses seriously tall and offish (with a closet of the finest Bill Cosby jumpers) employee Markus, who is instantly besotted with the woman. The two form a friendship that slowly but surely provides the other with what they are missing and craving in their lives: companionship. When their relationship blossoms into a quiet romance it stuns their co-workers, friends and family due solely to their aesthetic differences, a fact neither seems to notice.

Audrey Tautou and Francois Damiens navigate their characters carefully in this often over-the-top world. The film lends itself to elements of fantasy and whimsy, elements that are overlooked by the actors as they portray their characters with true respect, making them endlessly endearing. One can’t help but fall in love with Damiens’ Markus - the comedic actor takes a shining turn is this film, while the slightly typecast Tautou - always displaying her talents - is definitely upstaged by the Belgian.