I enjoyed this movie; it was serious and funny – laugh out loud funny, at times – and the main character, Sylvie Testud, made this movie. The movie begins with a Belgian girl, Amelie, desiring to work for a Japanese company for one year. She is hired at Yumimoto. While most people move up in their career, Amelie descends down, going from translator, to number cruncher, to, ultimately, the bathroom cleaner. Amelie adores her superior, Fubuki, for her perfect Japanese beauty, while Fubuki continues to push Amelie down the corporate ladder. The two have a strange and fascinating relationship, and, in the end, Fubuki is convinced that Amelie has mental problems. I enjoyed the “East meets West” conflicts that came up through this entire movie and Amelie’s thoughts and quips regarding those issues made me laugh.
Rating: ****