Jesus at the Movies 2

Anthony Schoen

Religion 120-05
April 22, 2010
Jesus at the Movies 2

Chocolat

The movie Chocolat was an inspirational movie, opening the viewer’s eyes to the cruelties of society, and our ability to overcome such obstacles, bettering our lives. When I took a step back to reflect on this film, I was astonished by the realization of the major religious influence involved in the film. Two of the most dynamic characters, with the most progression over the course of the movie, were Comte de Reynaud and Caroline Clairmont. Both of these characters played significant roles, both in building the plot of the movie, and improving their lives using the influence of God.

The growth of the characters was one of the best parts of this film. In the beginning, Comte de Reynaud was a man devoted to strictly following the word of God, and demanding that those around him do as he does. Such a harsh dedication in life caused him to stay a lonely man after his true love apparently left him. His devotion had no bounds. As mayor he felt that living up to the duties of his predecessors was a necessary task. These actions consisted of keeping his community in perfect organization, and following the word of God as closely as possible.

In comparison to Caroline Clairmont at the beginning of the movie, she and Comte de Reynaud were very similar characters. They both lost a loved one, and because of this, they changed how they treated those around them. Caroline was dedicated to keeping her son away from harm and to stay along the path of what she thought best for him. During Lent, she thought it was best to avoid any type of distracting influence which would cause him to break the sacrifice of many pleasures. Her restrictions on him seemed to have an opposite effect on his behavior. Without the ability to express his own individuality, he seemed to hold a lot of his emotions in, and express his anger through his crude drawings.

Caroline and Comte de Reynaud worked very well together because of their similarities. With the opening of the chocolate store in the town during the time of Lent, they were both on a mission to rid the town of such a sin. Thankfully both of them were too concerned about the repercussions of their actions, so they avoided any acts of vandalism, or harm on another human being. They used political means and the word of mouth to attempt to bankrupt the chocolate factory. Both Caroline and Comte de Reynaud had a strict devotion to the church, and acting how the Bible depicts the life we need to live, by avoiding certain things that tempt us to break the path of righteousness towards eternal life.

The character that caused the biggest disturbance in the movie, and changed the outlook of many of those around her, was Armande Voizin. Armande was a woman who lived to fulfill her own self-interests, and avoided the discipline of the church. Armande was the driving force for her daughter, Caroline, to keep her son away from her. With the insertion of her into the film, and the fight of the son to see her, people were forced to open their eyes to what they had been missing.

The first person to realize their mistakes was Caroline. When she finally accepted that she could not restrict her son from everything in his life, she changed as a person. The change for her not only was seen physically (by the joy that could be seen in her actions) but spiritually as well. She was able to open her heart to the good of the community and the actions of those around her. This change could be seen in her depiction of God as well. Caroline finally was understanding that God was a divine creator who accepts us as beings who sin and make mistakes. Unfortunately we cannot be perfect individuals, but because of this, we are able to be and express who we truly are. With the exception of the lifestyles of others, she finally was accepting this fact. Such a drastic change was too late to have any effect on her mother, but had and will continue to have a positive effect on her son, and his outlook on life.

Comte de Reynaud had the most dramatic change of any character. He was the most devoted to God and following what he asked of us as one of his creations. Fasting for weeks, he was continually creating situations of temptation, just so that he could prove his strength to himself and those around him. This idea of God and what he wanted of us was directly influential to the rest of the community, almost creating a feeling of fear of what would happen if they were not to live up to his example. The development of his character did not occur until towards the end of the film, when he felt helpless and unsure of what to do to return his community to the way it used to be. Struck by an epiphany to raid the chocolate store, and destroy the material items within, he broke in and attempted to do so. Overwhelmed by the perfection of the delectable chocolates, and then faced by embarrassment the following morning, he was shown that people were inherently good, even if they did not follow perfectly in God’s footsteps. This discovery helped to change his life, and his depiction of God. He was able to realize exactly what Caroline realized, but more significantly than she had grasped the same concept.

The conclusion of the movie was perfect, summarizing the inspirations that Comte de Reynaud and Caroline experienced for themselves. Pere Henri was able to express this in his own words in front of the community at Easter mass. He felt that following God should not be about what we are able to withstand and resist, but should be about how we should embrace those around us. As human beings we should enjoy our lives, and enjoy worshiping and devoting our lives to our Lord. This should be proven to him by how we are able to act and treat those around us, accepting differences that we would otherwise struggle to accept. This speech influenced much of the community, and was able to show the audience, that even through questionable times, following how God feels, we need to accept those around us, which can prove to be much more enjoyable then forcing the “correct” beliefs on others.