It really is Footloose in a small french village

I love small French villages. I really do. I also think Lasse Hailstrom does amazing work as a director. I recall seeing this on a plane too long ago so I decided to drop it in. So glad I did. A single mother moving into a religious town who, through the use of her chocolate treats, opens the town up from its close-mindedness. Someone in a previous post mentioned Footloose and that's spot on. She's essentially Ren from Footloose with chocolate instead of dancing.

It's a quaint film with a stellar cast, including Juliette Binoche, Judi Dench, Alfred Molina, Carrie-Anne Moss, a dozen other actors you'll point and say something like "I know that guy from Wargames" and Johnny Depp in a smallish role.

Binoche shines here with a 1000-watt smile. Dench plays a crotchety old woman (a role she seems to have nailed down) with a hidden passion for life. Depp shows up to look prettier than the rest of the cast combined and shows there is another side to those gypsies everyone hates.

The 1950s rural France setting is what really sets it apart. It looks gorgeous, like a place you'd love to live that no longer exists. However, there is a dark side where everyone knows each other and rumors and scandals go hand-in-foot like a quasi-high school.

A random stranger's opinion: A nice little movie that will make you smile with its intent, with some subtle laughs and a feel-good vibe ending. Is it a little corny? Oh yeah. But there's just enough there to entertain you without shoving a message down your throat.