2001-12-05 - 6:49 p.m.

Ok, since you�ve asked, I�ll put in my cinematic two-penneth�

Amelie � a left field-y stab at the mainstream from Johnny (or should that be "Jeanny"?) Frenchman. Falling in love with the clumpy-shoed, none-more-cute heroine is as hard to avoid as a rude Parisian at the Pompidou Centre, with her page-boy cropped hair and eyes you could easily spend a few indulgent months wallowing in. She�s not your girlfriend, which takes the edge off the feelgood factor at the end. Amazingly stylised views of Monmartre (comme �Moulin Rouge�, n�est-ce pas?) and interestingly quirky set-pieces. My only boef is that the director feels the need to repeat scenes from one of his previous films (�Delicatessen�) more or less exactly (the humping bit). But�un triomphe!

Ghostworld � a left field-y stab at the mainstream from Johnny (or should that be, um, �Jon E�?) Indie. Falling in love with the clumpy-shoed, none-more cute heroine is as hard to avoid as annoying Goths at a Placebo concert, with her black-rimmed glasses and, let�s be frank here, impressive bust. Buscemi is, as always, beyond cool, and again, the set pieces are very funny (especially the nunchuck-wielding redneck), but not having read the comic, sorry, �graphic novel�, I was left wondering why the two girls are even friends because the blond one is just dull and pretty, what the character �Josh� had to do with the price of fish and why Enid hated her dad�s girlfriend so much. I just think there was a lot unexplained. So, I liked it, but it needed more something.

Bridget Jones� Diary � shit sandwich

PLEASE! Could anyone who lives in Los Angeles please give me some urgent advice? Thank you so much!