Chocolat (2016 film)

Chocolat is a 2016 French drama film directed by Roschdy Zem and starring Omar Sy and James Thiérrée.

Chocolat
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRoschdy Zem
Produced byÉric Altmayer
Nicolas Altmayer
Written byRoschdy Zem
Cyril Gely
Olivier Gorce
Gérard Noiriel
Based onChocolat, clown nègre. L'histoire oubliée du premier artiste noir de la scène française
by Gérard Noiriel
StarringOmar Sy
James Thiérrée
Music byGabriel Yared
CinematographyThomas Letellier
Edited byMonica Coleman
Production
company
Distributed byGaumont
Release date
  • 3 February 2016 (2016-02-03)
Running time
110 minutes
CountryFrance
LanguageFrench
Budget$18.5 million[1]
Box office$14.9 million[2]

Synopsis

The clown Chocolat (Omar Sy) becomes, in 1886, the first black artist of the French scene.

Plot

In 1897, a black man, the son of former Cuban slave, plays a small role as the cannibal Kananga in the modest circus Delvaux. George Foottit, a white clown, is asked by the director to bring up his routine. He gets the idea to have an act with Kananga; a white authoritarian clown and a black scapegoat named Chocolat.

They are well received and the word spreads through France, reaching Joseph Oller, director of the Nouveau Cirque. He asks Foottit and Chocolat to take their show to his Parisian establishment. The success is immediate, and Chocolat becomes the first famous black clown. The success stirs envy in his previous employer's wife. She denounces him for being in France illegally.

Chocolat is arrested and tortured by the police. "A negro always remains a negro," the police commander tells Chocolat when he releases him. While the humiliation in the circus act is staged for humorous effect, the racism Chocolat encounters in France grinds him down. Chocolat is both celebrated as a star and made into a racial caricature. This becomes strikingly apparent when the poster for the show depicts Chocolat as a black stereotype. Faced with the hypocrisy of French society, he gives himself up to gambling, drugs and women. An attempt to end his clown duo to branch into the Shakesperean tragedy Othello ends with part of the audience booing the premiere. At the end of his life, Chocolat falls into obscurity and dies of consumption.

Historical accuracy

The film is only loosely based on the real life of Rafael Padilla,[3] son of a slave from Cuba, a Spanish colony at the time.

References to other films

The film shows Foottit and Chocolat being filmed by Louis and Auguste Lumiére. During the credits, the Lumiére film The Tilting Chair featuring the real clowns is shown.

Reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports a 100% approval rating based on 22 reviews, with a weighted average of 7.05/10.[4]

Cast
Scene costume used by Omar Sy as Chocolat.

Awards
Award / Pelicula Festival Category Nominations Outcomes
César Awards Best Actor Omar Sy Nominated
Best supporting actor James Thiérrée Nominated
Best sound Brigitte Taillandier, Vincent Guillon and Stéphane Thiébaut Nominated
Best original soundtrack Gabriel Yared Nominated
Best production design Jérémie D. Lignol Won
Globe de Cristal Awards Best movie Won
Best actor Omar Sy Won
Lumières Awards Best actors Omar Sy Nominated
James Thiérrée Nominated

References
  1. "Chocolat (2016)". JP's Box-Office.
  2. "Chocolat". Box Office Mojo.
  3. Michel, Nicolas (29 January 2015). "Cinéma : ce qui est vrai, ce qui est faux dans " Chocolat ", le film de Roschdy Zem" (in French).
  4. "Chocolat". Rotten Tomatoes.
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