Amélie’s Paris: how the locations look, 25 years later

The history of Paris on screen is complex and monumental. Each era of French cinema has had its own idiosyncratic relationship to the city, whether the romantic studio recreations of Marcel Carné’s Hôtel du Nord (1938) and Les Enfants du Paradis (1945), the guerrilla tactics of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless (1960) and the French New Wave, or the more modern, gritty interpretations in films such as Bertrand Tavernier’s L.627 (1992) and Mathieu Kassovitz’s La Haine (1995). 

Considering all of these kinds of Paris portraiture, Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s 2001 film Amélie (Les Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain) is a genuinely original achievement in its vision of a city that borders on the fantastical. Though Jeunet predominantly films in the built-up, historic area of Montmartre, his team famously scrubbed each location of rubbish, dirt and graffiti – rather like when Michelangelo Antonioni tidied up 1960s London for Blowup (1966). The results are some of the most surreally pristine images of Paris ever captured.

Amélie follows the whimsical day-to-day life of eccentric young woman, Amélie Poulain (Audrey Tautou), as she navigates the modern capital. Though her job in a small café takes up much of her time, her humdrum life is suddenly given meaning by the chance discovery of a box of childhood treasures behind a tile in her bathroom. Manoeuvring to secretly return the box to the previous occupant, she soon finds purpose in providing moments of small joy for those around her. However, as her machinations sometimes create problems and require a great deal of effort, she risks missing out on the opportunity to find love with the equally eccentric Nino (Mathieu Kassovitz).

Twenty-five years after the film became one of French cinema’s most successful exports, here is a selection of its locations as they stand today.

Jeunet’s opening shot is one of the most beautiful of the entire film, showing an almost fantastically clean and tidy Montmartre. The view is of Rue Saint-Vincent, with the lens of the camera creating the illusion that the road is wide. It’s actually one of the very narrow, typically cobbled streets of this quarter.

Amélie lives above a grocer’s shop in Montmartre. Though the actual entrance to her flat is barely given precedence, the shop itself receives attention, especially its owner Collignon (Urbain Cancelier) and his lowly assistant Lucien (Jamel Debbouze). We see it throughout the film, though the clearest shot occurs during a rainy sequence early on. The shop is on Rue des Trois Frères and is still open today.

Jeunet then films a shot looking back down the road as Amélie waits to be served.

Finally, a more detailed perspective from the shop shows both the road and the steps at the top of the Passage des Abbesses.

The shop itself is one of a number of the film’s locations that still celebrate its role in the film today. Aside from a wall of press cuttings and a large poster, it now runs its own crêperie named in honour of the film.

When Nino spots the mysterious man who haunts his found-photo album, he chases him in the hope of finally finding out who he is. The chase starts in Gare de l’Est (more on that later). He continues to run after him once outside of the station, up the steps of the adjoining Rue d’Alsace.

Nino trips in excitement at the top of the steps, with a shot overlooking the station.

The mystery man gets into his car parked on the raised part of Rue d’Alsace. This location has changed dramatically since its modern pedestrianisation.

Nino chases the man on his bike but drops his precious book as he zooms off. Amélie quickly follows and finds the book at the intersection with Rue des Deux-Gares.

Jeunet films many different stations around the city for his film, but the most prominent is Gare de l’Est. Aside from featuring as itself throughout the film, other stations are edited to seem a part of it as well. The earlier chase begins with a shot of its entrance on Rue d’Alsace.

Another shot shows its east entrance taken on the busy street of Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Martin.

The interior of the station is featured in great detail. The station has two near identical rooms and, sadly, the majority of the photos on my visit were taken in the wrong room, which became apparent later when I noticed the slightly different detail of the clock. For reference as to the style of the room, here’s a more expansive view of the other concourse; both have since been filled with shops.

I did take a photo of the correct clock on the other side of the lobby. This can be seen when heading towards the platforms.

Another shot of Nino shows the vast walkway from the other direction. Again, the photo was taken in the other room, rather than the exact location, but I’ve included it here as the architecture is exactly the same.

While Gare de l’Est is seen at various points throughout the film, other prominent stations feature as well. As an example of how much emphasis is put onto this station, see the following shot of the nearby Gare du Nord. It’s incredibly distinctive, yet the carved pillars have been edited here to read ‘Est’ instead of ‘Nord’. A modern statue prevents standing in exactly the right place today.

As the film is largely set in Montmartre, it’s unsurprising that the famous basilica of Sacré-Cœur plays a role. It’s seen variously, in the background of some shots and as the main focus in others. In one sequence, the church and its various gardens play an essential role. When Amélie wants to give Nino back his lost book, as well as ask him out, she goes to elaborate lengths. The sequence begins with a shot of Sacré-Cœur taken from the lowest tier of Square Louise Michel.

After taking a call on a payphone, Nino is sent off following arrows painted on the curving paths of the area.

He gradually makes his way further up the square. This shot shows up him walking up the steps on the right-hand side.

Nino gradually gets closer to the beginning of the basilica, with this shot of another set of steps showing the stone work of the Fontaine des Bois.

Soon, Nino spies a suspicious-looking statue performer on the Vue de Paris.

The performer is pointing to a telescope that sits on the next tier up, but which has since been removed.

Seeing Amélie down below putting the book on his bike, Nino desperately runs all of the way back. This shot shows where the payphone where he took his call – which was possibly a prop – once stood.

Now one of the most visited and famous locations in the history of French cinema, the café where Amélie works is not only almost exactly as it was, but now explicitly caters to film tourists and fans. This is the Café des Deux Moulins on Rue Lepic.

The café’s interiors and exteriors are seen extensively. In this shot, Amélie’s air-hostess friend Armelle visits the café to pick up the globe-trotting gnome.

In another shot, we see the vast space of the main dining area while Georgette (Isabelle Nanty) cleans the floor. Today, this is almost exactly as seen in the film.

Even the toilets of the café are pretty much as they were, though a section of them have been turned into a cabinet dedicated once again to paraphernalia connected to the film.

Fans of the film can even indulge in an Amélie meal, with the dessert naturally being crème brûlée.

IMDb