Delicatessen 1991

Clifford Terry, Chicago Tribune: All of this is handled in a breezy, off-handed, nutsy manner, as the superb cast combines to help bring it off. Read more

Michael Wilmington, Los Angeles Times: Delicatessen is a fearsomely intense movie that mixes moods with formidable assurance. Read more

Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: With its molelike inhabitants, its sprawling war between flesh-eaters and lentil-men, its achingly sweet love story and surrealist blend of dusty antiquities and 21st-century gizmos, Delicatessen is indescribably wild. Read more

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader: There are no characters to care about or remember afterward -- just a lot of flashy technique involving decor, some glib allegorical flourishes, and the obligatory studied film-school weirdness. Read more

Tasha Robinson, AV Club: Eventually, Delicatessen descends into raw grotesquerie and excess. But first, it serves as an ample experimental field and proving ground for a wild talent that's thankfully become more disciplined with time. Read more

Janet Maslin, New York Times: Its last half-hour is devoted chiefly to letting the characters wreck the sets, and quite literally becomes a washout when the bathtub overflows. Read more

Jenn Shreve, Salon.com: Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet's film leaves you overwhelmed and breathless. Read more

Geoff Andrew, Time Out: Increasingly inventive as it progresses, Jeunet and Caro's fast, funny feature debut entertains from sinister start to frantic finish. Read more

Variety Staff, Variety: A zany little film that's a startling and clever debut for co-helmers Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro. Read more

Rita Kempley, Washington Post: A laboriously self-conscious attempt at being avant-garde. Read more