Driven by fate, Vianne Binoche drifts into a tranquil French village with her daughter Anouk Victoire Thivisol, from Ponette in the winter of 1959. Her newly opened chocolatier is a source of attraction and fear, since Vianne's ability to revive the villagers' passions threatens to disrupt their repressive traditions. The pious mayor Alfred Molina sees Vianne as the enemy, and his war against her peaks with the arrival of "river rats" led by Roux Depp, whose attraction to Vianne is immediate and reciprocal. Splendid subplots involve a battered wife Lena Olin, a village elder Judi Dench, and her estranged daughter Carrie-Anne Moss, and while the film's broader strokes may be regrettable if not for Molina's rich performance, the mayor would be a caricature, its subtleties are often sublime. Chocolat reminds you of life's simple pleasures and invites you to enjoy them. --Jeff Shannon