Amélie is a shy waitress in a Montmartre café. After returning a long-lost childhood treasure to a former occupant of her apartment, and seeing the effect it has on him, she decides to set out on a mission to make others happy and in the meantime pursues a quirky guy who collects discarded photo booth pictures.

The part of Amélie was written specifically for Emily Watson. She wanted the part but had to decline because she didn't speak French and had already agreed to be in Gosford Park (2001).

Amélie:
It's better to help people than garden gnomes.

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: Technically, the fact that there are New VW Beetles in the streets of Paris in 1997, even though the car was not widely available in France until the summer of 1998, is an anachronism. It was, however, deliberate - Jean-Pierre Jeunet thought the car reflected the "sweet and amusing personality of Amélie".

Composed and Performed by Yann Tiersen