Delicatessen: Jeunet Before He Went Full Jeunet (You Know?)

Alright film buffs, Jordan here. Diving into the early works of directors is my bread and butter, and today I finally crossed 'Delicatessen' off my list. This was Jeunet before he became Jeunet, if you get my meaning. You can see his visual style bubbling up – the quirky characters, the exaggerated sets, the slightly unsettling humor – but it's not quite as...polished? Or maybe I should say, not quite as 'in your face' as something like 'Amelie'. The plot is bonkers in the best way. In a post-apocalyptic France, people survive by eating...well, people. The butcher downstairs (Clapet) keeps everyone fed, and the new clown Louison arrives and threatens the whole delicate (pun intended) balance. I loved the whole 'Rube Goldberg' aesthetic of the suicide attempts, especially the guy trying to hang himself with the elastic bed! It's dark humor, but it's clever. The snail-mailing lovers were a riot as well. And Dominique Pinon...the less said the better (but in a good way!). Honestly, my biggest hang-up is that it felt a tad long. Maybe 10 minutes could've been shaved off? There were a couple of scenes that felt like the visual flourishes were prioritized over narrative momentum. But that's just nitpicking. It's inventive, darkly funny, and definitely worth checking out if you're into surrealist cinema or just want to see Jeunet's style in its nascent form. What did y'all think? Is it underrated, overrated, or just right where it should be in the pantheon?