Elegant Simplicity, rustic charm and unassuming characters blend to make this wonderful film a nice break from the typical. Le Havre is the story of a young boy smuggled into Normandy from Africa with his grandfather. The boy escapes but the grandfather, and several others, are rounded up from the cargo container in which they arrived. The second busiest port city in France, Le Havre is apparently a center for people smuggling and has a very active immigration police and deportation policies.

The youngster is found by Marcel Marx (André Wilms), a street shoe shiner with a child-like view of life: work hard, cherish your loved ones and enjoy the small pleasures. His wife Arletty (Kati Outinen) is the practical one. She saves for the future, eats sparingly, so Marcel doesn’t have to, and manages to keep them both alive. Unfortunately Arletty is sick, very sick. Without a miracle, according to the hospital’s Doctor Becker (Pierre Étaix), she will die. Arletty’s first thought is to protect her husband. She tells him she will be fine but he needs to not see her for two weeks so she can recover.

Marcel, on his own, manages to get himself involved in helping the boy, Idrissa (Blondin Miguel), not out of some idealistic notion but simply because the boy needs it. That’s what makes the film so good. Everyone gets involved for the same reason, because Idrissa needs it. The green grocer (owed money by Marx), the baker (also owed money) and the local bar owner (probably owed a lot) all help him hide Idrissa, feed him and keep him out of trouble.

There’s a wonderful scene, and very French, where Marcel enlists the aid of Yvette, the wife of popular singer Little Bob. Marcel wants Little Bob to do a “trendy” concert to raise money. The concert money will pay to send Idrissa to London where his mother waits for him. Marx presents his cause, introduces Idrissa and touches Yvette’s heart. She agrees, all Little Bob has to do is apologize and the reuniting of Little Bob and Yvette is, like the film, elegant simplicity.

Ah, and there’s a surprising performance by Jean-Pierre Darroussin as the seemingly evil inspector Monet. Complete with the black hat, black trench coat and rather black look on his face he looks to be an dark version of Inspector Clouseau, but is he? You’ll have to see the film, but I will say that Darroussin’s performance was a delight as was the entire film. Not since Il Postino have I enjoyed a subtitled film so much. Like a simple French pastry with a wonderful creamy filling such is Le Havre.

A little warning: Le Havre seems like a film from the fifties. The clothing, the furniture and architecture and even the hair styles all seem very much a throwback. Even the constant smoking hearken to an earlier age, which could be disturbing to some, but hopefully will not spoil the film for you.

Finally, Le Havre is about the dilemma that many of the western nations face. The separation of mass undocumented immigration with the helping of the “illegal” alien you find in your own backyard. I believe that most of us would have helped feed Idrissa, clothed him and given him a place to stay, perhaps even helped him on his way. I would, would you?

Rating 5 stars out of five (and a glass of Bordeaux).