Having been born and raised in France, and being interested in cinema, I have probably seen most generally published French movies. I think it can be said with a reasonable amount of accuracy that there are far more excellent American films than excellent French films. This is not brought about by sheer numbers - although these help, but I would say, because of a certain level of competition and recognition among the artist profession. But while the reasons are really up to anyone's perception, I don't think it is possible to deny that American cinema is several notches up from its French counterpart.
This being said, Amélie is a cinematographical fireworks - I don't see that it has any major or even minor flaws, and while it is not a milestone of a film, it nevertheless remains an unforgettable one.