No Reservations

"No Reservations" is not a great film, nor does it pretend to be. It is very predictable and follows the formula used in countless other movies. Despite that, it give you everything you want from this type of film and is better than many of the sequels that have come out this year.

Catherine Zeta Jones is as beautiful as ever. There is a nice dose of Verdi and Puccini opera arias, and Abigail Breslin steals the film like she did with "Little Miss Sunshine." I have not liked Aaron Eckert in the past, but in this film he brings happiness to the otherwise dour Zeta Jones.

Some of the professional critics said they like the original German film "Mostly Martha" better, but I thought that "No reservations" improved on the original in every possible way. The only valid criticism I could find was that Catherine Zeta Jones is too beautiful to be believable as a lonely chef. That is a flaw I can live with.

If you are looking for a break from the so-called Summer "action" films, "No Reservations" is not very original, but it certainly fits the bill. The only drawback is that you will definitely leave the theater feeling really hungry for good food.