O Tempero da Vida

Not since Cinema Paradiso have I seen a movie that put me through such an emotional roller coaster. I was laughing in one scene while the tears had still not dried up from the previous one. A cinematic masterpiece. A proof of the power of the human spirit and that of childhood innocence and purity that is often preserved in some adults.

The film is largely based on the real life experiences of the writer and director. This is the furthest from a commercial film in that it does not follow a canned script recipe. On the other hand, the quality of the production is outstanding: the CG sequences of Istanbul and Athens, crane and steady-cam shots...

I just watched the film for the second time in two days and loved it. Initialy, you may be forgiven of thinking that the film is a testament to nostalgia, love, and the preocupation of the Greeks with good food. Nevertheless, although cooking is the main theme of the film, halfway through you realize that there is a serious story behind the gastronomy.

The production, computer graphics and sound could be better but that doesn't really matter. Cinema is about the whole product and in this case it is superb. Good casting with some splendid performances, great cinematography, excellent direction, great music. If that's not enough for you, the film communicates a fine and simple philosophy about life, the universe and everything - one that we used to identify with but sadly we are rapidly moving away from it.

I hope the film is distributed outside Greece. I wouldn't be surprised if it won a few international awards.

Having strong bonds with the story behind this movie I have to say that it is one if not the best Greek movie I have watched in my life. It touches sensitively on subjects that by many can be considered wrong to talk about and presents them in the nicest way without diverting from the history. The political turmoil as well as the relationships of people living in Polis (Istanbul) are highlighted and the key figures although play minor role in the events that happen around them still steal the interest by presenting how simple yet "rich" in taste their life was. Coming from a family that was as well deported (using a modest word here for what really happened) from home lands, the movie touched me in so many ways. I think it deserves a 10/10 and is highly recommended.. not only for the Greeks that can relate to the story but for anyone who can appreciate a good story.

People before me have already written about the movie, its technical structure, historical facts, etc. I don't have so much to add to them. It is a good movie. Congratulations to everyone who had a place in the production. Performances of Turkish artists are pretty good. Tamer Karadagli showed that he can do better than he did in some TV series. Anyway, that's another story.

As some other people said, you don't need to be a Turk or Greek to enjoy this movie. Even though such bitter-sweet, somehow mellow movies are not my kind of movies, I loved this movie.

This movie is a humanist answer to all those Turk, Greek, English and American politicians and strategists who wanted to create hate between two nations.

And... We, Turks and Greeks, need more movies like that.

I kept putting off seeing this film, because there was so much fuss about it, I was sure I was going to be disappointed. Well, I finally watched it last night and I was pleasantly surprised: This film is actually as good as most people say it is. At first glance it seems to be a film about food (which is not bad - hey, I love food), but turns out to be so much more. The reasons I liked it? Well, read on.

First of all, it is a way above average production for Greek film standards. Music, camera-work, photography, CGI, script,acting, everything is very well done. Some people complain about the CGI used, saying that it looks fake, that it looks more like a painting (mostly the shots of Istanbul), that it looks unrealistic. Well, they are probably right: it does look a bit unrealistic, but I think this is intentional. We see someone's memories and memories tend to be polished and larger than life.

Second, it is probably the only Greek film I've seen that, while dealing with a subject that only Greeks and Turks can really relate to, you don't have to be a Greek to enjoy it. It's easy on the eyes, it's touching, it's well written. And, amazingly, it deals with Greek-Turkish relationships without passing blame: it provides the facts but avoids passing judgment (this is actually very rare, as both Greeks and Turks tend to blame each other when these events are mentioned).

Finally, you end up feeling better (and hungry) after watching this film, which is reason enough to watch it. Highly recommended to everyone, I give this film 10 out of 10.