A Chef in Love

A Frenchman in Georgia. This opens up so many possibilities, chances for humor, joy, deep and meaningful emotional engagement. Instead, the film fails to deliver any of the above. The acting of Pierre Richard is OK but so stereotypically French it makes it look like a grotesque (same goes for pretty much all other parts). The other actors are just meh. My biggest problem with this movie is its use of predictable cliches and no attempt to be even remote convincing. There are no nuances, no space for the viewer to explore. If this movie was food it would have been a McDonald's hamburger.

It is always nice to view a film unlike the vast majority of films one normally has the chance to see in the U. S. This is one of those films. Pierre Richard is great is a comedic, yet serious, role. And the entire mood/ambiance of the film is so consistently rich! A very enjoyable experience.

A French chef (a great performance by Pierre Richard) goes to Georgia at the turn of the 20th century to look for new tastes. He meets a woman, they fall in love, he opens a restaurant, and then the Russian Revolution spills into the country. This story is told in flashback as a modern-day art dealer preparing a Pirosmani exhibition reads about his family's past. A CHEF IN LOVE is the only Georgian film ever nominated for an Oscar, and it's easy to see why. It has sumptuous photography (by one of the best Georgian cinematographers, Giorgi Beridze) and the sort of historical love story they seem to go to pieces over, yet it also plays everything very safely and forces some notion of "exoticism" on itself while sticking to a plot that feels right at home in the Hollywood cookie factory. I liked it more than the other Djordjadze film I've seen, 27 MISSING KISSES, but I found something curiously hollow about the presentation. I also thought the flashback structure was pretty useless, except to introduce a dramatic third-act revelation that anyone who has ever seen a movie will be able to predict within the first five minutes of the film. Still, with so much great footage of Georgia and all the wonderful music and food (this movie made me extremely hungry) and the addition of Richard's great work, I find it difficult to dislike, and I don't think it should be avoided, especially when it's probably easier to find in the USA than any other Georgian film.

This is one of the most visually appealing movies I have ever seen. I love the style. It's very rich, with lots of rich colors and elegant scenarios and beautiful foods, but at the same time sort of spare, due to the severe landscapes and settings. Makes for a beautiful contrast. The actors also add to the visual appeal, they fit the look of the movie very well, have the same sort of unusual aestheticism.

The story is also an engrossing one, with a fulfilling and fascinating love story. Personally, I'm not that fond of the parts where the film gets figurative or symbolic, I just have a hard time getting meaning out of it--but it isn't too ambiguous, and the style of the film certainly makes it well worth a little confusion.

It's also very interesting to get to see Georgia, which provides an interesting perspective on some of the political events shown in the film. It's an unusual setting, very cool.

I just love to look at this movie. It's really beautiful. And the food always looks amazing. Overall, charming.

This film lacked something I couldn't put my finger on at first: charisma on the part of the leading actress. This inevitably translated to lack of chemistry when she shared the screen with her leading man. Even the romantic scenes came across as being merely the actors at play. It could very well have been the director who miscalculated what he needed from the actors. I just don't know.

But could it have been the screenplay? Just exactly who was the chef in love with? He seemed more enamored of his culinary skills and restaurant, and ultimately of himself and his youthful exploits, than of anybody or anything else. He never convinced me he was in love with the princess.

I was disappointed in this movie. But, don't forget it was nominated for an Oscar, so judge for yourself.