The spoiler revealed in this review is that there is no dramatic tension whatsoever in this work.
This was a revoltingly bad movie. The subject matter ought to make this an easy movie to watch, with opportunities to showcase haute cuisine in a lavish environment, while celebrating some interesting characters. The incompetence of the direction, however, makes this film a slog to get through. First off, the story is told via a halting and awkward flashback device. There is absolutely no dramatic reason for that and the rhythm of the film suffers greatly for it. It only serves the need to provide some variation in the visuals (or the desire of the producers to travel to Antarctica) and to introduce a few more totally throwaway characters. Second, and more important, the movie fails spectacularly at elevating what is by rights something quite trivial - the non-problems of a chef working for a rarefied clientèle - into something worthy of a dramatic recreation. Whenever something that vaguely looks like an obstacle is introduced, the situation is immediately resolved to the protagonist's favor, although she will continue to pout and complain and be exhausted by it. The director also makes some token efforts at humor, but they are vague and they only underline the lack of anything serious to distract you from. Even in the end, when the protagonist resigns from her post, she can offer no reason for it. I can only presume that she was as bored by what happened in the previous two hours as I.
This was a revoltingly bad movie. The subject matter ought to make this an easy movie to watch, with opportunities to showcase haute cuisine in a lavish environment, while celebrating some interesting characters. The incompetence of the direction, however, makes this film a slog to get through. First off, the story is told via a halting and awkward flashback device. There is absolutely no dramatic reason for that and the rhythm of the film suffers greatly for it. It only serves the need to provide some variation in the visuals (or the desire of the producers to travel to Antarctica) and to introduce a few more totally throwaway characters. Second, and more important, the movie fails spectacularly at elevating what is by rights something quite trivial - the non-problems of a chef working for a rarefied clientèle - into something worthy of a dramatic recreation. Whenever something that vaguely looks like an obstacle is introduced, the situation is immediately resolved to the protagonist's favor, although she will continue to pout and complain and be exhausted by it. The director also makes some token efforts at humor, but they are vague and they only underline the lack of anything serious to distract you from. Even in the end, when the protagonist resigns from her post, she can offer no reason for it. I can only presume that she was as bored by what happened in the previous two hours as I.