Rent The Taste of Things (2023)

OK Period Romance About Food! - The Taste of Things review by GI

If you love to watch the preparation of lovingly concocted dishes filtered through a soft focus interpretation of the Belle Époque period of France then this is a film for you. I found it a beautiful film to look at but ultimately quite a laborious watch as it's an ode to the delights of food and thus a quest for the pleasure in the subtleties and delights of being alive and yet it lingers just too long over every detail. The story follows Dodin (Benoît Magimel), a gourmet chef, who lives on his reputation in relative luxury inventing subtle ways to prepare traditional dishes. He is aided by Eugénie (Juliette Binoche), his cook for the past twenty years who can interpret his ideas and prepare the dishes exactly as he envisaged them. Dodin is in love with Eugénie and desperately wants to marry her but she is reluctant. Her recent fainting episodes suggest a potential malady that concerns Dodin. As a romance this lacks a zest of passion and as a narrative about food it has to be of interest otherwise it's a film that leaves you a bit empty. There is a charm to the film and the two leads perform admirably but for a film that is over two hours long it doesn't exactly grab the attention.

Lush, Loving Portrait of a Foodie French Country House Kitchen circa 1880 with superb intro - The Taste of Things review by PV

The best part of this film is the first 10 minutes - just sit back and watch the almost-wordless human mechanics of foodies and staff working in a French country house kitchen circa 1880 with real purpose and co-ordination, almost like a cook ballet!

I could guess the end as soon as the first plot point happened. I found the film sagged a tad as it went on. Some may be annoyed that no explanation is really forthcoming re how and why an obviously rich man of property lives as he does, doing nothing but being a foodie; or why he's fallen for a cook, below him on what is in France still a rather strict class system (the civil service elite there is an example).

However, if you do not think too hard and just watch the cooking, it's fun. But those first 10 minutes are sublime.

Directed and co-written by a Vietnamese film director who moved to France from what was French Indo-China age 12. Co-written by a a man called Marcel who I presume is a top chef so provided the foodie details of that age.

Interesting detail re the ortolan scene where those eating the whole birds cover their heads with a cloth. Ortolan is a small songbird, drowned in Armagnac brandy then cooked in a cassoulet. It is now illegal, officially, in France. BUT in 1996 it was the last meal of former President Mitterrand who died 8 days later having refused to eat any more. A last supper for him. Eaten with white cloth over your head supposedly to hide the act from God - you eat it whole, wings, feet, organs, head etc. The ortolan is supposed to represent the soul of France. And there's me thinking it was a chicken/hen as on the football shirts...

3 stars. 5 stars for the first 10 minutes.