Tuesday, February 06, 2024
The Taste of Things (La Passion de Dodin Bouffant)
In 1885 France, Eugénie (Juliette Binoche) has worked as a chef for famed restaurant owner Dodin (Benoît Magimel) for 20 years. Since they have spent so many years working closely together developing & perfecting recipes, they start to develop feelings for each other. Their shared love of food has created many unique, delicious, & exquisite dishes that attract people from all over the world. Dodin has proposed marriage to Eugénie many times, but she playfully rather remain a free spirit. When she suddenly falls under the weather, he takes to comforting her with his cooking. This is a love story about passion, tragedy, & grief. However, in the background to all this is a real stealer… the food. It’s a feast for the eyes; from gathering vegetables in the garden to the food prep to the elaborate cooking steps to plating the dishes. Then seeing the expressions after tasting. All of these dishes are made old school without electricity, running water, or refrigeration. This is a French film with subtitles but don’t let that keep you away from checking it out. This is definitely one for you foodies out there. You may be salivating & drooling during the film and then craving some fine French dining afterwards.
Alien gives it 3 “Pot-au-Feu” stars out of 4.
