Les épices de la passion

I saw Como agua para chocolate partway through on the spanish channel and was immediately entranced by it's raw beauty and emotion.Thank God for those subtitles or I would have moved on. It's a tale of old traditions in Mexico and Tita, the youngest daughter, is the one doomed to follow them.The tradition is that the youngest is to stay with her mother and take care of her and remain single the rest of her life while her oldest sister gets to marry. For Tita though, it's too much for her to bear having fallen in love with Pedro, the one that her sister is to marry. Later he admits to Tita that he only married her sister to be near her.The rest of the story is for you to uncover.

I have never seen a more romantic scene in any movie where Gertrudis runs from the burning shower down the road and is swept into the arms of her lover and carried away. It's a stunningly sensual film that is deeply moving. If you haven't seen it, watch it with a lover.That only adds to the romance of the story!

The two things that stood out for me in this film are the telling of this story and how you had no idea what was going to happen next and of course the performance of Lumi Cavazos. Its one of those rare experiences that stay with you long after you have seen the film. Both strong and self assured. Whats really amazing is that its Cavazos first film role (That I know of, anyway) her natural charm is essential to this story. Not a film for all taste's but a very unique movie overflowing with romantic grandeur.

This film had all the ingredients to be a great movie, however, it never materialized on screen. With so many interesting characters, it was disappointing that none of them except Tita connected in a meaningful way and evoked much emotion from from me. Pedro was a prime example of this. Instead of rooting for him, i found myself not only disinterested in his wimpy character but actually disliking him altogether.

Again, i thought this film had a great premise, but failed to deliver on screen. i truly loved the magical realism, and thought the director should have focused more on Titas ability to connect to people through food.

I'm greatly surprised at some of the negative comments for "Like Water for Chocolate", many of which state how it utterly failed to capture the passion or the mystical tone of Laura Esquivel's book.

I suppose it's only a matter of opinion(like pretty much everything, I guess), but I thought the movie represented the book's magical realism in a great way. The filmmakers knew not to exaggerate or take everything over the top(which could've been very easy), and this gives the fantastical moments-- such as all the guests becoming ill at the wedding or the shower bursting into flame as Gertrudis bathed-- an essential grounding in reality. This fact is also buttressed by the erotic musical score and the whole cast, who fit the characters from the novel perfectly IMO.

I would recommend giving the film of "Like Water for Chocolate" a go; and trying out the book as well.

Like Water for Chocolate is a masterpiece in that it conveys the essence of our ancestors' knowledge forgotten in the fast pace of modern living.

It centers around the wonder of cooking: a sacred ritual, not a boring chore; and when done right, with love, it creates magic. Raised and taught to cook by her old Mayan nanny, Tita (exquisitely performed by Lumi Cavazos) masters the near-magical ability of transferring her love and other feelings into her creations passed into one who eats them.

The characters‘ senses are so refined, they enable everyone involved in this family drama to be tuned to the finest nuances of their world, opening the door to non-material pleasures. Rich with metaphors, their language reflects the skills of keen and sometimes humorous observation. The story brings our perception to a different level - as its characters' empathy borders on miracles and magic, and things we only sense and feel become real. Tita's virgin breasts, feeling `like dough kneaded' by strong hands, turn into mature breasts under Pedro's burning eyes (to later start lactating) - their glances, just like her food, becoming the means of communicating their forbidden love.

Yet all magic becomes wasted in the face of a man's choice. The Universe may scream into Pedro's ears about the path he is to take, but if he doesn't follow it, no magic can save him. We witness the story of a fatal attraction between two soulmates, whose passion, confined by an enslaving family tradition, lights up everyone around them... But for themselves, it's so intense, it literally engulfs the lovers in flames. Did they have an alternative? It is for the viewer to figure out.

You may ponder, however, over the young doctor's Indian grandmother saying that `each of us is born with a box of matches inside but we can't strike them all by ourselves; we need oxygen and a candle to help. The oxygen would come from a lover's breath; the candle could be a food, a melody, a word, a caress, or a sound...' He remembers her warning, though, that `it is important to light the matches one at a time' because otherwise the heat generated would produce too dazzling a brilliance.

Thus the wisdom of the ages, just like the power, is passed here through women and the men who are in tune with them. And the intense interactions between the colorful characters of five generations extend to dead family members who continue to counsel or despise the living.

When coming into her room with Pedro after 22 years of their waiting for each other, Tita is greeted by her long deceased nanny lighting her bed and the room with multiple candles. And the consequences of one's actions carries on beyond time - as each person continues her path notwithstanding death.

Hot yellow-red colors intermixed with dense lighting rekindle one's passion for living and appreciation for the gifts and mysteries of the Mexican land. The magic realism becomes a way of living in a culture connected with its heritage.

I recommend Like Water for Chocolate to anyone who feels like he/she is lacking color and passion in life - if watched with an open mind and heart, this beautiful and enigmatic film will stir your senses and imagination and light up your box of matches!