Smagen af sult

The captivating film, A Taste of Hunger by Christoffer Boe, truly shows the perfection of the culinary world. Each dish in this movie is carefully arranged and perfectly cooked. The acting portrays the deep desire that every chef has to create a dish that the customer would never forget. I can almost smell all of the delicious food, as if the scent of sautéed oyster, cooked octopus, and fermented lemons are wafting through the screen.

The storyline revolves around a Danish couple, both culinary experts. Maggi (Katrine Greis-Rosenthal) and Carsten (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) both dream of only one accomplishment, receiving the world's most renowned culinary award, a Michelin star. Although their dream is big, they use every means of achieving it, even if it comes in the way of their relationship, and more importantly, their family. Will Maggi's affair destroy their dream altogether, or will they push past this bump in the long road to a Michelin star?

The protagonist, played by Katrine Greis-Rosenthal, portrays her character with a sense of mystery. You never truly know what is going on inside of Maggi's head. Nikolaj Coster-Waldau plays both a loving father and an uncompromising boss very realistically, giving the viewers mixed feelings of whether they should root for him or not. The food shown in this movie is designed to almost perfection, enhancing the quality of this film. My favorite part of the movie is the opening sequence. The beautifully presented food and the music create an enthralling introduction to the movie.

The message of this film is that working hard is the only way to achieve your dream. No matter how hard you try, there will always be setbacks and forks in the road, but to reach what you want, you have to get back up, no matter how many times you fall. This is an uplifting message to all those who have a big dream, no matter how hard it is to fulfill. The main age restriction of this movie is due to the sexual scenes. There are multiple scenes that would not be appropriate for ages 13 and under.

I give A Taste of Hunger 4 out of five stars and recommend it for ages 14 to 18, plus adults. It releases in theaters and on demand January 28, 2022.

By Nyara A., KIDS FIRST!

Greetings again from the darkness. I'll try to avoid the temptation of including overtly cute food references ... especially those that might leave a bad taste (!). Writer-director Cristoffer Boe and his talented co-writer Tobias Lindholm (ANOTHER ROUND, THE HUNT) have collaborated on a film that centers on the world of haute cuisine, and how it can impact the mindset and relationships of those immersed in what may be the most bizarre art form on the planet. Despite the strain of the co-working spouses, rather than describing this as a romantic drama, I believe it might be better termed an obsessive drama.

Maggi (Katrine Gries-Rosenthal) and her husband Carsten (Nikoaj Coster-Waldau, "Game of Thrones") have been working together for 10 years to build a special restaurant in Copenhagen with the goal of earning a Michelin star. We see how committed to the cause they are, and while they appear to have a solid marriage and are decent parents, it's clear the kids and the family are not the priority that the quest for that star is.

While most of us are challenged with balancing family and profession, the obsessive tendencies displayed by both Maggi and Carsten are a bit unsettling. To what lengths would you go in order to achieve your dream? At what point does that obsession negatively impact other aspects of your life, and when it happens, will you even notice? What happens if your young daughter ... in this case Chloe (Flora Augusta) notices and is impacted?

Director Boe opens with the perfect quote from Kathy Acker: "If you ask me what I want, I'll tell you. I want everything." Of course, like everyone with this attitude before them, Maggi and Carsten discover their ego and obsessiveness carries a hefty price. Everything is not possible without sacrifice, which means everything is not possible. Boe also splits the film into cooking-related terms: Sweet, Sour, Fat, Salt, Heat, etc. It's a tad tricky, but we can see how the labels fit each section. Another lesson we learn is that blackmail is never a good strategy when wooing a lover, but here it serves to confront Maggi with quite the dilemma Food and obsession are two common movie themes, and here we get an explosive food obsession, although the food is merely the conduit in the pursuit of the award and the recognition that comes with it. Unbridled ambition is rarely attractive and often ends with a dose of disappointment or come-uppance. Director Boe, and two fine lead performances, give us a seat at the table for all courses.

A TASTE FOR HUNGER is being released in theaters on January 28, 2022.

Smagen af sult is a decent film. I went in with little expectations and came out satisfied having seen a nicely presented picture. The only other Michelin-star-level cooking film that I remember watching is Burnt, which was a TOTAL train-wreck, so the bar was set pretty low.

The plot perhaps lacks some substance, but in other respects the film delivered. It was nicely framed, the performances were good all around, and the characters felt real. This especially goes for Frederik. A character that would commonly get downgraded to one-dimensional home-wrecker, in this film he gets just enough spotlight to show how he also was yet another victim of the ambition to get that coveted Michelin star.

No pun intended - Game of Food? I don't think that works - though if you have used it, I am not saying you are wrong. I guess if you are responsible for a kitchen, for many people who cook (for you and customers), you have to be quite ... well hard and really "bossy". The start gives us a clear view of our main character and how he thinks and acts.

We may feel he is a bit too much - the way he commands and talks (down) to his employees ... but as I said, sometimes this is the only way to go about things. Add to that a really tough relationship and other issues that seem to lay in his way ... and you can feel for the guy ... especially towards the end ... both his wife and him ... we understand both perspectives ... or rather we can understand them both ... maybe we are more on one side than the other ... will it help or be an obstacle to his professional goals?

This movie is mainly destined to gourmets - whom I am not - so maybe that's for this reason that I hardly feel any taste in my mouth watching it. I was at first afraid to be COVID infected - absence of taste - but I fastly realized that I focused on the wrong link to appreciate this dish movie. I preferd Ted Kotcheff's WHO IS KILLING THE GREAT CHEFS OF EUROPE? Which was far more delightful than this one. Actually this film has to be seen as a drama, romance, nothing else. It remains an interesting movie after all, the rest concerns only a matter of approach. Nothing else.