Le goût de la vie

I loved the German film (Mostly Martha) that is the basis of this remake, and I was worried that the transition to Hollywood would spoil all the things that made the original so delightful. But I was very pleasantly surprised. There is a substantial plot change, but it doesn't wreck the movie, and a lot of the original dialog is kept word-for-word. Even if you know nothing about the original film, this is a lovely romantic comedy. During the sold-out preview show that I attended, people were laughing at the right moments and feeling moved at the right times too, and the casting was spot on - Catherine Zeta-Jones is perfect as the work-obsessed Kate dealing with the disruption of her perfectly-ordered life and Aaron Eckhart is irresistible with his mop of hair and those dimples. And what can you say about Abigail Breslin except that she's the most natural child actor working today. If you like romantic comedies, you'll like this one - it's smart, charming and you're rooting for the couple from the minute they meet. I can recommend this without reservations.

"No Reservations" is not a great film, nor does it pretend to be. It is very predictable and follows the formula used in countless other movies. Despite that, it give you everything you want from this type of film and is better than many of the sequels that have come out this year.

Catherine Zeta Jones is as beautiful as ever. There is a nice dose of Verdi and Puccini opera arias, and Abigail Breslin steals the film like she did with "Little Miss Sunshine." I have not liked Aaron Eckert in the past, but in this film he brings happiness to the otherwise dour Zeta Jones.

Some of the professional critics said they like the original German film "Mostly Martha" better, but I thought that "No reservations" improved on the original in every possible way. The only valid criticism I could find was that Catherine Zeta Jones is too beautiful to be believable as a lonely chef. That is a flaw I can live with.

If you are looking for a break from the so-called Summer "action" films, "No Reservations" is not very original, but it certainly fits the bill. The only drawback is that you will definitely leave the theater feeling really hungry for good food.

Very likable even for a formula romcom, mainly because of the terrific casting and performances of the actors.

The forever beautiful and talented Catherine Zeta-Jones (Chicago, The Mask of Zorro) is spot on as Kate, a workaholic chef at hoity toity 22 Bleeker. Kate unexpectedly inherits her niece Zoe, played tremendously well by Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine). Real-life motherhood must have enabled Zeta-Jones to show her softer side with the restraint her character called for.

Aaron Eckhart (Thank You for Smoking, Black Dahlia) is Nick, the Italian-trained, opera-singing, charismatic new chef who invades Kate's precision-perfect French kitchen. Nick is Kate's quintessential opposite and eventually helps her sort out her trust issues and even enhances her parenting skills.

It is refreshing to see CZJ back on the silver screen where she belongs, and playing a non-glamorous character for once, even sans makeup in some scenes. At 38 years old, that is a brave feat indeed (and this courage is consistent with all the flawed characters she likes to play).

Her on screen chemistry with Eckhart is positively sizzling, and his cockiness to her coolness effectively makes you forget about the trite plot. While Zeta-Jones has also been criticized for being too beautiful for the role of a lonely chef, that is actually one of the ironies of life that this movie uncovers: beauty and talent doesn't really guarantee bliss.

Despite the awful MTV-like montage of the trio grocery shopping and the rest of the unspectacular elements, overall, the movie makes you feel for the characters. You leave the cinema all warm and fuzzy, and that makes the execution of No Reservations a success.

(My Synopsis) Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is the master chef at the trendy 22 Bleecker Street Restaurant in Manhattan. She runs her kitchen at a rapid pace as she coordinates the making and preparing of all the fantastic meals and personally displays the food to perfection on every dish. She intimidates everyone around her, so her boss sends her to therapy. Kate hates to leave the kitchen when a customer wants to compliment her on one of her special dishes, but she is ready to leave the kitchen in a second when a customer insults her cooking. Kate's sister is killed in a car accident and her nine-year old daughter Zoe (Abigail Breslin) moves in with Kate. With all of Kate's problems, the boss hires a new chef to join the staff. Nick (Aaron Eckhart) is a rising star in his own right and could be the head chef of another restaurant, but he wants to work under Kate. Kate begins to feel threatened by Nick, because he has a different style of running the kitchen. Nick loves to listen to opera when he cooks and to make the staff laugh. With all that is going on in Kate's life, falling for a man is the last thing she was looking for. There is some kind of chemistry between Kate and Nick that can only go one way. Yet life will hit her in the head when Kate's boss offers Nick the head chef job.

(My Comment) You know before going in that this is a chick flick. If anything, I wanted to see Catherine Zeta-Jones do her thing. The movie actually touches on a hard subject of what can happen in life when someone you love dies. Kate had her own life and now she is responsible for her niece Zoe. Being responsible for a child will change your life dramatically, and Kate discovers that very soon. What used to be important to Kate is not so important, and she must work very hard to build a relationship with Zoe. Yes, this is a chick flick, but it also touches real life to. I think the real star of the movie was Abigail Breslin. Abigail was able to pull off her part and make you believe that her mother had actually died. Most of the movie is light hearted and fun to watch and is very predictable. (Warner Bros. Pictures, Run time 1:44, Rated PG)(6/10)

Despite what I recall of the advertising campaign last year, this soft-hearted 2007 film is far less a Food Network-derived romantic comedy than a Lifetime-oriented drama about grief and work/life balance. Directed by Scott Hicks ("Shine") and written by first-timer Carol Fuchs, this film offers the most insightful peek into the workings of an upscale Manhattan restaurant since 2000's "Dinner Rush" (i.e., if you don't count last year's CGI-generated, French food-fest, "Ratatouille"), but it also seems intent in splintering the story between the romantic sparks between the co-stars and the unexpected relationship that a single aunt forms with her orphaned niece. The result is heartwarming but rather diluted considering the potential inherent in the material presented. Hicks and Fuchs also seem intent on inserting predictable clichés along the way to reinforce the formulaic approach taken with the story.

Basically a remake of the 2001 German comedy, "Mostly Martha", the plot centers on perfectionist chef Kate who runs a tightly efficient kitchen in a chic SoHo bistro. As a resolute overachiever, she is able to get up before dawn to get to the fish market and stay late at the restaurant making her impeccably presented dishes until closing. So tightly wound is Kate that restaurant owner Paula forces her to see a therapist to address her supposedly difficult personality. This is the first of several disconnects I had with the film as Kate strikes me as demanding but not particularly abusive to her staff. Regardless, her life is turned upside down by the sudden death of her sister and the addition of her niece Zoe to her structured life. As if that wasn't enough, Paula has hired Nick, a rowdy opera-loving sous-chef, to partner with Kate as she struggles with her personal transition at home. Taking a number from the Tracy-Hepburn manual for romantic comedy, tempers flare as do sparks. Zoe's recovery from her mother's death becomes a complicating factor, but the rest of the story plays out basically how you would presume.

More interesting in edgier, less sympathetic roles, Catherine Zeta-Jones plays the icier aspects of her role well, but she is markedly less arresting when her character turns warm and gooey. The script also doesn't really respect her character much since she is made to look overly foolish and insensitive in her early scenes as a struggling mother figure. Aaron Eckhart seems to be playing more of a plot device as Nick, but he does it well, and the requisite sparks occur with Zeta-Jones. Cornering the market on playing put-upon children, Abigail Breslin is fine as Zoe, even though she has to be glumly depressed for much of the film. The usually more dimensional Patricia Clarkson plays Paula as a surprisingly brittle, opportunistic character, while Bob Balaban isn't given much to do at all as Kate's therapist but act as a bromide. Stuart Dryburgh's autumnal cinematography makes all the food look good, the stars as well, and minimalist composer Philip Glass, of all people, provided the unobtrusive soundtrack dominated by Puccini, Verdi, and Flotow arias. The most significant bonus item on the 2008 DVD is a twenty-minute episode of the Food Network's "Unwrapped" which includes interviews with the film's stars and the real chefs who concocted the dishes in the movie.