verna-a How interested am I in food movies? Well not that much it turns out! I didn't actually dislike this film as it is quite pretty to look at especially some of the fresh young faces (and also the ones not so young). But it sets out to be a "feel-good movie" and so it follows that it is distinctly unchallenging in its characterisations, themes and story lines. Young man, would-be chef, overcomes some not very painful challenges to make good and win the girl,ho-hum.The Helen Mirren character sets out to be the baddie but is won over. In fact no-one is very bad except one character who is cast out and rides off on his iron horse. After that everything is just "lovely". All the events in the movie are telegraphed from a mile away. The Indian family could have been interesting if their characters had been developed, except it doesn't really happen except for the father who I thought did act well. I would have to describe it as a weak movie except for the eye candy aspects which keep you watching, despite not having much respect for the whole affair. Overall it just hovers on the pass mark, 5/10.

taufiqfautiq Oh boy! What a wonderful film. I'll keep it simple. Just as the summary said, this movie is about a journey of a chef, Hassan Kadam who love to cook from a mere small stall chef in remote village in India that became a chef who earned 3 Michelin star in France. His rivalry with Madam Mallory pushed him to cook beyond what accustomed to his family (Indian food) in France (Cuisine's Heaven maybe?) and his love for Marguerite make him want to cook more than just for Michelin star. In this movie you can see some mouth watering dishes from both Indian & French cuisine and the director did a good job making the dishes looked tasty. Story wise, it's great considering the balance between cooking, love & motivational at the same time. If you're looking Michael Bay kind of movie, this movie is not for you. But if you're in the mood for heartwarming story, this movie is definitely for you to watch on movie night with your family. Oh! And please prepare to be hungry.

mattrochman Overall, this is a fairly poor film. The first half was moderately enjoyable, though it was easy to predict how things would unfold. Once the main character gets a career break and heads to Paris (ie.. the second half of the film), it becomes bland, pointless and boring. In fact, at times I felt like two different films were made and joined together as it transitioned from a mildly amusing drama to a melodramatic vapid Hollywood drama.Spielberg and Oprah were producers - Americans making a European film... Needless to say that it has some ridiculous touches as a result. For instance, the main character starts having wine with dinner ... in Paris .. to indicate that he's dulling his pain by turning to drinking. Laughable. About 50 minutes of the last hour could (should) have been left on the cutting room floor. The love aspect of the film was totally predictable, though unconvincing. The "quickie" they have towards the end of the film was a truly eye-rolling addition.Strangely it also fails as a foodie film. Aside from the overly predictable and silly "French with Indian influences" cuisine thing, there are flat out mistakes from anyone who knows a thing or two about French cooking. Hollandaise sauce is made with clarified butter, not oil. The latter is used to make mayonnaise. Furthermore, you would never take Hollandaise sauce on a picnic as the butter would solidify. One of many.Nit picking aside, it's ultimately hard to identify where the film is a legitimate success and it's not recommended viewing!

ponderingpig I don't know why Netflix predicted I would give this movie 4 stars. I need a film with a good story, and this story was by-the-numbers predictable. I could have explained what would happen in every next scene before I watched it. I did like the highly saturated, Technicolor-like photography and, of course, Helen Mirren. Om Puri, whom I've seen before in a couple of films, (Ghandi, Charlie Wilson's War) was also top-notch as as Papa. Charlotte Le Bon has a French name but an American accent. It didn't work in a film where the rest of the cast speaks with French or Indian accents. She didn't have much to do anyway.I know the world likes this film, but I have to give it two stars -- it's hokum and Steven Spielberg usually provides great hokum. This one, no.