The Hundred Foot Journey Film Critique

Film Critique/Analysis #1

Michael Atkinson 

Cinema 28

The Same Hundred Feet

Originally a novel Richard C. Morais, Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey collaborate to bring The Hundred Foot Journey (2014) to the big screen. This is a charming film about an aspiring cook from the depths of Mumbai, India who winds up in France with his family and soon finds himself in competition with the town’s biggest restaurant.

Like many culinary films, this one tells the tale of someone who came from nothing and has an extraordinary talent that pulls him from the gutter and into the spotlight. Like many romantic comedies, this film uses the same theme about how one falls for someone out of his league but despite their differences and the jealousy in their relationship, they cannot deny their love for each other and wind up together in the end. Like many family films, this one centers around the idea that a family will go to the ends of the earth for each other because they are, well, a family. The Hundred Foot Journey may have a lot of things going for it, but one cannot help but see through its overused and clichéd themes and plot line. This film seems to be a brilliant idea on the surface - a good wholesome piece of entertainment - but underneath the film has no substance. It is like looking at a beautiful hand decorated elaborate cake and when you ask to have a piece you are told the cake is only for show and it is actually cardboard underneath. There is nothing original and nothing truly spectacular about this film that will make it stand out in our minds years to come. 

However, aside from it’s lack of depth and originality, the stylistic nature of this film was aesthetically done well. The film was able to make it seem like food was a character itself. The camera panned and dipped in a way to capture the true essence of food in closeups. The eggs cracking were done in slow motion making one stop for a moment and actually see what it means to cook; even analyzing the way food is prepared that many do not take notice of. The vegetables were chopped in quick cuts heightening the skill and mastery behind a chef’s cooking. The actors were able to portray this skill in the kitchen making it seem as if they really were master chefs.

Though the concept of the film is lackluster at best, it is not until watching this film, that one truly will understand the precision behind cooking. Spielberg and Winfrey were even able to stereotypically show the vast differences in the way food is prepared in India compared to France; one being more haphazard and the other being more meticulous. However, the final theme of the film - no matter how cliché it was - was made clear: whether food is from Mumbai or France, it is the chef who has the talent to prepare it that is the true genius.