‘The Hundred-Foot Journey’ is a feel good movie with heart and a taste of India with a hint of France.
A young man, Hassan (Manish Dayal), with a unique gift for the culinary arts moves to France with his family in hopes to start an Indian food restaurant after a war breaks out in their village resulting in a tragic loss. While starting anew, he falls in love with French cuisine and a fellow chef in a competing restaurant across the street.
It is possible to see this film without salivating. Nevertheless, it’d probably help to eat something before you fully dig into this movie. The food is appetizing, of course, but it’s the passion that we see in these characters that’s absolutely mesmerizing. Food is more than just making ingredients work together in order to feed people, but it’s also a very spiritual experience for them. ‘The Hundred-Foot Journey’ features chefs whose lives center around food. At some point during the film, each main character displays a passion for food that ties back to family. Dayal, however, displays this better than the rest in a scene that comes much later in the film. In this emotional moment, he immediately connects us back to the reason he started cooking. It’s a very touching scene and you (almost) forget that the person you’re watching is fictitious. It takes a very talented actor to make you empathize with him or her and Dayal nails this in less than a minute.
Although ‘The Hundred-Foot Journey’ is predictable and the pace drags a bit in the middle due to a lack in plot direction, what makes this film stand tall above the average Hallmark romance drama is that of the cinematography and the score. The cinematography looks as appetizing as the food does with the sharp and vibrant atmosphere that it appropriately creates for such a heartwarming story. Paired with the acting by our cast and the score composed by A.R. Rahman (‘Slumdog Millionaire’, ‘Million Dollar Arm’), the film is an energetic and mystical experience. As discussed previously, the film’s plot seems a little unsure of itself in regards to Hassan’s budding relationship with Marguerite (Charlotte Le Bon), but the upbeat spirit of the film remains with the audience.
Nevertheless, ‘The Hundred-Foot Journey’ is a decent film that one should see with family and “foodies” alike. It’s well-acted and definitely worth every taste.
Jim’s Rating: 7.5/10