A few days ago I saw The Hundred-Foot Journey. Adapted from the novel by Richard C. Morais, it traces the story of an Indian family, the Kadams, who run a successful restaurant business in their native Mumbai. But they are forced to flee India when rioting breaks out and their restaurant is destroyed.
They go to London first and try to set up a new business, but it’s hard trying to make it in a city full of nameless faces who are also aiming to make money and succeed. They set off on the road again to travel across Europe in an old and decidedly rickety hired van. Unfortunately, the van’s brakes fail when they are driving down a steep dirt road in France and they are forced to stop over in a small town.
Saint Antonin in the Midi-PyrΓ©nΓ©es region of France was used as one of the filming locations. It is a beautiful place; I visited once when my family spent Christmas there. The market you see in the movie is exactly the same in real life: full to bursting with fresh veg and delicacies such as local olives (my favourite!).
The Kadams decide to settle in the town and get to work opening a restaurant. Little do they know that the locals will not be impressed. Just across the street from Maison Mumbai is Madame Mallory (wonderfully portrayed by Helen Mirren) who runs Le Saule Pleureur, a Michelin-starred restaurant which abides by the cultural traditions of the finest French cuisine. And so the rivalry begins…
With comedic tension between the Kadam family and Madame Mallory, The Hundred-Foot Journey (named after the distance between Le Saule Pleureur and Maison Mumbai) is a feel-good film full of vibrant colours and mouthwatering images of the cultural contrast between French haute cuisine and traditional Indian food.
Have you seen any good movies recently? Leave a comment and let me know!
Thanks Grace for writing about this film, it’s definitely on my list and not only because Helen Mirren is in it! Have you seen the French film Les/The Intouchables? It ranks up there as one of my favorite films of the past 2+ years.
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I hope you enjoy it when you get a chance to see it.
Helen Mirren is wonderful, isn’t she? I really enjoyed her performance in this film. And all the other actors are great too. π
I haven’t seen The Intouchables. Thanks for the recommendation! I’m always on the lookout for films to add to my DVD rental queue.
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I want to see this! A friend had told me that she thought of me when she saw it, and that I would enjoy it. My daughter ended up going to see it with my 12 yr old son (I was doing something else so couldn’t go that time) and they both liked it. I didn’t realize it was a book though- have you read the book? Usually a movie is a disappointment after I’ve read a book, but there are exceptions (The English Patient was one exception- loved the movie but couldn’t get interested in the book).
I took my boys to see Dolphin Tale 2 yesterday, and I thought it was a nice family movie.
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I haven’t read the book but I agree that books are usually better than their movie adaptations. After seeing the movie, I don’t think I will get round to reading the book but it would be interesting to see which things were changed in the movie. Also, I would have liked more back-story on Madame Mallory.
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Oh man, this movie sounds so interesting and intense! I wonder if it’s out in the U.S.!
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It’s an enjoyable movie to watch. π I think it was released in the States last month.
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That’s a great write up, I’ve been wanting to see this movie and forgotten about it! I will see if it’s still in theaters here:)
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Thank you! π I’m glad you enjoyed my review and I hope you enjoy the movie.
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This film has been on my list to see but I just haven’t found time to see it. I am glad you wrote about it. Great write up! π
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Thank you. π I’m glad you enjoyed my review. I hope you enjoy the film when you have time to see it.
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This sounds fun! π I think I’ll look for a copy right now.
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Enjoy! The sparring between Madame Mallory and Papa Kadam is very fun to watch. π
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