What starts out as a simple comedy about family supporting each other when they are bombarded by unfamiliar and hostile surroundings becomes a much deeper movie on love, loss and art. The Hundred Foot Journey is all these things and more. I know I have been railing against the descent into a morass of stupidity our mass entertainment is and has becoming. So when I see a film like this, one that celebrates simple joys and grieves with profound losses like this one, I become refreshed and ready for the next set of Transformers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The movie begins with Hassan Kadam, a young Indian chef taught by his mother to celebrate the mixture of spices in food, yes, the art of gastronomy. The Kadam family owns a small restaurant in India that is burned to the ground during a riot. Hassan's mother also perishes in the fire, so Papa (the great Om Puri) and the family move to Europe to eventually settle in a small rural town in France. They find a place to build a new restaurant, but it is across the street from one of the finest restaurants in France, run by the staid Madam Mallory (Helen Mirren), 100 feet away (hence the name of the movie). At first, Papa and Madam hate each other, and try to sabotage each others' establishments, going so far as Madam's chefs trying to burn down Papa's restaurant. At the same time, Hassan is also learning French cooking, mixing it with Indian recipes causing a fusion of tastes that Madam has never before experienced, so she reluctantly takes Hassan on as her new chef. Due to his phenomenal talent, he makes her famous restaurant even more renowned. Because of this, Hassan gets hired by a world-class Parisian restaurant. But, he realizes he was always happier with his family and eventually returns to the village to cook in Madam's restaurant.
This movie was a great surprise for me as I thought it was going to be just a simple comedy. But it is really about the celebration of the ties that bind us: love, understanding and family. See this movie has a couple of romantic subplots and how one overcomes prejudice to really understand and eventually love each other. This movie is really a celebration of the human spirit and friendship, and the importance of those solid things in our lives. While the plot is familiar, it is never hackneyed or trite. MIT also helps that the performances are so sincere, and that everyone is so delightful and lovable, that this movie is an absolute joy to watch. I highly recommend it if you are looking for some meat in your summer entertainment fare.
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