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Films with theme "Cooking films", sorted by production date
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Big Night (1996)
, 1h47Directed by Campbell Scott, Stanley Tucci
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Romance
Themes Cooking films, Films about immigration
Actors Minnie Driver, Marc Anthony, Ian Holm, Isabella Rossellini, Tony Shalhoub, Stanley Tucci
On the New Jersey Shore in the 1950s, two Italian immigrant brothers from Abruzzo own and operate a restaurant called "Paradise." One brother, Primo (Tony Shalhoub), is a brilliant, perfectionist chef who chafes under their few customers' expectations of "Americanized" Italian food. Their uncle's offer for them to return to Rome to help with his restaurant is growing in appeal to Primo. The younger brother, Secondo (Tucci), is the restaurant manager, a man enamored of the possibilities presented by their new endeavor and life in America. Despite Secondo's efforts and Primo's magnificent food, their restaurant is failing.
The God of Cookery (1996)
, 1h35Directed by Stephen Chow, Lee Lik-chi
Origin Hong kong
Genres Comedy
Themes Cooking films, Films about sexuality, LGBT-related films, Transgender in film, LGBT-related films, LGBT-related film
Actors Stephen Chow, Vincent Kok, Karen Mok, Christy Chung, Nancy Sit M.H., Lee Siu-kei
Stephen Chow (the Chinese characters used for Chow's name in the movie are different from Chow's actual name), is a corrupt celebrity chef who secretly knows very little about cooking, runs a successful business empire, and is willing to hawk any product for a price. Arrogant and cocky, Chow is dubbed the "God of Cookery" and appears as a judge for culinary competitions rigged to make him look good.
The Van (1996)
, 1h40Directed by Stephen Frears
Origin United-kingdom
Genres Drama, Comedy
Themes Cooking films, Sports films, Transport films, Films about the labor movement, La précarité, Films about automobiles, Association football films
Actors Colm Meaney, Rúaidhrí Conroy, Brendan O'Carroll, Eileen Walsh, Marie Mullen, Jon Kenny
Set in "Barrytown", a fictitious working-class quarter of Dublin. Brendan "Bimbo" Reeves gets laid off from his job as a baker. With his redundancy cheque, he buys a van and sells fish and chips with his best mate, Larry. Due, in part, to Ireland's surprising success at the 1990 FIFA World Cup, their business starts off well. But the relationship between the two friends soon becomes strained as Bimbo and his wife, Maggie behave more and more like typical bosses. Larry believes that Maggie is the cause of the strained friendship, as he thinks she is pushing Bimbo away from him. The van is closed down because of poor hygiene by health inspector, Des O'Callaghan. Bimbo thinks that Larry told the Health Board about the van, leading to a fight between the two. Larry quits the job, despite Bimbo's best efforts to get him back. Bimbo then drives the van into the sea, so as to win his friendship with Larry back.
A Chef in Love (1996)
, 1h40Directed by Nana Djordjadze
Origin France
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Romantic comedy, Romance
Themes Cooking films
Actors Pierre Richard, Micheline Presle, Jean-Yves Gautier, Ramaz Chkhikvadze, Kakhi Kavsadze
The film tells the story of Pascal Ichak, a French opera singer and chef living in Georgia, who opens a restaurant. It also shows the life in Georgia in the beginning of the 20th century, including its short period of independence (see Democratic Republic of Georgia). After the Bolshevik coup attempt of Georgia (1920), the chef refuses to emigrate and endures the brutalities of the new regime.
Drifting Clouds (1996)
, 1h36Directed by Aki Kaurismäki
Origin Finlande
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama
Themes Cooking films
Actors Kati Outinen, Kari Väänänen, Markku Peltola, Sakari Kuosmanen, Elina Salo, Outi Mäenpää
Ilona Koponen (Kati Outinen), a head waitress at Dubrovnik restaurant, is married to Lauri (Kari Väänänen), a tram driver. The couple live in a small, modestly furnished apartment in Helsinki. As they both come home from work late one night, Lauri surprises Ilona with a new television which he purchased on store credit. There is a short discussion between the two regarding their ability to meet their financial obligations but they agree that the TV payments are manageable.
Family Resemblances (1996)
, 1h50Directed by Cédric Klapisch
Origin France
Genres Comedy, Comedy-drama
Themes Cooking films, Films about families, L'action se déroule en une journée, Théâtre, Films based on plays
Actors Jean-Pierre Bacri, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Vladimir Yordanoff, Catherine Frot, Claire Maurier, Agnès Jaoui
An average French family ostensibly celebrates a birthday in a restaurant. In one evening and during one meal, family history, tensions, collective and separate grudges, delights, and memories both clash and coalesce. Indeed, poking each other's sore spots turns out to be the main order of business. Henri (Bacri) runs a saloon that he inherited from his father called "The Sleepy Dad," and in the near-empty bar, he plays host to several members of the family as they mark the 35th birthday of his sister-in-law, Yolande (Frot). Henri's sister, Betty (Jaoui), is 30, single, and not very happy about it; his brother (and Yolande's husband), Philippe (Yordanoff), is an executive in a growing software company; Mother (Maurier) is the siblings' strong-willed matriarch; and Henri's paralyzed dog is on hand, whom someone describes as "like a rug, but alive." It's not been a good day for most of them: Philippe is anxious that his boss might not have liked the tie he wore on television; Betty is depressed about the sad state of her current relationship; Henri has just learned that his wife is leaving him; and Mother is tossing caustic barbs at everyone left and right. Henri's bartender Denis (Darroussin) is the one neutral party on hand, and he provides the voice of reason in the midst of the bickering.
The Chinese Feast (1995)
, 1h40Directed by Tsui Hark
Origin Hong kong
Genres Comedy, Action, Romance
Themes Cooking films
Actors Leslie Cheung, Anita Yuen, Chiu Man-cheuk, Xiong Xin-xin, Peter Pau, Tsui Hark
Kit was a master chef who once raked in many accolades as being the finest Chinese cook. An elite cooking competition had placed him enviably in front of many aspiring colleagues and he seemed to have the world at his feet. However, the competition placed him in a dilemma of conflicting interests of heart - his own craft or the woman whom he loves.
Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)
, 2h3Directed by Ang Lee
Origin Taiwan
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Romance
Themes Cooking films, Films about religion
Actors Wang Yu-Wen, Yang Kuei-Mei, Sylvia Chang, Winston Chao, Gua Ah Leh, Chen Chao-jung
The setting is 1990s contemporary Taipei, Taiwan. Mr. Chu (C: 老朱, P: Lǎo Zhū "Old Chu"; Sihung Lung), a widower who is a master Chinese chef, has three unmarried daughters, each of whom challenges any narrow definition of traditional Chinese culture:
Cigarettes & Coffee (1993)
, 24minutesDirected by Paul Thomas Anderson
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Crime
Themes Cooking films
Actors Philip Baker Hall, Kirk Baltz, Miguel Ferrer, Scott Coffey
An older man (Hall) is sitting at a table with a younger man (Kirk Baltz) at a diner discussing a matter over cigarettes and coffee. A newlywed couple sits at the table next to them discussing how the wife lost all their money gambling on craps. Another man, Bill (Miguel Ferrer), is outside of the diner making a phone call but the matter being discussed is unclear.
The Scent of Green Papaya (1993)
, 1h44Directed by Trần Anh Hùng
Origin France
Genres Drama, Romance
Themes Cooking films
Actors Tran Nu Yên-Khê
A young girl, Mùi, becomes a servant for a rich family. Mùi is notably peaceful and curious about the world. The family consists of a frequently absent husband, a wife, an older son, two younger sons, and the husband's mother. When the husband leaves for his fourth and final time, he takes all the household's money. He returns ill and passes away shortly after.
Kitchen with Apartment (1993)
, 1h36Directed by Philippe Muyl
Genres Drama, Comedy
Themes Cooking films, L'action se déroule en une journée, Théâtre, Films based on plays
Actors Zabou Breitman, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Sam Karmann, Jean-Pierre Bacri, Agnès Jaoui
Jacques et Martine, un couple de bourgeois ordinaires, invitent à dîner deux amis perdus de vue depuis dix ans : un écrivain et journaliste à succès et sa femme, entièrement dévouée à sa carrière. Parmi les invités figurent aussi Georges, le copain hébergé, et Fred, le frère de Martine, avec sa copine Marylin.
Fried Green Tomatoes (1992)
, 2h16Directed by Jon Avnet
Origin USA
Genres Drama, Comedy, Comedy-drama, Crime
Themes Cooking films, Feminist films, Films about sexuality, Vieillesse, LGBT-related films, Political films, Buddy films, LGBT-related films, LGBT-related film, Lesbian-related films
Actors Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker, Cicely Tyson, Chris O'Donnell
Evelyn Couch (Bates), a timid, unhappy housewife in her forties, meets elderly Virginia Threadgoode, known as Ninny (Tandy) in an Anderson, Alabama nursing home. Ninny, over several encounters with Evelyn, tells her the story of the now-abandoned town of Whistle Stop, and the people who lived there. The film's subplot concerns Evelyn's dissatisfaction with her marriage and her life, her growing confidence, and her developing friendship with Ninny. The narrative switches several times between Ninny's story, which is set between World War I and World War II, and Evelyn's life in 1980s Birmingham.
Like Water for Chocolate (1992)
, 1h53Directed by Alfonso Arau
Origin Mexique
Genres Drama, Romance
Themes Cooking films
Actors Marco Leonardi, Lumi Cavazos, Regina Torné, Margarita Isabel, Mario Iván Martínez, Claudette Maillé
Tita, as the youngest daughter in a traditional Mexican family, is forbidden to marry. Her duty is to care for her mother until the day the mother dies. Therefore, when Pedro, the boy Tita has fallen in love with, and his father come to ask for Tita’s hand in marriage, Tita's mother, Mama Elena, refuses. Mama Elena offers her other daughter, Rosaura, and Pedro accepts in order to be closer to Tita. Tita bakes the wedding cake with tears, causing vomiting, crying, and a longing for their true love in all those who eat it.
Shogun and Little Kitchen (1992)
, 1h33Directed by Ronny Yu
Origin Hong kong
Genres Comedy, Romance
Themes Cooking films
Actors Yuen Biao, Leon Lai, Ng Man-tat, Maggie Shiu, Monica Chan, Jimmy Wang Yu
Uncle Bo (Ng Man-tat) is the owner of the Tai Ping Fong old building. He inherited the building from his late wife years ago and he would rent different units to others. Although the tenants do not actually pay rent, Bo maintains a good relationship with them just like a big family. On the contrary, rich heir Lam Fung's (Leon Lai) relationship with his father Lam Chung-yuen (Jimmy Wang Yu) is very cold due to his hatred of his father. On the day of his birthday, Fung gets into an argument with his father and runs away from home. Afterwards, Fung was robbed and beaten into a coma by a crock. Uncle Bo finds Fung collapsed and brings him to Tai Ping Fong to heal him.
The Supper (1992)
, 1h30Directed by Édouard Molinaro
Origin France
Genres Drama, Historical
Themes Cooking films, L'action se déroule en une journée, Théâtre, Films based on plays, Histoire de France
Actors Claude Brasseur, Claude Rich, Michel Piccoli, Ticky Holgado, Yann Collette, Stéphane Jobert
Paris, 6 juillet 1815. Le peuple français est inquiet pour son avenir : Napoléon ayant été vaincu à Waterloo, le pays se retrouve sans dirigeant. Talleyrand, ancien ministre des Affaires étrangères, invite à dîner dans son hôtel Fouché, ancien ministre de la Police et actuel chef du gouvernement provisoire, pour en discuter et choisir un nouveau souverain pour la France. Commence alors un long duel verbal entre les deux hommes : Talleyrand pense qu'il faut revenir à la monarchie et mettre Louis XVIII sur le trône, Fouché hésite car il a autrefois voté l’exécution de Louis XVI et craint que son frère Louis XVIII le lui fasse payer. Fouché propose tour à tour Napoléon II, Louis Philippe d'Orléans ou le retour à la république mais Talleyrand reste campé sur sa position. La joute tourne au règlement de comptes lorsque chacun commence à évoquer les crimes que l'autre a commis pour gravir les échelons.