About five and a half years ago, I watched ‘The Hundred-Foot Journey’ at a friend’s house. I liked it so much that I put it on my wishlist, and was subsequently given it by one of my relatives. But as I had seen it already, I didn’t pull it out to watch with my husband until this week.
My only memory of the story was that it was about a restaurant, and that there was some conflict. I had entirely forgotten the storyline, and in particular the traumatic opening scenes. There’s a major conflict in India, and a family who own a popular restaurant are forced to flee. Sadly one of the family dies in the fire, so they are grieving as well as running for their lives.
There’s a brief stay in London, and then they decide to try mainland Europe, with all their belongings packed into a rickety van. Inevitably it starts to go wrong… and they meet the delightful Marguerite (Charlotte Le Bon) who gives them shelter and some French food. She works at a local restaurant, which is owned by the imposing Madame Mallory (brilliantly played by Helen Mirren), rather a high class place which boasts of a Michelin star.
The family head, known as Papa (Om Puri) decides to buy a derelict building, just a hundred feet over the road from Madame Mallory’s place. It was formerly a restaurant, so he is convinced it can be rebuilt… but, unsurprisingly, some of the locals object. There’s quite a disturbing amount of racism as well as ignorance of Indian cuisine, and the rivalry between the two restaurants is quite intense, unpleasant at times.
Helen Mirren is billed as the star of this, but although she is excellent, Manish Dayal is the main character. He plays Hassan, the son of the family most dedicated to cooking. The story really revolves around him as he takes on the role of family provider, while accepting his father’s leadership and sometimes strange decisions. He works hard at his craft, and also studies late at night to learn about the secrets of French cuisine. He also finds himself very attracted to Marguerite - and yet competing with her, at the same time, as a chef.
There are some stresses in the film, as tensions rise; racism is an ongoing thread, and there are some good contrasts between the different cultures and cooking styles of Europeans and Indians. There’s humour too; not laugh-aloud jokes or slapstick, but amusing comments or actions, which give relief to the heightened tension as the Indian family fight to make their dream fulfilled.
I had not recalled any of the threads of the plot, so found myself enjoying it all over again. The acting is flawless, the people believable, and the pace suited us perfectly. We both thought it an excellent film It’s rated PG but I can’t imagine it would be of any interest to children or younger teens unless they have a passion for cookery. I would have thought 12 would be a more suitable rating. There’s very little bad language and no scenes of intimacy beyond a kiss, but there’s violence and some quite disturbing sections of the film, particularly at the beginning.
However, for older teens and adults, I would recommend 'The Hundred-Foot Journey' very highly.
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