Food in Film
Food has often been essential to cinema. A catalyst which brings people together, it can be used for dramatic confrontation, as a comic device or even a metaphor for the meaning of life. Preparing, presenting and consuming food can evoke a mood that is sumptuous, homely, seductive, disgusting or just plain funny. Eloquent in conveying complex messages, food is a perfect vehicle for expressing the subtext in drama and comedy and for revealing intricate aspects about class, emotional states or gender. Sometimes, as in the movies "Babette's Feast" and "Tampopo", it is the real star. In this compilation below, we take the high ground and take a wide view of the social and symbolic meaning of food in film..
Right: Scene from Gabriel Axel's triumphant "Babette's Feast".
Surfing the Menu - New Zealand (2006)
Director: Rob McLaughlin
Starring: Mark Gardner, Ben O'Donoghue
Surf-mad New Zealand chef Mark Gardner joins Surfing the Menu's regular, Aussie Ben O'Donoghue, on an eight-part food safari of New Zealand. Showcasin... Read more
Hunger for the Wild: Series 1 (2006)
Director: Peter Young
Starring: Steve Logan, Alister Brown
Steve Logan and Al Brown share a love for fishing, hunting and the great outdoors. They also run one of New Zealand's best fine-dining restaurants, Lo... Read more
Macbeth - Shakespeare Retold (2005)
Director: Mark Brozel
Starring: James McAvoy, Keeley Hawes, Joseph Millson, Toby Kebbell, Vincent Regan, Richard...
Shakespeare's Scottish play is skilfully transferred to a modern day restaurant where chef Joe Macbeth (James McAvoy) has worked hard to make Duncan D... Read more
The Halo Effect (2004)
5.8/10
Director: Lance Daly
Starring: Stephen Rea, Grattan Smith, Kerry Condon, Simon Delaney, Fiona O'Shaughnessy, Ge...
Stephen Rea plays Fatso, owner of one of the worst takeaways in Dublin. His heart is in the right place, but a gambling addiction means keeping his he... Read more
Mondovino: The Series (2004)
7.1/10
Director: Jonathan Nossiter
Filmmaker Jonathan Nossiter is a serious wine connoisseur as well as a practicing sommelier when he isn't busy behind the camera, and he's combined hi... Read more
Rice Rhapsody (2004)
6.6/10
Director: Kenneth Bi
Starring: Sylvia Chang, Martin Yan, Melanie Laurent, LePham Tan, Craig Toh, Maggie Q
After being abandoned by her husband years earlier, Jen has raised three boys on her own. Her two eldest sons are gay, and fearing she will have no g... Read more
Dumplings (2004)
6.8/10
Director: Fruit Chan
Starring: Bai Ling, Miriam Yeung Chin, Tony Leung (Ka Fai), Pauline Lau
Originally featured as a short in the anthology '3 Extremes', director Fruit Chan has expanded the concept into this feature-length, satirical treatis... Read more
Mondovino (2004)
7.1/10
Director: Jonathan Nossiter
An epic and fascinating documentary tracing the effects of globalisation on the world's wine regions, from France to Argentina to the Napa Valley. Fi... Read more
Super Size Me (2004)
7.2/10
Director: Morgan Spurlock
Starring: Morgan Spurlock
What would happen if you were to eat only food from McDonald's for an entire month? That question is answered in this controversial - and wildly enter... Read more
The Green Butchers (2003)
7.3/10
Director: Anders Thomas Jensen
Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Line Kruse, Bodil Jorgensen, Ole Thestrup, Nic...
A dark cannibal comedy from Denmark where two affable losers have opened a butcher's shop. Considering their lack of business know-how, the venture se... Read more