A Chef in Love (1996)
"Shekvarebuli kulinaris ataserti retsepti" (original title)

The story of Pascal Ichak, a larger-than-life French traveller, bon vivant, and chef, who falls in love with Georgia and a Georgian princess in the early 1920s. All is well until the ... See full summary »

Director:

Nana Dzhordzhadze

Writers:

Irakli Kvirikadze (scenario), André Graill (adaptation)

Stars:

Pierre Richard, Micheline Presle, Nino Kirtadze

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pierre Richard	...	Pascal Ichak
Micheline Presle	...	Marcelle Ichak
Nino Kirtadze	...	Cecile Abachidze
Jean-Yves Gautier	...	Anton Gogoladze
Temuri Qamkhadze	...	Zigmund Gogladze (as Temour Kamkhadze)
Ramaz Chkhikvadze	...	Anton Gogoladze (as Ramaz Tchkhikvadze)
Kakhi Kavsadze	...	Le Président
Guram Pirtskhalava	...	Platoon (as Gouram Pirtskhalava)
Khatuna Ioseliani	...	Mme. Kollontai (as Khatouna Iosseliani)
Marina Kakhiani	...	Secretary with Shaved Head
Nino Koberidze	...	Secretary
Shota Qristesashvili	...	Zigmund's Friend (as Chota Kristessachvili)
Goga Gvessiliani	...	Messenger
Aleksandr Ilin	...	The Englishman (as Alexandre Ilyne)
Gogola Kalandadze	...	Peasant Woman

Storyline

The story of Pascal Ichak, a larger-than-life French traveller, bon vivant, and chef, who falls in love with Georgia and a Georgian princess in the early 1920s. All is well until the arrival of the Red Army of the Caucasus, as the Soviet revolution that has swept Russian comes to Georgia. Told as a flashback from the present, as a French-Georgian man whose mother was Pascal's lover translates his memoirs for Pascal's niece.

---

Plot Keywords:

soviet | revolution | love | cooking | sense of smell | 

---

Genres:

Comedy | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for nudity, sexual situations and some images of violence

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures Classics

Country:

France Georgia Ukraine Belgium

Language:

French Georgian Russian

Release Date:

23 April 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

1001 retsept iz menyu vlyublyonnogo povara

Filming Locations:

Georgia

Box Office

Budget:

FRF 17,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$36,628 (USA) (25 April 1997)

Gross:

$603,957 (USA) (18 July 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films du Rivage, La Sept Cinéma, Studio Adam&Eve

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Color:

Color

User Reviews

Sumptuous, but empty in too many places

A French chef (a great performance by Pierre Richard) goes to Georgia at the turn of the 20th century to look for new tastes. He meets a woman, they fall in love, he opens a restaurant, and then the Russian Revolution spills into the country. This story is told in flashback as a modern-day art dealer preparing a Pirosmani exhibition reads about his family's past. A CHEF IN LOVE is the only Georgian film ever nominated for an Oscar, and it's easy to see why. It has sumptuous photography (by one of the best Georgian cinematographers, Giorgi Beridze) and the sort of historical love story they seem to go to pieces over, yet it also plays everything very safely and forces some notion of "exoticism" on itself while sticking to a plot that feels right at home in the Hollywood cookie factory. I liked it more than the other Djordjadze film I've seen, 27 MISSING KISSES, but I found something curiously hollow about the presentation. I also thought the flashback structure was pretty useless, except to introduce a dramatic third-act revelation that anyone who has ever seen a movie will be able to predict within the first five minutes of the film. Still, with so much great footage of Georgia and all the wonderful music and food (this movie made me extremely hungry) and the addition of Richard's great work, I find it difficult to dislike, and I don't think it should be avoided, especially when it's probably easier to find in the USA than any other Georgian film.