Now, Forager (2012) User Reviews

Interesting and honest portrait about what happens in restaurants behind the scenes. And very beautiful shots of mushrooms in the wild

[JvH48 · 7/10 · 28 October 2012]

I saw this film as part of the Rotterdam Film Festival 2012. It is an honest portrait of what happens in a restaurant behind the scenes: preparation, kitchen work, and last-but-not-least the outdoors logistics to obtain the proper ingredients. It is also against pompous menu's showing off expensive ingredients, for example demonstrated in the catering scene where the hostess merely wanted to impress her guests.

The story is slowly paced, mostly in line with the subject (one quote: "You cannot rush a mushroom hunt.") There were moments, however, that I felt the need to move on.

Our two main characters seem a nicely cooperating couple in the beginning, but their relationship deteriorates later on. Their separation is not out of malice. They simply grow apart when following different career paths.

The final Q&A emphasized that the story is not important in itself, just used as a vehicle for a logical development in time. We also learned that many shots of living mushrooms "in the wild" were collected before (you cannot wait that long with a film crew on your back).

All in all, a very interesting movie about things we don't see usually and conveniently take for granted. A "must see" recommendation for all those interested in this "back stage" part of what happens in restaurants.

Great

[stevewho-548-86864 · 9/10 · 4 January 2018]

Wanted to watch this when ti came out but didn't have access. Found it buried in amazon prime and put it on the watch list. Just watched it and blown away. Sparse but compelling. As a mushroom hunter I really enjoyed this aspect of the film and the beautiful locations and cinematography. The story concerns the collapse of the relationship of the two main characters and the inability of the husband to communicate and his too late realisation of this issue (cooking up some morels and wild garlic on his own, deep in the woods). When he finally tells his wife he is sorry there is no Hollywood resolution. Its pretty sombre but thats no bad thing - for anyone thats ever let go of a relationship this will ring true. Perfectly pitched, understated movie which deserves a bigger audience.