A Matter of Taste (2000)

Nicolas, a handsome, young waiter, is befriended by Frédéric Delamont, a wealthy middle-aged businessman. Delamont, a man of power, influence and strictly refined tastes, is immediately ... See full summary »

Director:

Bernard Rapp

Writers:

Philippe Balland (book), Bernard Rapp

Stars:

Bernard Giraudeau, Jean-Pierre Lorit, Florence Thomassin

4 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bernard Giraudeau	...	Frédéric Delamont
Jean-Pierre Lorit	...	Nicolas Rivière
Florence Thomassin	...	Béatrice
Charles Berling	...	René Rousset
Jean-Pierre Léaud	...	Le juge d'instruction
Artus de Penguern	...	Flavert
Laurent Spielvogel	...	Doctor Rossignon
Elisabeth Macocco	...	Caroline
Anne-Marie Philipe	...	Doctor Ferrières
Delphine Zingg	...	Nathalie
David D'Ingeo	...	Marco
Frédéric De Goldfiem	...	Félix
Patrick Zimmermann	...	Frédéric's Chauffeur
Claude Lesko	...	Frédéric's Head of Security
Vincent Tepernowski	...	Second Taster

Storyline

Nicolas, a handsome, young waiter, is befriended by Frédéric Delamont, a wealthy middle-aged businessman. Delamont, a man of power, influence and strictly refined tastes, is immediately smitten by Nicolas' charm. Lonely and phobic, Delamont offers Nicolas a lucrative job as his personal food taster. In spite of their differences, a close friendship begins to emerge between the two men. However, their bond of trust and admiration soon spirals downward into a dangerous game of deceit and obsession for which neither is prepared.

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Plot Keywords:

deception | obsession | waiter | food taster | businessman | 

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Taglines:

Seduction comes in many forms...

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official Site [United States]

Country:

France

Language:

French

Release Date:

26 April 2000 (France)

Also Known As:

A Matter of Taste

Filming Locations:

Lyon, Rhône, Rhône-Alpes, France

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+, Catherine Dussart Productions (CDP), Centre Européen Cinématographique Rhône-Alpes

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

Nisi dominus, RV. 608: 5. Sicut sagittae in manu potentis (Allegro)
Composed by Antonio Vivaldi
Performed by James Bowman (counter-tenor) with The Academy of Ancient Music
Conducted by Christopher Hogwood
Produced by Peter Wadland
(P) 1975 L'Oiseau-Lyre/Decca

User Reviews

What starts as a simple job, becomes a an auto-destructive relationship that threatens to destroy both their lives

This movie completely fascinated me. Nicolas, is a young waiter at a first class restaurant where Monsieur Frederic Delamont, a multimillionaire businessman, spots him as the ideal candidate as his taster.

Nicolas' job is to taste all the dishes his boss is going to eat, since he can't eat fish nor cheese. However, the relation between both men starts to get deeper as the old man starts to get obsessed with Nicolas and controls his life. He then bestows on his taster all kinds of gifts. Nicola can't believe his luck, but he doesn't know the stakes he's risking for all this luxury. Frederic manipulates his employee into doing all sort of things and Nicolas doesn't even know why he agrees. At first, Nicolas acts for money, but after a while he falls prey to Frederic's obsessions even though this means destroying his relationship with his girlfriend, Beatrice. She sees how this man has changed his boyfriend and Nicolas doesn't even realize it.

I invite you to enjoy this movie, it'll make you think about how human beings are let into situations they can't control, and no matter how much harm they get out of them, they can't stop playing that auto-destructive game.