Haute Cuisine – Movie Review

Haute Cuisine or Les Saveurs du Palais (the original French title) is a French movie which was released in 2012. It is directed by Christian Vincent and stars Catherine Frot as the protagonist.

Catherine Frot plays Hortense Laborie; a chef living on a truffle farm who is whisked away by a government official to be the French President’s personal chef. Hortense’s cooking mainly consists of comfort food recipes that she learned from her mother and grandmother. Her food seems to have a ‘homely’ taste, which is exactly what the nostalgic President is yearning for.

Although Hortense Laborie initially doubts herself, when she gets to interact with the President she comes to know that he wishes to remember his childhood through traditional home-cooked food rather than the fancy cuisine made by the chefs in the main kitchen. That is when she realizes that she is a perfect fit for the job and starts following her orders diligently. Alongside her, the plot includes Nicolas Bauvois, a gifted pastry chef and Jean-Marc Luchet; the President’s maitre de hotel.

Hortense is an immaculate embodiment of assiduity, sophistication and determination. Although she is apparently very graceful and seems typically lady-like with her cashmere sweater and pearls, she refuses to back down and be intimidated by the male chefs in the main kitchen and chooses to stand her ground. That is one reason why their resentment towards her grows day by day coupled with the fact that the President prefers her cooking over theirs.

Haute Cuisine is a movie that revolves around the determination of a dedicated chef who is meticulous about her work, which also happens to be her passion, and her struggles with antagonistic forces. Despite her strong will, she decides to quit her job at the Elysee Palace. The President’s declining health forces her to alter her methods of cooking and she eventually loses interest in the job. She applies for a job to cook at an outpost in Antarctica, where an Australian journalist tries to film her and gets her to talk about her experiences.

The movie is very fast paced with flashbacks between her time back at the Elysee Palace and her present job which is cooking for explorers in Southern Antarctica. There are several comical moments tossed in the movie for some good measure. Haute Cuisine is inspired by an actual story and Catherine Frot’s performance makes it worth watching. Overall, the movie had enough humor, drama and exotic cooking (an epic sight for devoted foodies) to keep the viewer hooked, while the ending fits the story like a glove. Team Kluchit heartily recommends this movie.

Director: Christian Vincent

Runtime: 95 minutes

Cast: Catherine Frot, Arthur Dupont, Jean d’Ormesson

Available in French and in English w/subtitles