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Renowned for showing quirky and independent films, the Paris Theater is playing a tasty French film that's as light and substantial as a puff pastry.
Le Chef, which first released in France back in 2012, stars Jean Reno (Hotel Rwanda) as Chef Alexandre Lagarde and cooking prodigy Jacky Bonnot (Michaël Youn). The two serve as Abbott and Costello-esque partners in kitchen crime. After losing one culinary job after another, Bonnot begins painting buildings to appease his pregnant girlfriend. Somehow Bonnot moseys his way into a kitchen he paints, where he befriends retirement community chefs and creates a masterful menu that the elderly can't stop raving about. The menu was so superb that Lagarde, whose dwindling restaurant Cargo Lagarde should start providing fresh recipes, recruits Bonnot to become his second-in-command.
Although relationships seem flighty, superficial and almost too good for fictional reality, take this comedy with a grain of sea salt. Since a child, Bonnot has idolized Lagarde and has memorized every original recipe. While he often alters dishes' flavors and challenges his boss' standard dish presentations, Bonnot stays on-board at Cargo and avoids inevitable firing. The two men have opposite personalities: stern Lagarde does not condone silly behavior, especially when it takes place in the kitchen; goofy Bonnot enjoys multi-tasking and cooking with explosive passion on different levels.
On that note, Bonnot thinks it genius to hire this odd Spaniard who specializes in molecular cuisine, which is supposedly trending in France. Get ready to cough up some Nitrogen, folks. Although this slapstick scene's one for the chewy ages, it lacks any purpose. "Me leave!" exclaims the balding and thick-rimmed glasses-wearing Spaniard who looks like the absent-minded scientist in stoner flick How High.
Despite script flaws and lack of genuineness, Le Chef's has a redeeming friendship recipe. It's charming how Bonnot and Lagarde inspire each other. Upon getting his dream job, Bonnot wants to provide a better life for his girlfriend and become a praiseworthy father. That motivation causes Lagarde to become closer with his daughter and put family before gaining another Michelin star. Watch this movie knowing it's totally absurd and predictably develops. It's worth a quick bite. - LIZ KOBAK