'Kiwi' Haute Cuisine for a French president
When French president Francois Mitterrand decided he wanted a private chef he chose ...
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Haute Cuisine
Director: Christian Vincent
When he was president of France, Francois Mitterrand decided he wanted a private chef in addition to the staff who manned the vast kitchens of the Elysee Palace so he could have simple fare prepared for himself, family and close friends.
He chose Daniele Delpeuch, who had owned a truffle farm in New Zealand and took in weekend guests but who had little grand kitchen experience.
The fictional film Haute Cuisine follows Hortense Laborie, based on Delpeuch, who is astonished when the president of the pepublic appoints her as his personal cook.
While battling jealous resentment from the other kitchen staff and the bureaucrat processes for ordering and accounting for food, Hortense quickly establishes herself, thanks to her indomitable spirit and a developing culinary relationship with the president.
As well as exploring the trials and tribulations of working in such a high-pressure job, it is also a film about food as Hortense talks her way through each meal she prepares, encouraging staff to think about them as creations rather than mere combinations of ingredients.
It is a lightweight, charming work, with much of it shot in the Elysee Palace or No 55, as it is known in political circles. Catherine Frot, who plays Hortense, gives a feisty performance of a woman on a mission who tries to be blithely unaware of the social and political protocols of working for the French president.
It suffers at times from being too close to the real story. Delpeuch spent a year at the French Antarctic base as a cook and several years creating a truffle farm in New Zealand.
These are all very interesting stories but they did not need to be included. The filmmakers probably thought the Antarctic scenes of an amiable working environment provided contrast to the high-energy, bitchy Elysee kitchens, but they detract from the main story drama.
John Daly-Peoples
Sat, 27 Apr 2013
Sat, 27 Apr 2013
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'Kiwi' Haute Cuisine for a French president
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