Food-Themed & Kind-of-Food-themed (movies, documentaries, TV excluding competitions)
Food is memory. I want to taste home in my food.
From all around the world. Knowing the cultural and/or culinary background will help you appreciate the films' intentions. This list is made for a friend today, but I decided to make it public. :D
Frankly, it is very rare to see a movie that balances the epicurean story and the human side of the story.
Please follow and bookmark the list, and check back every now and then. Don't forget to share this list with someone who might enjoy it.
The list is in chronological order. To see the latest additions, please sort the list by "Date added."
Enjoy!
From all around the world. Knowing the cultural and/or culinary background will help you appreciate the films' intentions. This list is made for a friend today, but I decided to make it public. :D
Frankly, it is very rare to see a movie that balances the epicurean story and the human side of the story.
Please follow and bookmark the list, and check back every now and then. Don't forget to share this list with someone who might enjoy it.
The list is in chronological order. To see the latest additions, please sort the list by "Date added."
Enjoy!
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- 45 titles
- DirectorJûzô ItamiStarsKen WatanabeTsutomu YamazakiNobuko MiyamotoA truck driver stops at a small family-run noodle shop and decides to help its fledgling business. The story is intertwined with various vignettes about the relationship of love and food.
- DirectorGabriel AxelStarsStéphane AudranBodil KjerBirgitte FederspielDuring the late 19th century, a strict religious community in a Danish village takes in a French refugee from the Franco-Prussian War as a servant to the late pastor's daughters.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsSihung LungKuei-Mei YangWang Yu-wenA senior chef lives with his three grown daughters; the middle one finds her future plans affected by unexpected events and the life changes of the other household members.The first food-themed movie that I fell in love with. The film features fantastic food, but it is not about the food. This film is about family, life, and changes that all generations go through.
Language: Chinese
Loaded with cultural elements - DirectorHark TsuiStarsKenny BeeLeslie CheungAnita YuenWithin a few years, Chiu, a small-time crook, has become a gang leader. But his professional ambitions are actually quite different: he wants to leave illegality behind and make a career for himself and his lover in Canada - as a chef. However, this craft must first be learned and Chiu's talent in the field of cooking leaves much to be desired.
- DirectorCheol-su ParkStarsPang Eun-jinHwang Sin-hyeChu-Ryun KimTwo women, a chef and an anorexic writer, are neighbors in an apartment building. The chef.
- DirectorsStephen ChowLik-Chi LeeStarsStephen ChowKaren MokVincent KokThe most renowned and feared chef in the world loses his title of God of Cookery because of his pompous attitude. Humbled, he sets out to reclaim his title.
- DirectorsCampbell ScottStanley TucciStarsTony ShalhoubStanley TucciMarc AnthonyNew Jersey, 1950s. Two brothers run an Italian restaurant. Business is not going well as a rival Italian restaurant is out-competing them. In a final effort to save the restaurant, the brothers plan to put on an evening of incredible food.So authentic, so personal. The way they make their everything-homemade Italian dish, and the drama that comes with how Timpano is cooked, the excitement to be able to share it with the community - it is so realistic. I could taste the labour of love as I watch the film.
- DirectorKim Ui-seokStarsKim Seok-hoonMyeong Se-binShin GooHan-kook starts to work as an apprentice chef at a Chinese restauraunt belonging to his father's friend, but rather than follow the painstaking process of preparing the food by hand, Han-kook begins to use pre-processed ingredients.Korean
- DirectorLasse HallströmStarsJuliette BinocheJohnny DeppJudi DenchSingle mother Vianne Rocher and her young daughter arrive in a rural French town in the winter of 1959, and open an unusual chocolate shop that disrupts the moral fiber of the strictly Catholic townsfolk and mayor.The first "sensual" food-themed movie that I came to love. It is a witty, feel-good movie. Most of all, I love their bean-to-product process without any modern aparatus. In this movie, chocolate is not a food; it is a character.
- DirectorFina TorresStarsPenélope CruzMurilo BenícioHarold PerrineauAfter being cheated on by an insecure man, Brazilian chef Isabella Oliveira moves to San Francisco and finds success as the host of a cooking show.
- DirectorTassos BoulmetisStarsGeorges CorrafaceIeroklis MichaelidisRenia LouizidouA Greek boy grows up to become a talented cook after political turmoil forces his family to leave Turkey.
- DirectorJames L. BrooksStarsAdam SandlerTéa LeoniPaz VegaA woman and her daughter leave Mexico for a better life in America, where they start working for a family whose patriarch is a newly-celebrated chef with an insecure wife.This is not really a food-themed movie. But I thought I'd add it because I want to see more Spanish/Latin food!
- DirectorAlexander PayneStarsPaul GiamattiThomas Haden ChurchVirginia MadsenTwo men reaching middle age with not much to show but disappointment embark on a week-long road trip through California's wine country, just as one is about to take a trip down the aisle.I enjoyed the book very much, and the movie, even more. I took the trip following this book, too; I recommend that you do it too.
- StarsAnthony BourdainTom VitaleZamir GottaAnthony Bourdain, chef, writer, traveler, visits places all around the world sampling various foods.Bourdain's 1 of 2 heyday-series that I recommend. Alton Brown has helped me understand how to cook and the chemistry behind it; Anthony Bourdain helped me understand that food can be political.
- StarsGuy FieriHunter FieriRyder FieriFood Network's Guy Fieri rolls out to visit America's favorite diners, drive-ins and dives, interviewing the owners of the food establishments and samples the items on their menus.This used to be my go-to series when I was planning a trip.
- DirectorKatsuyuki MotohiroStarsYûsuke SantamariaManami KonishiTortoise MatsumotoA dramedy about the relationship between an aspiring comic and his stubborn noodlemaker father.Japanese
- DirectorNaoko OgigamiStarsSatomi KobayashiHairi KatagiriMasako MotaiSachie opens a rice ball diner in Helsinki, attracting customers and a group of neighborhood women. The story explores the origins of rice balls in Finland.Japanese
- DirectorYun-su ChongStarsKim Kang-wooIm Won-heeLee HanaA young, incredibly talented chef quits the profession after a contest to head a world-class restaurant ends in tragedy. Retiring to a small rural town with his grandfather, he finds a new and more peaceful existence, working as a farmer and selling vegetables at the local market. Even though content in his new life, when a nationwide cooking competition offers him the chance to take on his long-time rival, Seong-Chan embarks on a journey that will forever change his view of the world and lead him to the most startling revelations. Surrounding himself with a ragtag crew of misfits, each with his own poignant story to tell, he is soon in the media spotlight, facing stiff competition from the other contestants while dealing with his grandfather's diminishing faculties and a long buried family secret. Seong-Chan can only struggle to overcome every adversity with a quiet dignity.A cheesy movie at first. But if you understand the cultural and culinary undertone, this is a decent, entertaining movie. I think they tried to make it so that anyone with no cultural understanding can watch it.
Language: Korean - DirectorScott HicksStarsCatherine Zeta-JonesAaron EckhartAbigail BreslinThe life of a top chef changes when she becomes the guardian of her young niece.A typical date-night rom-com. Not really a food-themed film.
- DirectorRandall MillerStarsChris PineAlan RickmanBill PullmanThe story of the early days of California wine making featuring the now infamous, blind Paris wine tasting of 1976 that has come to be known as "Judgment of Paris".
- DirectorNora EphronStarsAmy AdamsMeryl StreepChris MessinaJulie Powell, a young blogger, is determined to emulate Julia Child's cooking techniques. Though separated by time, the two women share a common passion for food that intertwines their lives.USA
- DirectorShûichi OkitaStarsKôsuke ToyoharaMasato SakaiKengo KôraNishimura has a passion for cooking, but never would he have imagined the task before him now: He is unexpectedly assigned to a south polar mission to serve as head chef at the Dome Fuji station. Leaving wife and daughter behind for a year, he and the other crew members experience one existential crisis after another in the icy cold. And then they run out of Ramen!Japan
- DirectorDavid KaplanStarsAarti MannKevin CorriganDean WintersIn this super-feel-good foodie comedy, young Manhattan chef Samir rediscovers his heritage and his passion for life through the enchanting art of cooking Indian food.Could be a better show, but it's a feel-good foodie show that I could watch.
- DirectorDong-hoon BaekStarsJin-Ki BaekLee Byung-joonJin Goo(Korean with English subtitles) Korean's President organizes a nationwide "Kimchi Contest." Brother and sister: Jang-eun and Sung-Chan join the competition, both using their mother's recipe. Whoever wins, will decide the fate of their family's restaurant.I add this title to the list because this is a sequel. Personally, I did not enjoy it.
You've got to know the subtleties of Korean cuisines to understand what's going on.
Language: Korean - DirectorYa-chuan HsiaoStarsLun-Mei GweiHan ChangZaizai LinWhat are you willing to give up in exchange for fulfilling your dreams?Not a foodie movie - but about life.