No Reservations

In Manhattan, the workaholic Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is the chef of the 22 Bleecker Restaurant owned by Paula (Patricia Clarkson), who sent her to a therapist (Bob Balaban) because she has no other interest in life but cooking and controlling her kitchen. When her only sister dies in a car accident, Kate becomes the guardian of her niece Zoe (Abigail Breslin), who can not overcome the loss of her mother. Paula orders Kate to take a couple of days off to care of Zoe; when Kate returns to the work, she finds that Paula hired the sub-chef Nick (Aaron Eckhart) without her approval. Nick explains that he is honored of working with Kate, but the jealous Kate does not trust in him and believes he wants her position. When Zoe gets close to Nick and invites him to have dinner with Kate and her, she changes her feelings for Nick. But when his work is recognized by the clients of the restaurant, Kate believes she committed a mistake.

"No Reservations" is delightfully sweet, with a nice romance supported by the magnificent chemistry of Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart; a good story; a wonderful soundtrack; and the visual of splendorous dishes. The beauty of Catherine Zeta-Jones is awesome, and I really loved her character and this entertaining feel-good movie. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sem Reservas" ("Without Reservations")

Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is the intense perfectionist head chef of an upscale Manhattan restaurant. She has anger issues and the restaurant owner Paula (Patricia Clarkson) sends her to a therapist (Bob Balaban). She lives an intense lonely single life refusing to date her neighbor Sean. Her sister dies in a car crash. Her niece Zoe (Abigail Breslin) survives and is placed with her. Zoe's father is unknown. They both struggle. Paula hires new chef Nick Palmer (Aaron Eckhart) to pick up the slack which only angers Kate.

It's a remake of 'Mostly Martha'. This is a bit lighter in tone than the original. There are some minor changes but they kept Leah pregnant with short hair. I'm glad they lost Zoe's father in this version. It was a bit of a distraction in the original.

Breslin is a great child actor. She is the big improvement over the original. She and Zeta-Jones have a compelling story. The romance with Aaron Eckhart is a little lacking. He has limited chemistry with Zeta-Jones. They're also relying on a few too many montages. I would also prefer a lot more food porn in a cooking movie. Nevertheless, this is a nice story of coming together.

I loved the German film (Mostly Martha) that is the basis of this remake, and I was worried that the transition to Hollywood would spoil all the things that made the original so delightful. But I was very pleasantly surprised. There is a substantial plot change, but it doesn't wreck the movie, and a lot of the original dialog is kept word-for-word. Even if you know nothing about the original film, this is a lovely romantic comedy. During the sold-out preview show that I attended, people were laughing at the right moments and feeling moved at the right times too, and the casting was spot on - Catherine Zeta-Jones is perfect as the work-obsessed Kate dealing with the disruption of her perfectly-ordered life and Aaron Eckhart is irresistible with his mop of hair and those dimples. And what can you say about Abigail Breslin except that she's the most natural child actor working today. If you like romantic comedies, you'll like this one - it's smart, charming and you're rooting for the couple from the minute they meet. I can recommend this without reservations.

Despite what I recall of the advertising campaign last year, this soft-hearted 2007 film is far less a Food Network-derived romantic comedy than a Lifetime-oriented drama about grief and work/life balance. Directed by Scott Hicks ("Shine") and written by first-timer Carol Fuchs, this film offers the most insightful peek into the workings of an upscale Manhattan restaurant since 2000's "Dinner Rush" (i.e., if you don't count last year's CGI-generated, French food-fest, "Ratatouille"), but it also seems intent in splintering the story between the romantic sparks between the co-stars and the unexpected relationship that a single aunt forms with her orphaned niece. The result is heartwarming but rather diluted considering the potential inherent in the material presented. Hicks and Fuchs also seem intent on inserting predictable clichés along the way to reinforce the formulaic approach taken with the story.

Basically a remake of the 2001 German comedy, "Mostly Martha", the plot centers on perfectionist chef Kate who runs a tightly efficient kitchen in a chic SoHo bistro. As a resolute overachiever, she is able to get up before dawn to get to the fish market and stay late at the restaurant making her impeccably presented dishes until closing. So tightly wound is Kate that restaurant owner Paula forces her to see a therapist to address her supposedly difficult personality. This is the first of several disconnects I had with the film as Kate strikes me as demanding but not particularly abusive to her staff. Regardless, her life is turned upside down by the sudden death of her sister and the addition of her niece Zoe to her structured life. As if that wasn't enough, Paula has hired Nick, a rowdy opera-loving sous-chef, to partner with Kate as she struggles with her personal transition at home. Taking a number from the Tracy-Hepburn manual for romantic comedy, tempers flare as do sparks. Zoe's recovery from her mother's death becomes a complicating factor, but the rest of the story plays out basically how you would presume.

More interesting in edgier, less sympathetic roles, Catherine Zeta-Jones plays the icier aspects of her role well, but she is markedly less arresting when her character turns warm and gooey. The script also doesn't really respect her character much since she is made to look overly foolish and insensitive in her early scenes as a struggling mother figure. Aaron Eckhart seems to be playing more of a plot device as Nick, but he does it well, and the requisite sparks occur with Zeta-Jones. Cornering the market on playing put-upon children, Abigail Breslin is fine as Zoe, even though she has to be glumly depressed for much of the film. The usually more dimensional Patricia Clarkson plays Paula as a surprisingly brittle, opportunistic character, while Bob Balaban isn't given much to do at all as Kate's therapist but act as a bromide. Stuart Dryburgh's autumnal cinematography makes all the food look good, the stars as well, and minimalist composer Philip Glass, of all people, provided the unobtrusive soundtrack dominated by Puccini, Verdi, and Flotow arias. The most significant bonus item on the 2008 DVD is a twenty-minute episode of the Food Network's "Unwrapped" which includes interviews with the film's stars and the real chefs who concocted the dishes in the movie.

"No Reservations" is not a great film, nor does it pretend to be. It is very predictable and follows the formula used in countless other movies. Despite that, it give you everything you want from this type of film and is better than many of the sequels that have come out this year.

Catherine Zeta Jones is as beautiful as ever. There is a nice dose of Verdi and Puccini opera arias, and Abigail Breslin steals the film like she did with "Little Miss Sunshine." I have not liked Aaron Eckert in the past, but in this film he brings happiness to the otherwise dour Zeta Jones.

Some of the professional critics said they like the original German film "Mostly Martha" better, but I thought that "No reservations" improved on the original in every possible way. The only valid criticism I could find was that Catherine Zeta Jones is too beautiful to be believable as a lonely chef. That is a flaw I can live with.

If you are looking for a break from the so-called Summer "action" films, "No Reservations" is not very original, but it certainly fits the bill. The only drawback is that you will definitely leave the theater feeling really hungry for good food.