Sad, funny and romantic - a good combination (No Reservations (DVD))

Member Name: emmajt81

Product:	No Reservations (DVD)
Date:	27/08/09 (10 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Very well acted and well cast

Disadvantages: n/a

Film review only

Kate (Catherine Zeta Jones) is head chef at a well renowned restaurant and is very much the perfectionist. She lives and breathes her job but is looking forward to her sister and niece coming to stay with her. Tragically her sister is killed in a car crash on her way to see her, and Kate becomes the full time carer of her niece Zoe. Overnight Kate's life and priorities have changed, and through her overwhelming grief has to find a way through. On top of that, after some time off from the restaurant a new sous-chef has started called Nick (Aaron Eckhart). He takes a bit of a different approach to cooking than Kate does - he's good but far more laid back and Kate doesn't like him one bit. But when he charms her niece she sees a different side to him.

If you go into this film thinking it's all happy go lucky then prepared to be proven very wrong. This film is a drama with a couple of comedic moments thrown in but it's basically a drama. There are some very emotional scenes and anyone who has lost a close relative will be able to relate to the grief Kate and Zoe are contending with. Catherine Zeta Jones is actually very well cast here. Her American accent is strong and believable and her hard exterior to her character is placed well. Of course Kate goes through quite a journey and is quite a different person at the end of the film. This is to be expected though when family circumstances have changed so much. She loves her jobs, live for it even, and although the same is true at the end of the film, Kate realises than having family close by and perhaps a relationship is far better than cooking meals for one every night.

There is a strong emphasis on the cooking side of things, the film shows how involved chefs get with their jobs and we see what goes on in the inside of a kitchen and how chefs really get a bus mans holiday when they get home because they're still cooking for themselves. Cooking seems to be a bit of a release for Kate and takes her mind away from the fact that she's alone with no one but herself in an empty apartment. Catherine Zeta Jones seemed to take this role in her stride, she was believable as a chef and her emotional scenes were done with great thought and precision.

Aaron Eckhart as sous-chef Nick also plays a good role here. He's the counterpart for Kate's planned-by-the-minute life and throws some much needed perspective her way. He shows her how to live her life again and have fun - everything doesn't always have to be about work - and getting involved with your work certainly doesn't mean not being able to have fun with it. Aaron is quite well known for his drama roles and action roles and although this film has a bit of a romance film, this is a role he has played before and is good at it. He's a very watchable actor and never seems to falter.

I should give a mention also to Abigail Bresline who plays Katie's niece Zoe - she is a very good young actress and manages to portray her grief very well as well as being able to act like a child where needed. I think she's a very promising young actress and she has had some notable roles since this one.

I quite liked this film; it's very watchable with drama, sorrow, comedy and romance all there in equal parts. This film doesn't drag at just over an hour and half long, and the ending is satisfying. I would highly recommend this and at about a fiver on Play and Amazon and the usual places it's not going to break the bank either.

Summary: Worth watching!