Mason Hertrich Blog "Reel Food and World Cinema"

By F. Mason Hertrich The role chocolate plays in the film is a variety of things. As opposed to simply eating chocolate the films main character uses it to get people to enjoy themselves. Giving certain kinds of chocolate according to what she thinks they like. Which obviously is problematic in the town because of their highly religious way of life. Religion being something that the main character does not believe in, so she does not care that aspect. This is likely related to her belief learned from her grandfather about chocolate being used to achieve inner joy. One example being the woman who throws the chocolate on the ground, until her husband finds it. Then after he eats it he wants to make love to his wife. The chocolate being used this way results in the main character taking the process of making it very seriously. So much so when the woman she taught to make it, teaches others Vianne looks almost betrayed. Because if the chocolate is to be used the way she does it, then any...

How the holiday is presented in the film is done in a variety of ways. Which varies from the different families in terms of cultural backgrounds and so on, but still shows that any of them can find the holidays stressful. For a variety of different reasons, some usual things like the peoples parents being either over baring or even prejudiced like the woman's parents who told her not to mention to their relatives that she was a lesbian. The multiculturalism in the film is good for the most part. Having a very ethnically diverse cast. Nonetheless the film does at times has stereotypes, namely the Asian family being mad about the daughter having a white boyfriend. Which is not the only thing they are mad at the daughter about, but it does come across as seemingly a joke. Except that the joke relies on what is essentially a stereotype, about Asians. Aside from that there is not that much in the way of similar stereotypes shown in the film. The rest of the families do have a variet...

Professor Esa By F. Mason Hertrich Personal identities in the film are shown through the making of the food and how it relates to what the characters go through. An example of this is found in the sisters wedding where everyone gets sick. Which is paralleled in the scene towards the end at Titas wedding where people feel great. The food still being good, except the taste being affected by what the main character is going through. As far as the national identity relating to the food in the film is done by mixing the making of the food with their cultural traditions. Which is something shown a lot in the film, with the mother having her youngest daughter not get married and live with her until she dies. Which is somewhat unique to them, which is what led the doctor not understanding it. The food is also very important for the main character because it is basically the only thing that makes her happy. Due to the mother being very controlling, and that being repeated with the sister tak...