Tribeca Film Festival: 'Haute Cuisine' goes down easy

A delightful look at the cuisinière for French President François Mitterrand, the Tribeca Film Festival selection Haute Cuisine is a delicious meal that captivates from start to finish. Yet after leaving the theatre, you can't help but feel that something was missing. To continue the metaphor, Haute Cuisine is executed perfectly, but it chooses the wrong ingredients. Focusing purely on the professional aspects of the position, Christian Vincent's film creates high drama out of petty infighting between departments and morsels of compliments the chef received from Mitterand. In the end, that's all there is, though the presentation is so light and quick it's hard to notice until after the plates are cleared.

The movie opens with a flustered Hortense Laborie (Catherine Frot) being rushed to Paris for a meeting about cooking for a top politician. That higher-up ends up being none other than Mitterand himself, and she's quickly thrown into the fast-paced environment. Turns out Mitterand prefers simple, home-cooked food, and she's all too happy to oblige, sending out sumptuous but simple dishes with an emphasis on ingredients sourced from the best regions in France--a technique sure to resonate with today's foodies.

Francophiles and arthouse film lovers tend to be an overlapping bunch, and there's plenty here to satisfy those who like observing the differences between the French and everyone else. One small gaffe is the casting of someone who speaks French-accented English as an Australian reporter, though at least she gets the Down Under pronunciation of "Australia" almost right. When Mitterand adopts a diet, or régime, on the advice of his doctor, the choice is treated in that wonderfully French way--snobbery and distaste. Hortense clearly does not believe in diets, just that French concept of moderation, animal fats and sauces be damned. She makes up for that by serving him slivered truffles on toast in a secret late-night meal.

The Weinstein Co. has acquired Haute Cuisine, with plans to release it on Aug. 16. It's certain to be at least a modest success, but it lacks the effervescence and meaning that has elevated some of their other specialty releases. I would be surprised if the feature received any awards play, but it might be nice for an afternoon at the movies in the hot summer heat.