Career Center Blog

The movie No Reservations is a wonderful film directed by Scott Hicks that depicts the life and times of a well known and very successful executive chef in New York.  It gives an inside view of what a chef does while working in the fast-paced kitchen.  This movie highlights the beauty of the culinary arts. Kate, played by Catherine Zeta Jones, does a fantastic job of describing the elements of different dishes to give the audience a feeling as if they are right there preparing the food themselves.

Throughout the film, you witness the chef go to local markets handpicking fresh fish, herbs and truffles. You get to see the behind the scenes action that takes place in a kitchen as well as some of the events that take place out in the front of the restaurant. The movie incorporates the relationships between chefs, as well as between the restaurant owner and chefs. You also get to see the type of character Kate is by watching her interact with her therapist and all of the other people present in her life. She proves to be quite the perfectionist, making sure that her art is represented in the absolute best form possible. You begin to wonder if there is a correlation between her need for perfection and the amount of success that she has had in her career. But then you realize that when Nick, Kate’s love interest/competition, enters into the plot, that perfection is not the only key to being a great chef. He brings passion, music and a touch of Italy into her kitchen. Nick shows Kate that she can relax a tiny bit and learn to love. Overall, this film shows the true art and beauty behind cooking and could inspire anyone to get in the kitchen and start digging through some old recipes. For some, this could even be a future career, you never know.