Delicious UK - (09)September 2020

RATATOUILLE

(2007)

WHAT’SIT ABOUT?

Remyis noordinaryrat.

Notcontenttoeat

binscraps,whenhisdisapproving

fatheris outofsightheforagesfor

mushroomsandcooksrecipesby

hishero,thelatechefAuguste

Gusteau.WhenRemy’spackflee

a shotgun-wieldinghouseholder,

Remygetslostaloneinthe

sewers.Hefindshimselfbeneath

Gusteau’sParisrestaurant,which

is nowlivingonpastglories.

InGusteau’s,Remypursueshis

dreamofbeinga chef,butthere’s

a smallproblem– nobodywants a

ratintheirkitchen.Clumsy

kitchenporterAlfredoLinguini,

withRemyhiddenunderhistoquepulling

thestrings,quicklygarnersa reputation

asanexcitingnewtalent.

Therestaurantwinsacclaimagain,but

howfarcanRemyandAlfredotakethings?

AndwithfearsomerestaurantcriticAnton

Ego(anenjoyablyfruityPeterO’Toole)

andthehealthinspectorduea visit,can

Alfredo keep his secret under his hat?

WHYTHISMOVIE?

Well,it’saboutfood,obv.Andthoughit’s

an animated movie, everything looks

THE MOVIE

beautifullyreal.Thelarder,stuffedwith

cheeses,Frenchsausageandmore,is as

invitingtousasit is toRemyandhisrat

pals.Youcanalmostsmelltheelaborate

dishes,steamrisingfromthem,that

leavethepass.AndthankstothePixar

animators’trademarkattentiontothe

smallestdetails(faintknifescarsona

chef’sarm,forinstance),wegeta proper

senseofthehigh-pressureworkings of

a poshrestaurantkitchen.

There’sgreatbeans-on-toastslapstick

humour, such as the ‘tough guy’ rat

tenderisinga steakbyusingit asa

punchbag.Grown-upswillenjoythemore

sophisticated,hautecuisinejokestoo,

includingbaddiehead-chefSkinner’s

paranoiathatAlfredois gaslightinghim

withglimpsesofa “phantom”rat.

Youhavetoadjusttotheweird

ideaofcheeringona rodent,but

beneaththatthere’sanimportant

messageabouttheoutsiderbeing

givena chance(theotherkitchen

staffareoutsiderstoo:thesous

chefis anexconvict,androtisseur

Collettefumesattheprejudice

againstwomeninthe“antiquated

hierarchy”offinedining

restaurants).Themovietakes

theloveoffood,andthepeople

wholoveit,seriously– andis all

the more powerful for it.

TRIVIATOMUNCHON

lIt waslateTVchefAnthony Bourdain’s

favouritefoodmovie.

lThewineorderedbyAntonEgois a real

bordeauxthatwouldcostaround£1,500.

l ‘Gusteau’ is an anagram of ‘Auguste’.

THEQUOTETOQUOTE

AUGUSTEGUSTEAU:Anyonecancook,

but only the fearless can be great!

Rent/buyit onGooglePlay,Disney+and

more. Turn over for our meal suggestion→ WORDS: LES DUNN. FILM IMAGES: ALAMY

Immerseyourselfinthemostpopularfoodfilmever thestoryofanunlikelyherohitting

the world of Parisian fine dining – with a French comfort-food classic and a bottle of bon vin

MOV I E N IGH T

film + meal + wine

68 deliciousmagazine.co.uk