La Cuoca Del Presidente

Charming film

Didnt run in Mexico Region.... but it fine.

'Haute Cuisine', or 'Les Saveurs du Palais', is the charming and heartwarming story of the personal chef, here named Madame Hortense Laborie (Catherine Frot), of the President of France, Francois Mitterand (Jean d'Ormesson). Beginning while she is presently cooking on an island off Antarctica although mainly concentrating on her time while spent in Paris, France, in the late 1980's. Hortense is the perfect blend of a woman's ambition, talent, and grace as the movie bounces back and forth between the two very different places and positions.From the Perigord region of France, this movie moves swiftly with Hortense being whisked away in a very secretive fashion; not knowing exactly of her destination. She was only telephoned the previous day by the Ministry of Culture which vaguely explained that they were looking for a woman to cook for an important Senior Official. Finally meeting up with her contact person, she is unknowingly taken to n33 which is The Palace Elysee in Paris. Hortense is to be the Official Cook to Le President, to handle all of his meetings with personal friends and his staff.She doubts from the very start that she is the right person for such a position as she has learned to cook simply, homespun and regional dishes from her mother and 'Granny'. Lovely homemade recipes, named after her family (especially Granny), using the ingredients from her own garden is the family style repertoire brought along with her. Hortense is reassured "that's precisely what the President wants". Now she must relocate to the palace residence leaving behind her beloved farm, livestock and way of life. The rules for having this new position in the Rue de l'Elysee are, at first, rigid and need to be strictly adhered to; direction, decorum, etiquette and standing.The head chef, sous chef, and other staff from the Main Kitchen refuse to acknowledge her upon introduction, or to work harmoniously along with her. She is a lone woman within a sea of uppity, stuffy, and pretentious men in white coats. The pastry chef, Nicolas (Arthur Dupont), receives an instant promotion becoming her "second" and works like clockwork alongside her in the private Personal Kitchen. He is an amiable and sweet young man, an opposite of all the other chefs, who then eagerly acclimates Hortense to her new culinary surroundings along with the devices she hasn't seen or used before. While her new found title carries the weight of the world, she must perform precisely, detailed and exactly. Without a moment's loss in following the order, she finds herself extremely important and endeared by the President; swiftly garnishing his favor while sharing a mutually friendly ideology of cooking and home-cooked recipes which spark his memories. Talking openly about "recipe books" and their childhoods, the two enjoy each other while diplomats wait expectantly at the President's closed door.The entire film is a visual feast with its photography (Laurent Dailland), the vibrant and colorful food leaps right off of the screen. The swollen landscapes are vivid and completely lovely while combing the countries, experiencing The Palace of Paris, and examining plentiful dinner tables. Along with the 'heavily inspired' screenplay, adapted from the book by Daniele Mazet-Delpeuch herself (Hortense Laborie in the film), director Christian Vincent adds a beautifully orchestrated soundtrack (Gabriel Yared). To the tune of "Auld Lang Syne", and her recollections of finding the perfect truffles, you will fall in love with Hortense and her endearing story ... Bon Appetit!

What a truly lovely film about food and the politics of a woman cooking for the President of France. It is told in flashback from the Antartica, where the woman who cooked for the President is now cooking for a group of scientistsDanièle Delpeuch, was a family cook and restaurant-owner, who in the late 1980s was asked by President François Mitterrand to be his personal cook at the Elysée Palace. Danièle's name for this film is Hortense, and she is played by the lovely Catherine Frot. Hortense is met by fierce resistance from the all dominated male main kitchen, they are rude and sexist to her. She refuses to eat meals with them, and chooses the menus and foods she wants to prepare. She has a pastry assistant assigned to her, and they bond over the food they prepare. The President wants traditional regional cuisine he remembers from his youth.We see Hortense discussing food and cookbooks with the President while dignitaries wait to meet with him. Hortense learns from Pres. Mitterrand to read the cookbook and recipes out loud, and she does this for the rest of her life. Everything goes along very well for a year or more until the President has health problems that require no fat, no sauces, few spices and in reality good plain food. At the same time Hortense develops a stress fracture of her hip which requires rest. She resigns and life moves on.We find her again cooking for the scientists on Antartica for a year. The money is good and she wants to start a truffle farm in New Zealand. The scientists love her cooking and love her. She is a force to be reckoned with. We end up loving her, too. A strong, lovely woman who knows good food and how to cook it.Recommended. prisrob 10-25-13

There is no pretension in this movie other the one to entertain the viewer and it succeeds as a lovely movie.I found that the movie was a little too short and there were a few times when we wouldn't quite get the gist of what was happening: it's only a 1:30 movie.I understood that Mitterrand gave her a brand new edition of the old book of recipes he was reading in his youth, but it is not clear.A funny quirk: She always says aloud what she is doing while cooking.This is not a biopic so many of the details have been invented and do not apply to the person who inspired this movie. ( Carnets de cuisine du Périgord à l'Elysee

There is no plot per say. The story is interesting but the relationships between characters remain superficial and no one really stands out. The story is flat all along.

European formatted DVD—non-playable on my playerin Italian—unknown whether or not there are English subtitles

J'adore ce film et quand je l'ai vue en blu-ray je me suis dit : "Cool😁" et bien je suis encore plus contente de l'avoir acheté car j'ai même reçu un petit livret de deux recettes du film que j'ai toujours voulu essayer 😋

Film amusant et très intéressant concernant Daniele Mazet Delpech. Une vie bien remplie pour elle.

Gentle film, but don’t watch it if you’re hungry. Jean d’Ormesson (recently deceased) in his first acting rôle at the age of 87, still handsome, charming, elegant as Mitterrand (though politically opposed in life) does a grand job. “Simple” French cuisine (as grandmother made) isn’t anything like the post-war cuisine I grew up with in Scotland- no truffles, ceps, foie gras....! Oh well, autres pays, autres mœurs!

Forse il titolo della mia recensione è riduttivo, del resto è un film ben fatto, delicato, pulito, con una bella trama.Ma se non si ama profondamente la cucina, la ricercatezza dei dettagli e degli ingredienti, la raffinatezza e la sontuosità della cucina francese, allora non si potrà mai apprezzare a fondo questo film.Fa venire voglia di mettersi ai fornelli e inventarsi piatti spettacolari, in alcune scene sembra quasi di sentire il profumo di tutti quei tartufi e porcini appena colti.....Io adoro questo film, l'ho visto così tante volte che alla fine mi sono decisa di prendere il dvd e aggiungerlo alla mia collezione.Spedizione Amazon perfetta.

Me sorprendió de la pelicula , ver como olvidamos la importancia emocional de comer bien y simple cada día, los recuerdos asociados que se generan, la felicidad producida.Ver las intrigas entre fogones del Presidente de Francia me ha divertido, el contraste entre la burocracia funcionarial y la libertad de actuacion del mundo particular.Se me paso el tiempo volando y al terminar de verla, me fui a picar algo a la nevera, je, je, je, después de ver tanto plato delicioso, inevitable.