Top 5 Meals in Films
Towards the end of my workday today, I was sitting at my desk reflecting on my day when out of nowhere, my stomach growled. I don’t usually take a lunch so I’m always ready to eat after work, but this was an extra loud rumbled. I have been planning to do a Top 5 for delicious food in movies for a while and include it in the World-Building series I swear I didn’t scrap. I guess my hunger was a sign that tonight is the night for this list (plus I made one of the recipes for dinner)!
Food, glorious food. It’s what helps keep us alive and also often connects us. For some, it can also be a source of pain, anxiety, or trauma. That’s why the food that characters eat (or that they don’t) can do so much in building a scene. So, for this list, I didn’t just focus on foods that look delicious but also help move the story or characters forward as well.
5. Breakfast, This Is the End
Danny McBride is a national treasure in real life. In this movie…not so much. When he finds tons of food in James Franco’s kitchen, unaware it’s their apocalypse stash, he takes it upon himself to make the most delectable American breakfast—to the dismay of the group. The sheer (understandable) horror of the other men, juxtaposed with the delicious food pushes the joke forward and allows everyone in the scene a character development moment based on how each handles the conflict.
4. Bread and Wine, In Bloom
In Bloom is a Georgian coming-of-age period piece showing the life and choices of two poor teenage girls in the early 1990s Georgia. Each of the girls’ families is facing food insecurity and making the most of bread hand-outs, scarce national dishes, and, of course, wine. One of these scenes is a simple, intimate scene where the two girls sit across from one another eating bread and drinking wine. Bread with wine is a favorite appetizer of mine and here it adds to the bond of the two central characters. And meals always taste better eaten with the ones you love. I can’t recommend this movie enough, by the way.
3. The Sauce, Goodfellas
I almost with the prison dinner here, but changed my mind for two reasons: 1) how it’s used in the story and because 2) I have actually made a version of this one. Plus the whole idea of having the climax of a film revolve around cooking a pasta sauce is THE BEST of ideas. The excellent editing by Thelma Schoonmaker and narration by Ray Liotta drive the scene forward and you’re left wondering what will happen not only to the characters but that wonderful looking sauce as well.
2. ScarJo Noodles, Chef
Honestly, I made this dish for dinner tonight. It’s VERY good. And I totally see why it’s used in this movie as a seduction dish. It’s savory and carb-filled, and a simple showcase of how to woo a woman with food. Seriously, guys, if you can cook it’s a huge turn on.
1. Full Dinner Spread, Eat Drink Man Woman
This scene was hard for me to put on here at all, let alone as number one. I’m a vegan and I have made that choice for ethical reasons. This scene, though, is wonderfully filmed despite it’s not-vegan-friendly status, and sets up the premise and the characters in the best way possible. Only Ang Lee could make me put a scene like this as my number one choice.
That’s all for this one, but I’ll be back tomorrow with a review for the new Netflix movie I’m Thinking of Ending Things. I’m also planning at least one other post this week in addition to finally getting back to the Weekly Watches. Also, Monday is exciting because I will be dropping the next in my Decades Project: The Top 100 Films of the 1980s.