This dramedy about a workaholic chef who is given her dead sister's kid has no flavor. It's like a microwave meal — parts of it smell good, but as is, it's very bland and leaves you feeling hungry when you're done. Some of the ingredients are good, especially the cast, but its script is canned.
Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones, TRAFFIC) is the top chef at the restaurant of Paula (Patricia Clarkson, THE STATION AGENT). When Kate's sister dies, the snooty cook is given custody of her niece Zoe (Abigail Breslin, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE). This puts a crimp in her busy lifestyle, and Paula decides she needs to hire another chef. In comes Nick (Aaron Eckhart, ERIN BROCKOVICH), a free-spirited cook whose flashy style clashes with Kate's anal-retentiveness. Of course, they will fall for each other, and Zoe will love Nick, but will they be able to get past Paula wanting Nick to be head chef?
That last question is easy to answer if you've ever simply wandered through a room where a film was playing. Many of the inherent conflicts between the busy Kate, the fun Nick and the depressed Zoe are exactly as one would expect from this dish. We are treated to no surprises, leaving us underwhelmed with the entire meal.
Despite good performances, the cast is given little to work it. Leftovers taste like leftovers no matter who is serving them. Through the film, I was reminded of RATATOUILLE, which had similar themes and settings. In the Pixar film, Remy had conflicts between being a famous chef and commitment to his family. But the animated rat felt real, while the real humans in NO RESERVATIONS felt like puppets to a plot. Dramatic over-reaction is needed now, go! The characters were forced feed into a standard plot structure, losing all their taste in a stew of cliché.
Films like NO RESERVATIONS are the hardest to review. They don't make you angry at their stupidity. The cast is good. It provides nothing new, but provides at least mild "passing the time" entertainment. When it comes to real food, I'm pretty open to any kind of food, which is exactly how I am with movies. But when I go out to a restaurant, I only know what I like when I'm eating it. I'm not too particular, and am easily pleased. Give me a pizza and I'm happy. And that's why I'm not a food critic. From a movie I want at least something unexpected. This movie didn't get my order right.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
