Blog 8_Chocolat

Originally I had gone to blockbuster with the intention of renting Like Water for Chocolate but unfortunately they did not have it. I then thought Babette Feast would be interesting, but they did not have that either. I was left with no other choice to watch Chocolat. But I am so glad that I ended up watching it. The move was fantastic and Judi Dench did such a great job. It took me a bit to get into the movie, but after the first few scenes I was hooked. The power that chocolate is portrayed as having is very interesting because sometimes I forget just how much power food holds, especially desserts. Chocolate is so sweet, tempting, and easy to indulge in that the symbolism used in “chocolat” being sinful made sense. Vianne made such divine treats and customers were addicted after one bite. This happens to me all the time. I say, “just one bite”, and then I end up finishing the whole thing, whatever it is I may be eating. Food has a way of captivating me and it takes control of me. Just the other night I was out eating appetizers and as full as I was, they just tasted so good, I kept eating and eventually finished them. The other major part of the movie I loved was the connection between food, family, and shared memories. The feast for Armande’s birthday was absolutely exquisite. The preparation of food that went into the celebration was intense and it was through this feast that they were sharing laughter and good times, and then eventually even going to the boat for dessert. Whenever I think about large family gatherings or time spent with friends, there is always eating involved. Food and dessert is prepared and it really is the host of the party. Analyzing the movie through the perspective of food, it really does a good job of using food and desserts symbolically for power, family, and friends.

Shugart, Helene A. "Sumptous Texts: Consuming 'Otherness' in the Food Film Genre.” Critical Studies in Media Communication 25.1 (2008): 68-90.

This is an interesting article because it is recognizing the prominence of food playing a role in films, chocolat being one of them. I thought this quote below summed up a lot of what our course has been about. Looking at food as much more than simply food but connecting it with human emotion.

"Specifically, I contend that these films offer food as a rhetorical device through which discourses of privilege are reconciled with and restabilised against contemporary practices of desire and consumption, especially (and increasingly) for and of the "other".