The plot to Mostly Martha, a 2001 release from Germany which I recommend over the follow-up Americanized version, can't be more than basically established without introducing spoilers:
The female chef of a fashionable restaurant in the port city of Hamburg schedules a visit from her sister and niece.
There. That's all that can be safely said, except that the movie contains at least one major mood shift.
Through early 2009, this is my favorite foreign film of the first decade of the 21st century, second only to Seabiscuit among movies from that not yet completed ten-year stretch--and, with me, ranking ahead of the several recent German historical dramas that have gotten more acclaim.
The final eight and a half minutes arrive suddenly, and include three impressive minutes of musical interlude unaccompanied by any dialogue. The score to the closing credits is worth listening to, also. The ending is what stamps the movie's stature, along with a solid lead-actress performance by Martina Gedeck and a good script and capable directing by Sandra Nettelbeck.
Guys, put this down on your prospective date-movie lists, and do not read or allow any reading, beforehand, of either the front or the flip side of the DVD cover. Watch with food and drink to perhaps enhance the treat, because the movie will make you hungry.
The female chef of a fashionable restaurant in the port city of Hamburg schedules a visit from her sister and niece.
There. That's all that can be safely said, except that the movie contains at least one major mood shift.
Through early 2009, this is my favorite foreign film of the first decade of the 21st century, second only to Seabiscuit among movies from that not yet completed ten-year stretch--and, with me, ranking ahead of the several recent German historical dramas that have gotten more acclaim.
The final eight and a half minutes arrive suddenly, and include three impressive minutes of musical interlude unaccompanied by any dialogue. The score to the closing credits is worth listening to, also. The ending is what stamps the movie's stature, along with a solid lead-actress performance by Martina Gedeck and a good script and capable directing by Sandra Nettelbeck.
Guys, put this down on your prospective date-movie lists, and do not read or allow any reading, beforehand, of either the front or the flip side of the DVD cover. Watch with food and drink to perhaps enhance the treat, because the movie will make you hungry.