The Last Recipe’s beautiful shots of food overpower storyline and plot development [Review]
The Last Recipe is heartwarming japanese fare. A bankrupt Japanese chef sets out to find a world-famous recipe in The Last Recipe. The film explores themes such as friendship, racial unity, and death, but most importantly, the power of food to unite people.
The story follows Mitsuru Sasaki (Kazunari Ninomiya), a chef blessed with the ability to cook any meal he has tasted before. This leads to many people asking him to cook their last ever meal. He receives a request to recreate the last recipe of Naotaro Yamagata (Hidetoshi Nishijima), a renowned Imperial chef in the 1930s. In his quest for the recipe, Mitsuru learns more about himself and the true meaning of cooking.
The movie features two timelines: Mitsuru following the clues as to the whereabouts of this recipe; and flashbacks to Yamagata himself creating this legendary dish.
If your Instagram feed is filled with stunning dishes, this movie is for you. The food shots are almost overwhelmingly beautiful, overshadowing the plot and character development. The flashback scenes are more enjoyable than Mitsuru’s plot, though; it’s odd that they didn’t just make a film about Yamagata.
The film does fall victim to the melodrama stereotypical of Japanese dramas, which takes away from the enjoyment. But if you want an ultimately feel-good foodie film, this will be your cup of tea.
Edited by Karly Cox