"The God of Cookery," is a bizarre and over the top comedy that deals with passion, love, and a journey of self discovery. The three previously mentioned themes are couched in a storyline revolving around cooking and cooking competition. In addition the film incorporates wire fu, slightly gory kung fu, and Chinese religious references to stylize and accentuate the humorous aspects of the film. TGOC is a truly mixed bag of story, storytelling techniques, and genre staples. Such a bizarre mix is bound to be divisive. The film is very easily loved. Unfortunately, the film is just as easily hated. Certain assumptions by the filmmakers clearly show that TGOC is directed at a particular audience and not for general consumption.
The first assumption is that bizarreness, in story, in action sequence, and in acting is funny in and of itself. TGOC does not take itself very seriously. The layering of martial arts gang fights, quests for perfect the meatball, and scatological humor blend seamlessly into an extended examination of what it means to be one's self. Juxtaposing absurdity with existential growth leads the film to be odd, silly, and (depending on the viewer) outright hilarious. In addition, such juxtaposition requires that only a caricature of reality be maintained. Basically, the audience is given some very familiar themes to establish context and then the film takes those themes through a whirly-gig story that is wholly unexpected. The second assumption follows from the first. The filmmakers clearly hope that the themes of passion, love, and self discovery are not lost when masked with massive amounts of goofiness, satire, and humor. This second assumption appears to be very carefully considered. At no point does the story become so convoluted as to confuse the audience. In fact, the plot line is devilishly consistent allowing plot devices to function both as thematic reminders and key character development points. As a unit composed of acting, story, assumption, and direction, TGOC is very well done.
As hinted at above, this film does lend itself to being disliked. The absurdity of the story leads to several potential problems. First, the acting is at times too cheesy. This is particularly the case with extended shots of the female lead pensively staring into the camera. Second, the subtitles are very fast and somewhat hard to understand. The dialog of the film is meant to be quick and quirky. This combination is especially difficult to capture in subtitle form. Occasionally the viewer misses whole sentences or catches lines which are seemingly non-sensical. Finally, Chinese humor does not always translate. There are several instances where puerile slapstick or silly punning is used. Unfortunately, both of these comedy types are lost on audiences unaccustomed to Chinese humor (and I am not really accustomed to Chinese humor).
While TGOC may have some debatable weak points, the film makes up for them in other wonderful ways. The plot is laugh out loud funny and surprisingly coherent. In addition, the plot creatively finds ways to take absurd characters and develop them into likable and rather natural people. From a technical standpoint, the film is well paced. The editing very rarely lags or hinders the natural stride of the story. The shot composition is a good mix of fast and slow cuts depending on mood and intention of the filmmaker. The effects, while now commonplace, are well done and a visual treat. When all is said and done, TGOC is a set of upbeat themes draped in playful goofiness. The film leads the audience through a playful story of the roles love and passion play in self discovery. In essence, one cannot help but laugh their way through this upbeat and fun tale.
On a personal note, this is a wonderful introduction to bizarre film. Everything about the movie is slightly off for the Western audience, thus allowing for some big laughs. Also, the film is not so over the top as to alienate anyone. This film makes the perfect companion to an evening of shared cooking, wine, and film. I will be highly recommending this to friends. 7.5 of 10 stars.
The first assumption is that bizarreness, in story, in action sequence, and in acting is funny in and of itself. TGOC does not take itself very seriously. The layering of martial arts gang fights, quests for perfect the meatball, and scatological humor blend seamlessly into an extended examination of what it means to be one's self. Juxtaposing absurdity with existential growth leads the film to be odd, silly, and (depending on the viewer) outright hilarious. In addition, such juxtaposition requires that only a caricature of reality be maintained. Basically, the audience is given some very familiar themes to establish context and then the film takes those themes through a whirly-gig story that is wholly unexpected. The second assumption follows from the first. The filmmakers clearly hope that the themes of passion, love, and self discovery are not lost when masked with massive amounts of goofiness, satire, and humor. This second assumption appears to be very carefully considered. At no point does the story become so convoluted as to confuse the audience. In fact, the plot line is devilishly consistent allowing plot devices to function both as thematic reminders and key character development points. As a unit composed of acting, story, assumption, and direction, TGOC is very well done.
As hinted at above, this film does lend itself to being disliked. The absurdity of the story leads to several potential problems. First, the acting is at times too cheesy. This is particularly the case with extended shots of the female lead pensively staring into the camera. Second, the subtitles are very fast and somewhat hard to understand. The dialog of the film is meant to be quick and quirky. This combination is especially difficult to capture in subtitle form. Occasionally the viewer misses whole sentences or catches lines which are seemingly non-sensical. Finally, Chinese humor does not always translate. There are several instances where puerile slapstick or silly punning is used. Unfortunately, both of these comedy types are lost on audiences unaccustomed to Chinese humor (and I am not really accustomed to Chinese humor).
While TGOC may have some debatable weak points, the film makes up for them in other wonderful ways. The plot is laugh out loud funny and surprisingly coherent. In addition, the plot creatively finds ways to take absurd characters and develop them into likable and rather natural people. From a technical standpoint, the film is well paced. The editing very rarely lags or hinders the natural stride of the story. The shot composition is a good mix of fast and slow cuts depending on mood and intention of the filmmaker. The effects, while now commonplace, are well done and a visual treat. When all is said and done, TGOC is a set of upbeat themes draped in playful goofiness. The film leads the audience through a playful story of the roles love and passion play in self discovery. In essence, one cannot help but laugh their way through this upbeat and fun tale.
On a personal note, this is a wonderful introduction to bizarre film. Everything about the movie is slightly off for the Western audience, thus allowing for some big laughs. Also, the film is not so over the top as to alienate anyone. This film makes the perfect companion to an evening of shared cooking, wine, and film. I will be highly recommending this to friends. 7.5 of 10 stars.