It's not often that a film surprises me. Going into this film, I had a feeling I knew where it was going from the beginning. While it did cover the beats I was expecting, albeit with style, grace and heart, it also threw enough curve balls into the narrative to keep me on my toes. It was one of the things that made The Hundred Foot Journey such a pleasant surprise.
The film opens with a young Hassan (played by Manish Dayal) and his family moving to France. They left their native India after the death of their mother in a fire at the restaurant they owned. The fire was the result of rioting after a recent election and because of the political unrest, they left in search of a more stable home. They find their new home in a small village when Papa (played by Om Puri) spies an old restaurant that is for sale. The rest of the family cautions him not to buy the place as it directly across from a Michelin star restaurant run by Madame Mallory (played by Helen Mirren). Undeterred and stubborn, Papa presses ahead, knowing he has a secret weapon in Hassan's cooking talents.
Initially, Madame Mallory is unimpressed with the new restaurant across the way, worried that the loud music coming from there will drive her customers away. Determined to keep them from opening, she looks to sabotage their opening, but ignites a rivalry with Papa instead as he gives as good as he gets from her. Meanwhile, Hassan has struck up a flirtatious friendship with one of Madame's cooks, Marguerite (played by Charlotte Le Bon), who gives Hassan a set of French cookbooks to study. To try and make peace between the two restaurants, Hassan prepares a dish and brings it to Madame Mallory to try. After sampling it, she dismisses it and throws the rest away, but is secretly worried as it was anything but bad.
This all takes a turn when three unknown men vandalize and fire bomb the Indian restaurant which results in Hassan being injured. Upon discovering one of her cooks was involved and feeling responsible, Madame Mallory decides to call a truce to her feud with the other restaurant. She even goes so far as personally scrubbing the graffiti that was spray painted on the outer gate of their restaurant. It's here that the film takes a decided left turn as the two sides slowly become friends with one another and Hassan approaches Madame Mallory to learn more about French cooking.
Helen Mirren is fantastic as always as Madame Mallory, taking her character above what could have been a stern stick in the mud and making her a three dimensional character. The real star though is Manish Dayal's performance as Hassan. He creates such a wonderful and endearing character who only wants to help and look out for what's best for his family, even if the personal journey he is on may run counter to that. You can see the turmoil this causes for Hassan and is perfectly realized by Dayal.
The film is filled with warmth, humor and a lot of heart. It's beautifully directed by Lasse Hallstrom, with wonderful shots of both the French countryside and the exquisite dishes that come out of both kitchens (fair warning, don't watch this on an empty stomach). It's a fantastic film and one that I highly recommend.
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