I was completely blown away by "The Hundred-Foot Journey", as the reviews thus far have been nice but far from gushing. However, I absolutely loved the film and it's exactly the sort of thing I really would like to see more of in the future...much more.

The story begins with an Indian family seeking asylum in Europe. Back in their town of Mumbai, they had been attacked by the locals-- who ended up killing the family matriarch and burning down their restaurant. However, while journeying across the continent looking for a place to live, their car breaks down and they take refuge in a small French town. Soon, to the complete irritation of his children, the father (Om Puri) decides that THIS is the place they will settle down and open a new restaurant. They think that opening an Indian restaurant in the French countryside is just bad business but he is determined to make a go of it. After all, he reasons, his son, Hassan (Manish Dayal) is a great chef and people will grow to love his cooking.

What he and the rest of the family don't know is that the restaurant across the street is run by Madame Mallory (Helen Mirren)--and she is about to declare war on these folks...if sorts. First, Madame Mallory begins complaining about the Indian music they play. Then, she deliberately buys up all the items they'll need for their grand opening! What I liked is what happened next...the film did NOT go in the direction I was expecting and again and again the film offered up nice little plot surprises.

What did I like about the film? Well, it's much easier to say what I DIDN'T like....absolutely nothing. The movie is truly an artistic piece of filmmaking with incredibly beautiful cinematography, gorgeous music, terrific writing, lovable yet realistic characters, amazing acting and great direction. Particular standouts when it comes to the acting was Puri--who was simply marvelous and endearing as the grouchy but lovable patriarch. Mirren was also good-- surprisingly good considering she had to speak some of her lines in French. And, Dayal and his lady friend (Charlotte Le Bon) were simply smashing--though they are younger and less famous than Puri (who has over 250 credits) and Mirren. Overall, this is a lovely film that is a great change of pace from the 'big' Hollywood films. While I like films like "Guardians of the Galaxy", "Gravity" and "Iron Man", sometimes it's nice to see a film about real people...real people you can like and admire.

The Kadam family is a family of cooks in Mumbai. They escape political turmoil to London as refugees. However the vegetables there has no soul and they set off to find better ingredients. Their brakes fail near the small town of Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val and Papa Kadam sees it as a sign from his dead wife. He insists on buying the abandoned restaurant directly across the road from Madame Mallory (Helen Mirren)'s Michelin Star restaurant. His son Hassan falls for Mallory's sous chef Marguerite.

I love Om Puri as the father. I love that the family is embarrassed by his determination. Helen Mirren is fine as this character and I'm glad that she gets some depth later on in the movie. Manish Dayal is good. Charlotte Le Bon is rather bland although she's very pretty. There is a bit of food porn which is good. However director Lasse Hallström may have directed one too many Nicholas Sparks movie because that style and sensibility does infect this slightly. With Om Puri and Helen Mirren leading the way, this is lovely and inoffensive movie.

This is certainly a gentle movie. Perhaps it is too gentle. The problem for me is that there is a lot of possible conflict that could have been exploited. The whole issue of cultural tension with Helen Mirrin's character and the Indian patriarch is handled with such kid gloves that it never really allows for any tension. Granted, her chef goes rogue, setting fire to the Indian restaurant, but because she isn't all that villainous to start with (only looking out for herself and filing nuisance complaints) there isn't much gravity in her beginning to see that they can begin to co-exist. The buildup of the young Mumbai chef isn't all that interesting. The resolution is also about as saccharine as it can be. Will he give up world- wide success to go back to his girl? The star of this show is the cinematography. I tried to find where the French scenes were taken. It is a beautiful place, probably at the foot of the Alps. Beyond that, it is a cute movie which never really grabbed my interest.