Restaurant kitchens seem to be abuzz with romance. Whether in "Bella Martha" or the US remake "Recipe to Fall in Love", the sadly short-lived comedy series "Kitchen Confidential" or the TV romance "Love and Other Delicacies", where the wooden spoon is wielded, broken hearts are not far behind. And it's no different in "Bon Appetit".
With big dreams in his luggage, Daniel (Unax Ugalde) comes to Zurich from Bilbao. He wants to make a name for himself as a chef in a posh restaurant, but admittedly has to start at the bottom to do so. He gets along with his new colleague, the Italian Hugo (Giulio Berruti), right away and the rather reserved sommelière Hanna (Nora Tschirner) also quickly arouses his interest. Too bad that she has an affair with the owner of the restaurant, Thomas Wackerle (Herbert Knaup). But slowly a close friendship develops between Daniel and Hanna, but romantic feelings threaten to get in the way...
In itself is the story told in the Spanish-Swiss-German co-production "Bon Appetit". With Unax Ugalde ("Che"), Giulio Berruti ("Popstar auf Umwegen") and the as always charming Nora Tschirner, three very charming actors could be won over, between whom the chemistry seems to be right. In addition, the camera captures some very atmospheric and engaging images of Zurich and Bilbao, giving the viewer a little short vacation.
But unfortunately, the film as a whole does not work. The dubbing, which was necessary because of the international cast, seems a bit loveless and sloppy and also the timinig is just not right in many moments. So in the end the whole thing is neither really funny, nor romantic, nor touching. The paths this movie takes are too well-trodden, the relationships between the characters are handled too superficially and the characters as a whole remain too pale. As a viewer, building a bond with Daniel and Hanna is thus made almost impossible, despite the endearing actors.
Some very beautiful moments and enchanting images cannot prevent "Bon Appetit" from dragging tenaciously to its rather predictable conclusion, despite its rather short running time, leaving the viewer with a rather unsatisfying aftertaste from the cinema. It's not that David Pinillos has delivered a truly bad piece of work with his feature debut. It's just that it's disappointing that he's taken tasty ingredients and cooked up a rather bland romantic mash that doesn't really make you want to cook or fall in love
Ein Artikel von Frankfurt-Tipp
