Babette's Feast

Garbage. Watched with my mom, whose tastes are -questionable,- to say the least. It's ok, Mom! Also, IMDb says, "the favorite film of Pope Francis." Me, I prefer "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover," but, you know. Whatever floats your boat, Pope guy.

Not awful, but predictable and unsatisfying. Chocolat might be something of a rip-off of this film, but I find it much more charming and likable. The dominant feeling I had during Babette's Feast was that it lacked authenticity. Everything felt staged and predestined, and the period recreation didn't ring true either. The photography was pretty, but only in a postcard sort of way. Also, some of the dishes Babette prepares look truly vile.

Makeup is fantastic at aging the characters, but that's about all the praise I can give this. It's not often that a film can be both a sprawling mess as well as utterly simplistic and mundane, but this film manages it by taking paper thin characters, doing nothing with them, and cutting up the sequencing of events. It drags everywhere and it doesn't even seem to have a purpose.

A celebration of art and the artist, but also an autumnal meditation on the nature of life itself, how--although we seldom get what we desire--we often receive compensation for our losses in strange, marvelous ways.

Good lord is this a slow movie. Perhaps it was trying to truly convey the slow life in a slow town in a slow society, but why torture your viewers? Also, it is all too easy to question the climax and why the characters do what they do--but the picture frustratingly asks none of the questions the viewer is dying to have it ask. This results in an ultimately unsatisfying production that is hard to recommend.

The film's arc leads the viewer toward a fuller embrace of human life, one that includes both spiritual and material aspects. Set in the context of a Christian community, Babette's final meal serves as something like a Eucharistic rite, bringing the people together into a unified community and leading them to better embody their spiritual ideals. Overall, the narrative is a bit too pat and the visuals offer nothing remarkable, but the underlying idea motivating the film is still compelling.

There are undeniable strengths to the film such as assured cinematography and fine acting. There are also glaring editing fumbles, and while a certain amount of intrigue is sustained, I kept wondering what the parable was going to be. I'm still wondering, but all the same that "reassuring, satiating piety" that paulofilmo succinctly describes does feel like a small oasis of some kind. Flawed but I enjoyed it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the casual pacing, felt it complimented well both the story, which satisfyingly weaves together past events to culminate in the titular feast, but also the quiet out of the way town where its set and the plain steadfast characters who populate it. The period was excellently brought to life by the set and costume design. The feast itself looked amazing and was peppered with such amazing quiet subtle dry humor i absolutely loved it. Nice touching ending

The feast, as depicted, is a tribute to both spiritual and humanist impulses. There is a lot to think about when one considers the stark beliefs of the puritans, the self-denial, and the appreciation that comes from an amazing experience made possible by the generosity of your neighbours.

A foolish, intoxicating experience. Per Nørgårds music is used very scarcely and to an enormous effect. Frankly, I felt that it and the wonderful cinematography were the only aspects preventing the first half of falling into utter banality.

All those green eyes... felt almost like Dune. Pretty good for a movie about cooking, life and stars. Have a taste of 'The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover' (1989) - a great vintage.

How I could have missed this classic for so long time is beyond belief. But the Danish Oscar winner is every bit as compelling and beautifully made as one could have hoped for. Not as touching as the following Oscar winner, Peller erobreren, though.

What is the relationship between spirituality and fleshly pleasure?

The storytelling during the "how" parts gets mired in prolonged flashbacks, and turns for help to an intrusive and overly necessary narrator. It affords you, through all of that, plenty of time to wish anew that there were an accepted format for cinematic works shorter than feature-length. But the feast itself and the buildup to it are ample rewards for toughing it out.

The opulent, sensual dinner scene at the end clashes with the grim danish austerity that permeates the rest of the film - I find this whole atmospheric stuff very well rendered. I agree that some of the dishes look "truly vile" as I've read in another comment here, some of them hurting my animal-friendly sensibilities (turtle soup, for one), but it's part of the movie experience that I try not to look at it that way (hell, this is no 'Cannibal Holocaust' after all...)

Interesting topic for a film, but I ultimately found this fairly dull, even though its heart is in the right place. It's a nice movie and there were moments where I saw why some love it, but it didn't totally work for me.

lmao this is just as bad as Chocolat.

A dish best served over a quiet evening, without expectations of technical flourish or dramatic resolution. Paints the quiet intersection between a pious community and its benevolent invader as something to be savored rather than digested.

There is something about film that understands food and the power of a meal that is magical. We take for granted the joy of eating when seeing it on a screen and not being able to taste it. But when done right, and boy is this right, the power to unite and squash differences is laid out on the table. All the table setting (sorry) of the first two acts plays out beautifully in Babette's titular meal. Right up there with Big Night and Tampopo for food movies.

Slow to get going but beautiful. Wish the feast could have lasted longer somehow.

Beautiful and uplifting. Artistic purpose and the joyous capabilities bring a nice story to the screen.

Cozy and warm film in the best sense of the term. Can hardly be compared to anything else, so you will have to watch it to know if you like it.

Royally peasant

Jutlandia and danish village, french cooking, lovely family, intermediate shortcut film intro family. Babettes's Feast, Babette endless cooking ...

Will make you hungry

Not badly made but boring and draggy.

The production values are high, but the movie is SUPER-uninteresting.

A charming tale of humanity's need to embrace both sensual and spiritual pleasures.

I didn't think I'd enjoy this as much as I did. The first half is rather stilted and possibly a bit lost in translation. But seeing the people find joy through good food and good booze was heartwarming.

A good meal can be a work of art. A true feast for the eyes.

Reassuring, satiating piety.

nice

Babettes gæstebud

19th Century Joy of Cooking. Babette is a French cook that flees from her home to Danish village. Fun, let alone the joy of food, is not part of village until Babette starts cooking.

Probably the best of the food films. (No, that's not a joke. This actually is really good)