Entre Les Bras | The Bras family and the art of Cooking

Michel, the father, joggs through the foggy French mountains to gather strength. The image evokes thoughts of ascesis, endurance and discipline. But it doesn't exactly point to haute cuisine.

Yet when you're a cuisine chef with three Michelin stars, it doesn't hurt to have ascesis, endurance and discipline in store. Film maker Paul Lacoste has portrayed a family of chefs that has been cooking at the highest level and running their own restaurant for two generations. During the film it becomes clear that son Sébastien will take over in the kitchen. At first, it seems like not much will change under Sébastien's supervision. But the more we learn about Les Bars, the more we learn about the differences between the two chefs and their cooking styles.

One shot shows Sébastien fine-tuning a Japanese-inspired recipe with tremendous patience. Michel and Sébastien stoically analyze the ingredients, textures and placement of their recipe's components. It needs to be said that his is a film about epicurean pleasure – dinner guests and their satisfaction are not at all the main topic here. It is also a film about two perfectionists that hardly agree on anything but work together for a shared goal.

After seeing this film, everyone who likes good cuisine will know what it means to produce Haute Cuisine and continuously come up with unforgettable menus. And at the end of the film, we are left with the feeling that the Les Bras kitchen has got the whole world on a plate.

(emh)