I didn’t realize it until just recently, but I am somewhat obsessed with coordinating themed film & food outing with my friends in the UK. I have done it four times now in the past month and realized it was worthy of a blog post. So here we go…
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Turkish Film & Food Sunday, 15 November 2009
*FIVE STARS*
FILM On the Way to School
WHERE Turkish Film Festival, London
ACCOLADES This enlightening and entertaining documentary exposes the ongoing wounds of Turkish nationalism in a portrait of a Kurdish village school in Eastern Turkey. The Kurdish language is not recognized as a “real” language in Turkey, and so children must attend compulsory school to learn the Turkish language for five years in all parts of the country. The film documents one year at one school as a microcosm of the immense tensions surrounding the issue of Kurdish identity.
CRITIQUES The film is funny. In particular, the editing constantly draws our attention to the hilarious things young kids say and do, guaranteed comedy. Although this makes the film very entertaining and easy to watch, I think that it may tend to distract the audience at times from the very disturbing context in which these children are growing up. The filmmakers balance the humor at a few poignant moments by keying in on powerful conversations between the students’ parents and the school teacher.
FOOD Woody Grill ( 213 Kilburn High Rd NW6 4)
ACCOLADES Hands down best lamb shawarma I ever tasted: tender, juicy & lean. We got the plate with salad and it came with heavenly soft, fluffy, fresh baked bread and a delicious spicy tomato sauce + refreshing cucumber yogurt. I also had a cup of lentil soup, which was perfect on a chilly night. We topped the feast off with black tea and baklava. The whole meal cost under 15 quid for two people! Cannot wait to go back.
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Italian Film & Food Saturday, 28 November
*FOUR STARS*
FILM A Mid-August Lunch
WHERE Ultimate Picture Palace, Oxford
ACCOLADES A delightful comedy about women…old quirky women. I love films that remind us how wonderful an experience it can be for people my age to spend time getting to know about the personalities and lives of octogenarians…when we young ones eventually get over our embedded age bias that is. Oh and the picture palace deserves praise in its own right: a fabulous independent single screen theatre that was packed full of people and where they served mulled wine for 3 quid!
CRITIQUES I think that if you are not Italian, or European, you are at a disadvantage as you will likely miss the clever way that this film deals with issues of class in its character development and narrative. I would have missed it altogether if I didn’t have my brilliant Portuguese friend to explain.
FOOD Cafe Coco (23 Cowley Road, OX4 1HP)
ACCOLADES After watching the film characters cook, eat and drink wine for nearly two hours I was ready for some pasta. Coco’s king prawn linguini hit the spot. The candle light created a nice chill atmosphere…dare I say, romantic :)
CRITIQUES Bad service. It’s really more of a bar scene than a classy Italian restaurant.
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Lebanese Films & Food Sunday, 6 December
*ONE STAR*
FILM + FOOD “Shorts and Shawarma”: a collection of short films by Lebanese student & professional filmmakers organized by the group Lebanon Unite
WHERE Cinema Lumiere, London
ACCOLADES The marketing was excellent. After all it sounds like an amazing event: shorts and shawarma. What could be better? It was a great chance to support and network with the Lebanese community in London. The thing is that I don’t particularly enjoy standing in line for Shawarma with them.
CRITIQUES The films were mostly unbearable to sit through. Good thing they were short. If the program had been shorter and they started with student films in the first half and rewarded us with some professional filmmaking after the intermission it would have been more gratifying. It did not help at all that the ticket was 15 quid, and did NOT include the shawarma, which you had to purchase separately during intermission for another fiver. Not to mention that the shawarma, though tasty, was cold.
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Burmese Film & Food Friday, 11 December
*THREE STARS*
FILM Burma VJ
WHERE SOAS/UCL Human Rights Film Festival, London
ACCOLADES The subject is unforgettable and shook me to my core. Like most people, I know a lot about Burma from the news of mass demonstrations that took place in 2007, however this film brings you into the point of view of the fearless videographers who shot the footage of the demonstrations and brutal government responses that made Burma 2007 a global media event. I left infuriated and pained that this injustice can be tolerated by the international community.
CRITIQUE This film should be included in any course syllabus on filmmaking because it forces the viewer to confront the fundamental question: How do we define documentary? Here, Danish filmmaker Anders Ostergaard creatively constructs the gripping film narrative by including reenacted scenes that are shot to look different (more polished) in contrast to the raw VJ footage. However he re-recorded phone conversations and excessive cutting between “real-time” footage of the demonstrations on the streets of Rangoon and the invented footage in Thailand blurs and sometimes crosses the line between fiction and non-fiction, a vague boundary to begin with. It made me cringe at points when I simply wished Ostergaard had let the powerful, though shaky footage to speak for itself rather than distracting from it with slow cross-fading and voiceover.
FOOD Mandalay Restaurant (444 Edgeware Road, W2 1EG)
ACCOLADES Very friendly service in this cozy joint, located due north off the beaten path of Edgeware Rd, which I have now frequented thrice this season for delicious Middle Eastern fare. I would go back again for the Tamarind Lamb, and the Ginger & Garlic Spinach.
CRITIQUES Apparently Burma Superstar has ruined me. Nothing compares, although the standard of the food appropriately matched the price. The coconut rice was mushy and the Lemongrass Shrimp overcooked and lackluster in flavor. The vegetable noodles were something I would expect to find in a cheap Chinese takeout restaurant.
