by Shane Conto, Staff Writer
Who doesn’t love food? That is quite the broad question, right? We all have our favorites and, but we also have different perspectives on what food should be. My expanding waistline would thank me if I only saw it as a means of sustenance. But alas… I do love some food. I grew up in my grandparents’ household for about 20 years of my life. My grand mom was the one who cooked about half that time. It was all thoroughly cooked… to say the least. My grandparents lived through the Depression, and it was all basic foods. Then my mom, who prides herself on her homemade cooking, took over. I remember delicious panini with chicken and cheese pressed to perfection. She also makes great mac and cheese (even though she thinks I hate it because I like Kraft and Velveeta mac and cheese too). Italian families, am I right?
But what does this all have to do with Julia? To put it simply: everything. This documentary transported me to a time of loving my home cooked meals with my family. Every time you see gorgeous and delicious meals prepared on screen, it will make you long for your favorite meals (fried chicken biscuit platter at Stacks on 38 a.k.a. the artist formerly known as Perkins). This review is sounding so personal because that is the connection I had with this film. It is not only a love letter to one of the greatest icons in American culture, but to food as well. Like I said, we all have a connection to food, and watching Julia Child in this film whisked me away to that.
But enough about my love story with food; what about the actual story of Julia Child? Julia is presented in a well-balanced and effective narrative that starts with the big societal connections and pulls back the layers to reveal the woman behind it all. She was gregarious and social as she ate up every moment with her fans. But there are moments where directors Julie Cohen and Betsy West showed there were some cracks in her iconic persona. Child was a tough businesswoman and at times let it complicate some of her relationships. She also used to have some unfortunate perspectives on people of differing backgrounds. But it also showed that she was always a lifelong learner and wanted to grow and be better. This didn’t quite sugar coat things like Pavarotti, but it does spend little time on her faults.
But that is not what this film was about, was it? The way this film captures the legacy of Child is most impressive. There are plenty of modern celebrity chefs who share their love for her and the impact that she made. You hear from some of her loved ones and the wonderful stories that they had to tell. But my personal favorite was the perspective of her producer who brought her cooking show to life in this documentary. The behind-the-scenes perspectives were so great and incredibly informative. The shots of how they made the actual show work were so great.
Overall, this is an engaging and moving film that does great justice to Child’s legacy, but will it tempt you to seek it out? I hope that it will. It is not often you can find a documentary that can trigger something so personal and heartwarming quite like this one. A love for food in America that was partially sparked by Child herself must be celebrated, and Julia does a great job of doing that.
Grade: A-
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