"Gerald Passedat: Inventing Cuisine"

With the crafts fair behind me, I was finally able to sit down and watch "Gerald Passedat: Inventing Cuisine", which I obtained from Netflix. I had no idea what was in store for me, besides the ecstatic review of my friend ("I loved it, I loved it, I loved it!"), the small blurb on the DVD jacket, and a length time of 71 minutes. So I nestled on the couch with the dog and a glass of Pinot Noir and pressed Play !
As it turned out "Inventing Cuisine" is a French series on several French Chefs, also including Michel Troigros, Michel Bras, Michel Guerard, and Pierre Gagnaire. The DVD offers a french version with no subtitles and an english version.
Frankly I was initially a bit disappointed. It's not until the middle of the film that the chef's creative process is demonstrated. Too much time is spent on the man himself in his environment and making general (and uninteresting) comments on life. I didn't care much seeing footage of the Chef getting a lapdance at a stripclub ! Once you watch past the first half then the story gets interesting. Basically Gerald is closing is restaurant for two months for remodeling and giving it a new direction with novel dishes. His vision is based on the Mediterranean Sea, choosing seafood dishes that will represent the different sea layers, namely the surface, the deep, and the in-between. And that was fascinating ! How he managed to recreate his vision with food, arranging, coloring, deconstructing. You can tell the man is totally in control of his art. The film ended too soon, I wanted to see more ! Oh well...
Don't miss the extras ! You'll see footage of three recipes in action. Quite instructive. I like his recipe for licorice twin tarts. Very tempted to try it out !
In the end, I recommend the movie. Be patient for the real "meat" of the documentary. In the meantime you can savor images of Marseilles and its blue waters and white rocks.