Step Up to the Plate (Entre les Bras) 2012

The elder Bras is preparing to let his son take over the restaurant, and as you’d expect from a globally-lauded top chef there’s a fire in his belly that doesn’t let this come easily. Nor does Michel offer the most constructive criticism of Sebastien’s works in progress, sentences starting with “I would have…” or “Didn’t you think of…” seeming to roll off the tongue all too easily.

If this all sounds fascinating, it is. But other scenes that should provide useful familial or cultural context to both Bras mostly serve to distract from the film’s interesting elements. And while there’s also merit in capturing each man in moments of reflection, these scenes, too, take us away from its best properties.

Also affected by pacing problems, Step Up to the Plate doesn’t offer enough pure kitchen action to completely satiate foodies, nor a detailed enough portrayal of father and son to captivate others, but instead proves somewhat more slow-moving and unengaging than its subject deserves. Hide