No Reservations

UK Release: 31st August 2007

Watched on TV: Thursday 28th July 2011

Rating: PG

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Runtime: 1hr 44mins

Tagline: Life isn't always made to order.

IMDb Plot Summary: The life of a top chef changes when she becomes the guardian of her young niece.

My Review: I wasn’t sure what to make of No Reservations. It began in a brisk manner, with an OCD, but apparently brilliant chef Catherine Zeta-Jones being a fantastic chef in charge of the kitchen. Who would have guessed that she couldn’t be ‘happy’ with being successful in her career but that it would take the death of her sister and the arrival of her niece to make her see the light. I haven’t seen much of Catherine Zeta-Jones’ work (a few rom-com’s here and there) but I have yet to see a good performance from her. 

It was Abigail Breslin who saved this film from disaster. With any other child actor the touching scenes of a little girl missing her mother wouldn’t have been half as moving. It is strange that despite Zeta-Jones being the lead and it being about cooking that the only scenes I actually enjoyed had nothing to do with either.

The ending was so predictable and rushed that I’m left feeling cheated. The entire film, the whole character developments were wrapped up in a matter of seconds in a wholly unrealistic and cheesy scenario. 

And not once did anyone mention that the restaurant had ‘no reservations’ or Zeta-Jones indicate that that was what she wanted. I was a little  disappointed to be honest, and I was really expecting more comedy and romance from a rom-com.

Score: 6/10