TAMPOPO
A film review by Miriam Nadel
Copyright 1987 Miriam Nadel
Imagine what would happen if Bill Forsyth and Julia Child had a son who lived in Japan. The result might be something like TAMPOPO.
The basic story of this movie involves a truck driver who is determined to make the title heroine into a first-rate noodle cook. Interwoven with the plot are a series of sketches that involve food, in various ways. Most are funny--like a very proper lady trying to teach a bunch of young women how to eat spaghetti without making noise, while a man in the restaurant loudly slurps his pasta. Some are erotic--as the one in which a man and woman pass an egg yolk back and forth between their mouths. Some are just weird, at least to a Westerner, but none fall flat.
The main plot is also quirky with lots of laughs. In the pursuit of the perfect bowl of noodles, Tampopo encounters a band of vagabond gourmets, helps a choking victim by using a vacuum cleaner, and cons a rival chef into revealing how long to leave the dough sitting. The unexpected is constantly happening, which is an all too neglected element in many recent comedies.
At a more serious level, I also learned a lot about Japanese cultural values--only in part associated with food. The attention to detail associated with the preparation and eating of noodles is also a reflection of the attention to societal roles and this is lightly touched on in a few of the sketches.
Overall I can think of few better ways to spend an evening than going out for a sushi dinner followed by seeing this movie. Four stars.
Miriam Nadel mhnadel@gryphon.CTS.COM {philabs, trwrb}!cadovax!gryphon!mhnadel {hplabs!hp-sdd, sdcsvax, ihnp4, nosc}!crash!gryphon!mhnadel
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