Elegant doco records a year of transition as master chef Michel Bras hands his legendary three-Michelin-star hotel-restaurant Aubrac over to his son. “A rare window into the mysterious creative process of a chef.” — Time
A rare window into the mysterious creative process of a chef, as well as the passing of culinary traditions across generations.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2012
Step Up to the Plate 2011
Entre les Bras
Born and raised in the Aubrac region of central southern France, chef Michel Bras started his career in the kitchen of his parents’ inn before taking over the business and winning his Michelin stars. Now he is preparing to hand over to his son, Sébastien, but showing little inclination to change the pattern of his days. Paul Lacoste’s documentary follows father and son and acquaints us with the extended family through this transitional year. We take in a good many kitchens, including that of Michel’s elderly parents, the root from which a great many exquisitely crafted dishes have grown. Lacoste, who first filmed Michel Bras a decade ago, can convey the utter concentration of food preparation carried out in silence, or pause, with his subjects, to take in the seasonal changes in the landscape that feeds the Aubrac kitchens. Wryly alert to the inherent questions of nurture versus nature, he measures the weight of tradition against the younger man’s drive to evolve. Comparisons with last year’s Jiro Dreams of Sushi are irresistible. — BG