A Touch of Spice
Directed by Tassos Boulmetis.
This film was a box-office smash in Greece, although given its contents, it’s hard to see why. The “spice” has both literal and metaphorical meanings, but the most obvious is that our protagonist’s (Fanis), grandfather owned a store with a spice for every occasion. Not only do specific spices suit particular foods, but each spice has a particular meaning. As a character says in the film, “sometimes you must use the wrong spice in order to get the correct reaction”. I may have paraphrased, but there are many such apparently profound statements in the movie, mostly delivered in voiceover.
I have refrained from describing the plot, because there isn’t much to describe. Certainly the lack of formulaic Hollywood plotting might be refreshing at first, but writer/director Tassos Boulmetis’ messy screenplay doesn’t seen to know where its going. There are some obviously artificial but surprisingly successful special effects as we revisit frequent Istanbul over a period of about thirty years, seeing a Greek family being torn apart by the authorities who are ejecting masses of Greek citizens from the country. Fanis, when still only a boy, leaves for Greece, but his grandfather and his first love (“dance for me, and I’ll cook for you” he tells her) remain behind. He spends the following years spicing up others lives while failing with his own, wishing to be reunited with them, but opportunities always slip through his grasp.
That’s about as much of a structure as the screenplay has; the film instead focuses on the cooking metaphor and the results of the events in Istanbul. Certainly there must be many real people like those portrayed in the movie, and such thematic resonance seems to have struck a chord with the Greek public. This is understandable. However, as a film in itself it is too leisurely paced and too unfocused to really capture a general audience. It does feature an admirable musical score, but the direction and performances are only adequate. As such, unless you’re up on your spices, you can probably give this one a miss.
** (out of four)
Josh Blackman
