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A Matter Of Taste

1999, Movie, 90 mins

A Matter Of Taste: Review

MATTER OF TASTE, A | A QUESTION OF TASTE | UNE AFFAIRE DE GOUT
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An oh-so-French psychological thriller about the twisted relationship between a manipulative mega-millionaire and the young man he hires as his personal food taster. The movie begins at the end: A young man named Nicolas Riviere (Jean-Pierre Lorit) has been arrested for the murder of sleek, middle-aged mogul Frederic Delamont (Bernard Giraudeau). Any doubt as to Nicolas's guilt is quickly dispelled; the question is why he committed the crime. It all starts at a swank restaurant, where Frederic is a valued customer and Nicolas is a temporary waiter. They have words about the contents of some appetizers; the manager is ready to fire Nicolas for insolence, but Frederic hands him a business card and suggests that Nicolas call him if he's interested in an opportunity. Frederic offers Nicolas the job of screening his meals for foods he detests, and while Nicolas's taste buds are his primary qualification, Frederic seems equally pleased by the fact they're the same height and build — they even wear the same size shoe. Nicolas accepts the job, though he's sufficiently embarrassed by the idea of being a rich man's eccentric indulgence to tell his roommates and girlfriend Beatrice (Florence Thomassin) that he's a personal assistant. At first, the generous salary and perks — custom-tailored clothes, a car, a fancy apartment and the sense of importance that comes from having a powerful man's ear — compensate for any unease Nicolas may feel. The drawbacks — Nicolas must stop smoking as a condition of employment and be on 24-hour call, Frederic's other employees are hostile and treat him with barely concealed contempt — seem trivial. Then Frederic's darker side begins asserting itself: He isolates Nicolas from Beatrice and his friends, and forces him to undergo a fast followed by a tainted feast that leaves Nicolas with a loathing of cheese and fish — foods he previously loved — that equals Frederic's own. It's clear to everyone but Nicolas that Frederic is making over the younger man in his own image, but to what end? The second film by journalist and television commentator Bernard Rapp, this psychological thriller takes its time and never delivers the big shocks genre fans raised on its American cousins have come to expect. But it works up a chilly atmosphere of creeping dread, and the tension between Lorit and Giraudeau feels disturbingly authentic. Look for all-but-unrecognizable nouvelle vague icon Jean-Pierre Léaud in the small role of a judge. leave a comment --Maitland McDonagh
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