Part of the outstanding video series dedicated to today’s greatest chefs. Made in France; subtitled in English.

Made in France, English subtitled. In-depth portraits of internationally acclaimed chefs featuring exclusive interviews. Pierre Gagnaire is a singular chef and #3 on the 2008 World's 50 Best Restaurants chart. He creates in a continual flux: his menu changes every month, and his dishes day-to-day, as he rethinks things while standing in front of the oven. His cuisine is created in relation to the product, its energy, and the person for whom he is cooking. / 'Television is awash in food these days, most of it utterly forgettable, at best (I'm stillhaving flashbacks from having accidentally watched five minutes of 'The Chew'). Wantto see what food on film could really be like? Check out this series of Frenchdocumentaries. There are nine of them so far, each focusing on a different three-starchef, and they are absolutely splendid - maybe the best food programs that have everbeen made.In fact, to call them 'food television' is to miss their point. On these videos there is noshouting, no contrived competition, actually, not even any outsized personalities,despite the fact that the stars are some of the best, most creative chefs on the planet.At their cores, these videos by director Paul Cotat are 1-hour mediations on creativityand imagination, with food being the common medium. If that sounds lofty andintellectual, well, so be it. But that doesn't mean that the shows aren't also a lot of fun,albeit in a quiet, contemplative way.Each documentary is different in theme and in tone, varying with the chef. Michel Braswalks the stark landscape around his restaurant in Laguiole commenting on theinterplay of light and shadow and suddenly his highly abstract plating comes into focus.Alain Passard contemplates the simple beauty of a roasted onion. Michel Troisgrosemerges as an almost tragic figure as he repeatedly tries to reinvent dishes madefamous by his pioneering father and uncle. Cotat visits Italian Nadia Santini (the onlynon-French chef in the series) starting with an attitude that could be most charitablydescribed as paternalistic (maybe even condescending?), but comes away utterlyseduced by the way she coaxes complex flavors from simple, perfect ingredients.This is what real cooking is about when done on the highest level. Yes, there arerecipes, and, yes, there are techniques explained. But what the shows are really about- and what great cooking is really about - is the human element. Anyone can sautéeggplant, given the right set of instructions and a little practice. But the ability to turnthat eggplant into art is the province of a very few.' --Russ Parsons, Food Editor, LA Times

Additional Details

Label: La Huit

Genre: Instructional

Run Time: 52 mins

Release Date: 08/21/08

UPC: 3760123560061