111 minutes, opens on Aug 7 exclusively at The Projector★★★☆☆

The story: Top chef Natsuki Obana (Takuya Kimura) opens a fine dining establishment in France, following the events of the TBS Television hit series La Grande Maison Tokyo (2019) and the special episode La Grande Maison Tokyo Special (2024). He is chasing a third Michelin star, in the world capital of haute cuisine, no less.

Grande Maison Paris serves reheated kitchen drama tropes, all the usual pressure, camaraderie and setbacks in the pursuit of gastronomic perfection under hard-driving artisan Obana. Is there ever any other kind of movie chef?

Director Ayuko Tsukahara’s feature sequel to her Japanese television series filmed on location in Paris also returns loyal sous chef Rinko (Kyoka Suzuki).

Erstwhile garcon Rikutaro (Ikki Sawamura) is now the hall manager.

And K-pop rapper Ok Taec-yeon of boy band 2PM joins the staff as a passionate patissier, whose violent entanglements with loan sharks add to their woes. A banquet for the beau monde is a bust, and Obana will lose his restaurant unless he gets his stars by first overcoming his ego and outsider status.

“Do you think a Frenchman would be able to get the best ingredients if he opens a sushi restaurant in Tokyo?” asks a local wholesaler.

Obana’s rejoinder is to celebrate the city’s multiculturalism. Hence, he brings together his dedicated transnational team to reinvigorate Gastronomie Francaise with their Japanese and Korean culinary traditions.

Expect their creations to be an instant triumph in a glossy, feel-good melodrama that may be enjoyed by those without a Disney+ subscription to The Bear (2022 to present) and do not question why French epicures have never before had fusion cuisine.

Hot take: The luscious food on show, supervised by three-Michelin-starred Kei Kobayashi of restaurant Kei in Paris, is better than the show itself.

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