I finally had a taste of Ratatouille yesterday. Not the French dish, but the latest Pixar/Disney animated film. When I first saw its trailer, my impression was it’s melodramatic—a story of a sorry-looking guy who wants to be a chef and a rat that has talent in the kitchen. To say that I had fun is an understatement. Even my mom, who rarely watches animated movies, had a grand time. Ratatouille premiered in Philippine cinemas on July 25. The theater was surprisingly full when we watched, considering that it’s running on its 4th week. And the film seemed to have attracted more adult audience than children.
Ratatouille is a story of two unlikely protagonists-Remy and Alfredo Linguini-both confronting impossible misfortune. Remy is an extraordinary rat who resists eating garbage. He prefers the good stuff, food prepared in human kitchens. And because he loves good food, he has also developed an exceptional sense of smell (this characteristic reminds me of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille in the film Perfume. Although the similarity ends there. Jean-Baptiste is more Voldemort-like in character). Sadly, this trait also makes Remy an outcast from his own kind.
Linguini, on the other hand, is the new garbage boy at Gusteau’s Restaurant (now being run by Gusteau’s former sous chef Skinner). In a way, Linguini’s situation is worse than Remy’s. He’s a human being who loves food but can’t even toss a decent meal. And he possesses no other talents than being miserable and feeling sorry for himself.
The paths of our two heroes cross when Linguini accidentally messes the soup on the stove. Hoping to save it, he randomly drops ingredients and spices-thus, making a bigger disaster. Seeing all this, Remy made a move, salvaging the soup and creating the first best thing that the restaurant has ever prepared after the famous French chef’s death. So, here begins a partnership and friendship of two outcasts trying to find a niche in this faultfinding world.
Putting all technical aspects aside (because this film did it excellently), Ratatouille stresses the importance of friendship, appreciation, family, talent, the uniqueness of each individual, dreaming big and making a go to realize it. It also made me realize what a friend had told me once-that food is more delicious if you put your heart in preparing it. Like what Remy did when he chose to make his own version of the French dish (ratatouille) be served to food critic Anton Ego. Remy’s dedication to his craft/art brought tears to Ego’s eyes and brought him back to his childhood and his mother’s cooking.
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View the movie trailer:
*****
You can get ratatouille recipe from the links below. Choose which of them you prefer. I promised myself to prepare this dish one these days, although I might need to alter some of the ingredients. I might not find some of them in the local supermarket.
Bon appetit!
Ipinaskil ni Salve 
