Master Cheng
Mika Kaurismäki, China, Finland, UK, 2019o
Following the death of his wife, Cheng, a master chef from Shanghai, travels with his young son to a remote village in Finland to connect with an old friend. Upon arrival, nobody in the village seems to know his friend but local café owner Sirkka offers him accommodation and in return Cheng helps her in the kitchen surprising the locals with the delights of Chinese cuisine. Unfortunately his tourist visa is soon to run out and it's up to the villagers to come up with a plan to help him stay.
Ein Koch aus China strandet in Lappland an einer wenig frequentierten Raststätte. Der Zufall schickt eine chinesische Reisegruppe vorbei, für die der Fremde spontan kocht. Das setzt er fort und erlöst mit seinem Essen erst die Chefin des Lokals, dann den Rest der Einheimischen von ihren Depressionen. Mika Kaurismäki, Bruder von Aki, macht seine Filme nicht skurril, sondern herzerwärmend - das gilt auch für diese Kombination aus Küche, Liebe, Culture-Clash.
Doris Kuhn