Watching Tony, a film based on the summer that kickstarted Anthony Bourdain’s life as a chef, in theatres, has many of us aching for summers spent swimming in fresh water bodies and hosting clam bakes with friends. Movies with food at the centre have a special sense of community and love around, as a result of the nature of food itself: always meant to be shared and enjoyed. Of course, food also becomes a way of talking about migration, class, memory, gender, labour, colonialism, and the often complicated question of home. If Tony left you hungry for more, these films prove that some of the most incisive filmmaking today is being served through food.
Ustad Hotel
In this Malayalam film, an aspiring chef tries to fulfill his dreams of cooking by helping his grandfather run a small eatery. Starring a universally loved duo, Dulquer Salman and Nithya Menen, it is a coming-of-age story set in a beach town in Kerala.
Ratatouille
We follow Remy, a rodent with an incredibly sophisticated sense of sound and smell, through his adventures at a famous restaurant in Paris. This classic children’s film, which won the Oscar for Best Animated Film in 2008 won hearts all over the world with its optimistic, hopeful view on cooking and life.
Julie & Julia
The journey of two food enthusiasts across time, Julia Child and Julie Powell, are unexpectedly intertwined when both their lives are at loose ends. A struggling food writer in 2000s New York, Julie, turns to the cookbooks and mentorship of Julia’s cooking techniques. Written by Nora Ephron, and starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams and Stanley Tucci, it is a favourite for the ages.
In the Mood for Love
Intimate meals in shared spaces tell a story of love and longing in this Wong Kar-wai classic set in 1960s Hong Kong. Two neighbours, drawn together by betrayal, navigate a complex connection. The film captures how urban life can press people into close proximity while still keeping them emotionally distant, hence turning constrained emotions into a study of loneliness and solitude.
Jiro Dreams of Sushi
This documentary follows legendary sushi chef Jiro Ono and his relentless pursuit of perfection at his tiny, Michelin-starred Tokyo restaurant. Set in a ten-seater-only Tokyo restaurant located at a subway station, the film also tells us the story of Jiro’s sons, who are sushi chefs as well.
Angamaly Diaries
Set in Kerala’s Angamaly, a group of six friends try their hand at starting a pork business, navigating the rivalries, friendships and chaos that come with it. Directed by Lijo Jose Pellissery, it brings together gritty crime, drama and gang rivalries into the world of food.
The Lunchbox
An accidental lunchbox delivery brings together two lonely strangers in the bustling city of Mumbai through handcooked food and thoughtful notes. The cast comprises Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, The Lunchbox is about middle-class India, the largest class in India, and yet the most underrepresented people in cinema.
Soul Kitchen
The messy, loud, delicious atmosphere of a local eatery comes to life in this story about the ups and downs of a restaurant owner. As a chef, Zinos, struggles to keep his Hamburg restaurant afloat while juggling love, family and an increasingly chaotic kitchen, food becomes a space for reinvention, community and second chances.
Chungking Express
Another Wong Kar-wai classic, two lovelorn Hong Kong policemen navigate heartbreak and new connections, with takeaway food and cans of pineapple. Set against the restless energy of the city, the film turns everyday meals and late-night food stops into markers of loneliness and desire.
Words Platform Desk
Date 9.9.2026