It's well-acted, its humor is well-placed and even its more sentimental scenes aren't as sickeningly goopy as they surely would have been if the film had come from a major studio.
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09/27/02
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Mostly Martha (2002)
91
%
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Reviews Counted:82
Fresh:75
Rotten:7
Average Rating:7.2/10
Consensus: Mostly Martha may have a predictable plot, but it still feels charming and fresh, and the food will make you hungry.
Theatrical Release:Aug 16, 2002 Limited
Box Office: $4,041,973
Synopsis: German director Sandra Nettelbeck whips up a tasty entry in the burgeoning "love and food" romance genre with MOSTLY MARTHA, the tragicomic tale of an uptight professional chef who finds her world... [More]
Starring: Martina Gedeck, Sergio Castellitto, Maxime Foerste, Sibylle Canonica
Director: Sandra Nettelbeck
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Reviews for Mostly Martha
Mostly Martha glides so effortlessly from comedy to drama that you may be surprised how often you are laughing and crying at the same time.
09/27/02
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09/26/02
The gorgeous food preparation scenes would be enough to separate Martha from other films of this ilk, but Nettlebeck is also blessed with a score of great performances.
09/25/02
An irresistible concoction.
09/20/02
Good, solid storytelling.
09/20/02
A tasty but unfilling appetizer.
09/20/02
Kitchen scenes playing as obvious and light-hearted metaphors for states of mind and relationships, Mostly Martha leaves a few elements hanging that it probably should have tidied.
09/19/02
Nettelbeck has given the viewer a genuine catharsis and a cinematic meal that isn't perfect -- but is all the better for it.
09/19/02
The surprising thing about Mostly Martha is not that it dodges the clichés it sets up... but that its fulfillment of those clichés, and the warmth you feel as a result, seem so honestly earned.
09/17/02
Nettelbeck's alliterative subtext -- food equals love, life, and longing -- is more or less obvious from the get-go, but the excellent performance from Gedeck and Castellitto belie the film's straightforward nature.
09/15/02
[A] satisfying niblet.
09/13/02
Demonstrates that it's possible to pull all the heartstrings that Hollywood films of its ilk hope to pull, to evoke the same laughs and sighs and sniffles, and still maintain artistic dignity and real taste.
09/13/02
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09/13/02
A comedy that not only serves up the laughs, but also great-looking entrees and a dash of romance.
09/12/02
Even when foreign directors ... borrow stuff from Hollywood, they invariably shake up the formula and make it more interesting.
09/12/02
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09/11/02
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09/11/02
Nettelbeck has a particularly lovely sense of behind-the-scenes restaurant choreography.
08/31/02
Top CriticFlavorful and romantic, you could call this How Martha Got Her Groove Back -- assuming, that is, she ever had one to begin with.
08/31/02
Top CriticLatest News for Mostly Martha
July 26, 2007:
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Bart, Lisa, and the whole gang from Springfield will charge into multiplexes across North America and much of the world this weekend in the highly anticipated animated comedy... More...
September 21, 2005:
Cathy Z. Sgns Up for "Martha" Remake
The lovely Catherine Zeta-Jones has signed with Castle Rock to topline an American remake of 2001's "Mostly Martha," a romantic comedy by Sandra Nettlebeck, says The... More...
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