When watching a movie, people usually enjoy and analyze the cast, settings, and plot, leaving many details without special attention. However, the worth of the film can be properly understood through the prism of trivial things like dresses, haircuts, and food. In fact, the role of food is mostly diminished because people like to take its presence in human life for granted. In the movies Moonstruck and Beauty and the Beast, food remains a crucial element, strengthening the connection between characters and revealing the importance of ethnicity and hospitality. Despite evident differences in the works by Norman Jewison (Moonstruck) and Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise (Beauty and the Beast), the directors use food for similar purposes. Dinner parties, ordinary breakfasts, and family meetings are common in the chosen films, proving that food is not only a nutritional means but an opportunity to unite people. Moonstruck and Beauty and the Beast are two well-recognized love stories with food-filled backgrounds to maintain the offered Italian and French tones and styles and develop strong interpersonal relationships.
Food is one of the most powerful tools in storytelling because it is not just a collection of products people like to eat but a solid contribution to presenting culture, family values, and traditions. Although not all individuals are ready to recognize food symbolism in movies, one should remember that it is one of the basic needs of human life. The same happens to love – even if a person does not find it obligatory, life without love remains incomplete, and people cannot stop searching for true feelings. At the same time, there is a tiny line between love and lust or food and gluttony, and it is important not to cross it and turn needs into sins. Therefore, the movies may be used to represent food in the most attractive way and help people realize how it can be applied to interpersonal relationships and fill in ethnic or other gaps.
In Moonstruck, the themes of love affairs, family ties, and marriage are evident, while food’s impact is in the background but cannot be ignored. Almost all conversations and decision-making processes happen near a dinner table. Johnny proposes to Loretta in the restaurant, Loretta informs her intention to get married in the kitchen, and passion between Ronny and Loretta is born in his kitchen. Raymond notices the moon during a family dinner, Rose wonders why men cheat while eating her soup, and the final scene, when all questions are answered, happens in the kitchen again (Moonstruck). This movie about Italians proves that all serious talks usually happen in the kitchen, and food is a supplementary element that keeps all characters in touch. Family members might have their business affairs, problems, wants, and dreams, and this diversity fulfills life. Still, there has to be a place where a family becomes one whole, and the creators of Moonstruck choose a table for this purpose. With time, people stop recognizing the need to be close to their families, and the movie reminds this importance, addressing the impact of food in most contexts.
Compared to Moonstruck, where food is a symbol of family relationships, Beauty and the Beast uses food from a more general perspective, the community. When Belle goes to the local library through the village market, she meets many people, including “the baker with his tray like always, the same old bread and rolls to sell” (Belle and the Beast). Then, a customer and a seller quickly discuss the price of eggs, “that’s too expensive,” and Belle understands that “there must be more than this provincial life” (Belle and the Beast). Without even noticing it, the viewers make themselves prepared to compare the impact of food on the main character’s life. The next time the girl is introduced to similar food products by Lumiere in an amazing show, “Be Our Guest” (Belle and the Beast). In several minutes, the ordinary food and dishes become true pieces of art, underlying the beauty of French cuisine and motivating Belle to see a new style of food representation. Finally, the animated movie underlines the diversity of food, contrasting an elegant dinner for Belle and the Beast and the mud and lust in Gaston’s tavern.
Italian cuisine plays a core role in Moonstruck and touches each character in its own way. Gathering for dinner is the way how Italian families spend their time, Ronny’s bakery is the method of earning money, and visiting local restaurants is an opportunity for everyone to relax out of household responsibilities. Eggs in a hole or “one-eyed Jack” is a common breakfast meal for Italians, and Rose cooks them with light Italian music in the background (Moonstruck). This choice establishes the right mood and underlines a sweet home-like environment, which is open for communication and mutual support. Despite the misunderstandings that bother most family members, the Castorinis never miss their breakfast and dinners, using the presence of food as a supportive bridge in their relationships. The characters neither spend much time cooking nor bother about how their meals look. They recognize food as an integral part of their lives for chattering and being together at least for some time. When people enter the kitchen, they leave all their concerns and problems behind, enjoying the moment of unity and care for each other.
In Beauty and the Beast, French cuisine is well introduced in different episodes, starting from Belle’s visit to the market and ending a final battle between the citizens and the magic castle’s residents. This animated story does not use food to describe family relationships but focuses on its impact on individuals. People who use food to earn money, like bakers, butchers, or grocery sellers, are always in a hurry to offer as many products as possible and gain benefits (Beauty and the Beast). Being tired of all that rush and permanence, Belle wants to enjoy each piece of food, which becomes possible in the enchanted castle. The tea ceremony’s elegance by Mrs. Potts or Lumier’s “beef ragout, cheese soufflé, Pie and pudding en flambé” compared to Cogsworth’s primness with a “glass of water, curst of bread” reveals two-sided hospitality (Beauty and the Beast). Similar collations can be noticed in the tavern where Gaston eats four dozen eggs to be large and strong or when the dishes use food for protection. French cuisine may be poorly related to family traditions, but it significantly expands the role of food in the movie.
The experience of the Moonstruck characters makes it possible to obtain a good but general idea of how food affects individuals as family members, and Beauty and the Beast adds new perspectives to the conversation. Eggs in a hole or a classic minestrone allow the characters to initiate conversations and enjoy high-quality Italian food in Moonstruck. In its turn, Beauty and the Beast breaks the boundaries to show food multitasking, including Gaston’s boasting, Lumiere’s passion, and even protection against the unexpected enemy. With the help of this animation, the image of food is no longer related to family duties and obligations but becomes a means to diversify human life. Sometimes, people need additional motivation or a good example of how unpredictable and supportive a piece of bread or a cup of tea can be. These two stories have one thing in common – love between two incompatible characters. Food is never a central point there, but its presence makes these movies interesting and complete.
In conclusion, the works created by the directors of Moonstruck and Beauty and the Beast introduce different points of view on the role of food, family dinners, cooking, and restaurants. On the one hand, food is a permanent source of business to sell products, offer solid menus, and underline ethnic variety in cuisine. On the other hand, although it is important to have family dinners and support each other, it is wrong to think of food as a family obligation only. Thus, Moonstruck perfectly describes the food as a basis in interpersonal relationships, while Beauty and the Beast creates a new approach to accepting food as a motivator, inspirer, and protector. The role of food cannot be put to certain limits because much depends on how people treat it and what they want to get when they start cooking or eating. The differences between the chosen movies are evident, including their formats, ideas, and contexts. Still, paying more attention to such details as food is necessary to understand how many common issues may be found in these stories.
Works Cited
Beauty and the Beast. Directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, performance by Paige O’Hara and Robby Benson, Walt Disney Pictures, 1991.
Moonstruck. Directed by Norman Jewison, performance by Cher and Nicolas Cage, MGM/UA Communications Co, 1987.