La Cucina (film)

La Cucina

la Cucina film cover
Directed by Allison R. Hebble
Zed Starkovich
Produced by A. W. Gryphon
Zachary Kahn
Jackie Olson
Crystal Santos
Starlotte Dawn Smith
Written by A. W. Gryphon
Music by Ian Ball
Cinematography Alan Caudillo
Edited by Zed Starkovich
Distributed by Anthem Pictures
Release dates
  • October 19, 2007 (2007-10-19) (Hollywood International Film Festival)
Country United States

La Cucina is a 2007 romantic drama written by A. W. Gryphon. The film stars Christina Hendricks, Joaquim de Almeida, Leisha Hailey, & Rachel Hunter. It was directed by first time directors Allison Hebble & Zed B. Starkovich. The film was scored by Ian Ball from the band Gomez. Although Ball had contributed songs to other films such as the Academy Award winning film American Beauty, this was his first attempt at scoring an entire film.

The film premiered at the Hollywood Film Festival on October 19, 2007. It won Best Feature at the Beloit International Film Festival& the Los Angeles Backlot Film Festival, and Best Screenplay at the Bragacine International Film Festival in Portugal. A Best Actor nod went to Joaquim de Almeida and a Producers Award to Executive Producer Starlotte Smith at the Bragacine International Film Festival. It was an Official Selection of the La Femme Film Festival and the Portocine International Film Festival, as well as a Special Screening at the Cinema Film Festival. It premiered on Showtime on December 4, 2009. Anthem Pictures released La Cucina on DVD and Blu-ray on January 12, 2010.

A.W. Gryphon also wrote the supernatural novel Blood Moon. Allison Hebble, Zed Starkovich and Starlotte Dawn Smith were all neighbors in West Hollywood. They got to talking one day over a glass of wine and decided to make a movie. They called some friends and less than a year later went into production on La Cucina.

Plot

La Cucina is a brief slice of life that is set in present day Los Angeles, on a hot summer evening in a West Hollywood apartment building. An intimate character study, it focuses on 3 couples and their very different relationships over food & wine. A young writer, Lily (Hendricks) goes on an emotional rollercoaster with the much older (17 years) and sophisticated Michael (Almeida). They navigate through a web of exploration on marriage, cheating, babies, and entrapment. In the kitchen above, the very pregnant Shelly (Hailey) is terrified that becoming a mother will drive away her husband and has turned for advice to her lesbian friend Jude (Hunter), sure that this magnificent cook who has been in a long-term relationship has it all figured out. It is revealed that Shelly has her own secrets that fuel her fear and Jude's relationship may not be exactly as it appears. They struggle through—fighting, laughing, crying, cooking & eating—trying to work out what really makes relationships work.

Cast

Reviews

"Move over Julia Child, Christina Hendricks is in the kitchen!"[1]

“[An] intriguing introspective look at. . .relationships.” [2]

"4 stars. “La Cucina” made me want to grab a bottle of Chianti and start cooking!" [3]

References

  1. ↑ Mitchell, Wendy (2009-12-10). "Move over Julia Child, Christina Hendricks is in the kitchen!". Popwatch.ew.com. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
  2. ↑ "La Cucina DVD Review". Movie Room Reviews. December 22, 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-12.
  3. ↑ "La Cucina - Lesbian Movie Starring Leisha Hailey". Lesbianlife.about.com. 2010-01-07. Retrieved 2010-01-12.

External links

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