Babette's Feast - Movie Review

While watching Babette's Feast I found myself constantly questioning the wisdom of the Judge's who select the Academy Awards. This 1987 film managed to win for Best Foreign Film (it was up against Au Revoir Les Enfants, which I have not yet seen. I have an inkling that I will enjoy the latter more fully. Babette's Feast was not my kind of film. Although it had some interesting aspects, I found it pretentious. Written by the author of the acclaimed Out of Africa, I had the feeling that the film was trying too hard to be special.

Babette's Feast is a Danish film that feels longer than the 102 minute run time. That is in large part due to the sluggish pacing and horrible narration. The first half of the film is delivered by a narrator, with very little actual dialogue or verbal interaction from the characters. The story takes place in an isolated seaside village in Jutland. The film is centered around a small town Puritan pastor and his two (they say) beautiful daughters. In an isolated town like this one, I can see where the girls would be sought after, they certainly weren't livestock. These precious beauties (Bodil Kjer as Filippa and Birgitte Federspiel as Martina) each have a love that they put aside. A couple of strangers from outside the village eventually leave an impression on each of the young ladies.

After a passage of years, a French woman named Babette (Stephane Audran) seeks refuge in the village. She arrives with a note for the sisters identifying her as a friend of one of their visitors fourteen years prior. Babette is invited into their home, where she is given refuge in exchange for her services as a housekeeper. Babette serves Filippa and Martina with humility and manages to make an impact on the otherwise drab village. Her shrewd bargaining and subtlety allow her to bargain for her groceries while saving money. Babette has one final surprise up her sleeve, which brings all the elements of the film together to explain how the seemingly unrelated story-lines tie together.

The writing in Babette's Feast had seemingly contrasting qualities. The dialogue was brilliant, but the story itself was turgid. It seemed to me that the film was trying too hard to be artsy, while telling a rather mundane story. The film had a strong cinematic feel with striking visual qualities, but the story plot had little substance. The characters were mildly interesting, but none of their qualities managed to endear me to them or the story. Without the affected trappings, the story itself would have completely fallen flat. It is writing that must be taken as a whole, so the bloated trappings are necessary just to make the film tolerable.

The acting was solid enough in Babette's Feast, but I was never fully engaged by the characters. It is hard to evaluate performances in a film that lags as much as this one did. Especially when the first half of the film lacks dialogue. I also thought the characters could have been developed further. The way this film is structured never provides any of the actors an opportunity to shine. The characters exist but tend to be flavorless. How does an artist inject life into a character that lacks depth? At least that is how I perceived things. I think the cast was good, they just didn't have a very wide berth to express themselves.

I still find myself puzzled by my lack of appreciation for this film. I enjoy plenty of Foreign and Indie films, so I don't think it is my own lack of culture...although that could certainly be argued. But it is my opinion that Babette's Feast was created to win awards. The film is "full of itself" and the overt pretentiousness turned me off. The dialogue was rich and enjoyable but the story meandered around before bringing the loose ends together in a finale that was anti-climactic. All in all, the film was okay but far from the quality that I would personally consider for an Academy Award. I look forward to reviewing Au Revoir Les Enfants, the film that probably should have won in 1987. In the meantime, Babette's Feast is not a complete waste of time...I would mildly recommend it. 6.5/10.

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