Movie Review for Kitchen Stories

Summary: In post war Sweden it was discovered that every year, an average housewife walks the equivalent number of miles as the distance between Stockholm and Congo, while preparing her family meals. So the Home Research Institute sent out eighteen observers to a rural district of Norway to map out the kitchen routines of single men. The researchers were on twenty-four-hour call, and sat in special strategically placed chairs in each kitchen. Furthermore, under no circumstances were the researchers to be spoken to, or included in the kitchen activities.

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Jurgen Fauth of About.com (7/0)
            Aims for but misses the wry truthfulness of Aki Kaurismaki's best films.

By Marjorie Baumgarten of Austin Chronicle (7/0)
            An enjoyable study of ridiculous regimentation and a sure balm to anyone who has overdosed on the...

By Tom Dawson of BBC (7/0)
            It never patronises its characters in the quest for cheap laughs, treating them instead with comm...

By Michael Wilmington of Chicago Tribune (7/0)
            The movie's gentle humor and offbeat whimsy prove that humanity trumps bureaucratic foolishness, ...

By Michael Wilmington of Chicago Tribune (7/0)
            ...a gentle satire of post-war farm life and meddling efficiency experts.

By Harvey S. Karten of Compuserve (7/0)
            The Meaning of Life, illustrated in an adorable, deadpan comedy.

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Jeff Vice of Deseret News, Salt Lake City (7/0)
            A rich character piece with more than a few chuckle-worthy moments.

By Catharine Tunnacliffe of eye WEEKLY (7/0)
            Hamer is gifted with both a sly wit and a rich visual vocabulary.

By Bruce Feld of Film Journal International (7/0)
            Discerning and heartfelt little masterpiece.

By Jules Brenner of filmcritic.com (7/0)
            uniquely eccentric

By Jules Brenner of filmcritic.com (7/0)
            ...uniquely eccentric...

By Annlee Ellingson of FilmStew.com (7/0)
            The study in the film represents a precursor to reality television in which voyeurs watch strange...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By MaryAnn Johanson of Flick Filosopher (7/0)
            [D]elightfully off-kilter and refreshingly original tale about loneliness, friendship, and modern...

By Liz Braun of Jam! Movies (7/0)
            The performances are understated and touching, the humour mostly deadpan, the philosophical messa...

By Scott Foundas of L.A. Weekly (7/0)
            In the landscape of contemporary movie comedies, Kitchen Stories is like a rejuvenating blast of ...

By Matt Kelemen of Las Vegas CityLife (7/0)
            You really need to develop a taste for Scandinavian cinema in order to appreciate Kitchen Stories...

By Kenneth Turan of Los Angeles Times (7/0)
            There's nothing casual about the way this film has been put together, yet that painstaking care l...

By Kevin John Bozelka of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (7/0)
            What you're left with is a relationship between two men that is untouched by macho posturing or a...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Ken Hanke of Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) (7/0)
            Not the sort of film you'd want a steady diet of, but as a change of pace from the ordinary, it's...

By Peter Rainer of New York Magazine (7/0)
            A prime piece of comic anthropology.

By Frank Swietek of One Guy's Opinion (7/0)
            Drollness and dry wit characterize this charming Scandinavian comedy...a wryly affectionate story...

By Laura Clifford of Reeling Reviews (7/0)
            Taking the 'stranger in a strange land' concept and twisting it sideways, Hamer says a lot about ...

By Robin Clifford of Reeling Reviews (7/0)
            Kitchen Stories will make you laugh and make you cry.

By Jim Lane of Sacramento News & Review (6/1)
            Boy, just when you think all the original stories have been told, something like this comes along...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Jean Lowerison of San Diego Metropolitan (7/0)
            You've seen testosterone-soaked guys in films like Rambo and In the Company of Men. Now enjoy thi...

By Carla Meyer of San Francisco Chronicle (7/0)
            ...a lovely story of friendship between two lonely men.

By Moira MacDonald of Seattle Times (7/0)
            Though there's a melancholy mood to much of the film, it leaves an audience happy -- as if we, li...

By Rich Cline of Shadows on the Wall (7/0)
            There's an almost wordless charm to this gentle film.

By Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine (7/0)
            A male weepie with a serious case of the cutes.

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of Spirituality and Practice (7/0)
            Kitchen Stories is an inventive and engaging drama about how our hearts are gladdened by the swee...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone of TheMovieChicks.com (7/0)
            This understated and delightful little film will grab you from the silly opening to the bitterswe...

By Richard Schickel of TIME Magazine (7/0)
            What a pleasure it is not to be hectored by a director as we laugh our own little laughs, watchin...

By Ken Fox of TV Guide's Movie Guide (4/3)
            Delightfully offbeat and unexpectedly sweet.

By Elvis Mitchell of New York Times (3/5) Login Required (Login Required)
            The film's ability to soar so high so quickly and keep its wings steady should not be overlooked;...

By Christine James of Boxoffice Magazine (3/4) No reference
            A quirky, thoughtful and bittersweet comedy/drama.

By D.W. Smith of Film Threat (3/4) No reference
            The film explores deeper issues of human relationships -- how can someone truly be a detached obs...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Marshall Fine of Journal News (Westchester, NY) (3/4) No reference
            Slight and understated, Kitchen Stories still manages to surprise with how much heart it musters ...

By Josh Bell of Las Vegas Weekly (3/4) No reference
            The subtle cracks in the Scandinavian reserve are really all this quirky film gives you, but for ...

By Bob Strauss of Los Angeles Daily News (3/4) No reference
            Against all odds, it turns out, everyday life in a Scandinavian kitchen can be quite a show.

By Marta Barber of Miami Herald (3/4) No reference
            What starts as a satire of the methodical, modernity-seeking society in Sweden ends as a heartwar...

By Andrew Sarris of New York Observer (3/4) No reference
            Mr. Hamer never goes for belly laughs, preferring instead the smiles of quiet recognition from vi...

By Lou Lumenick of New York Post (3/4) No reference
            ...thoroughly delightful...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Lisa Rose of Newark Star-Ledger (3/4) No reference
            It is a modest meditation on human nature that lingers, sweetly, in memory.

By Shawn Levy of Oregonian (3/4) No reference
            It's a film that triumphs in small ways and satisfyingly demonstrates how our human nature is bas...

By Roger Moore of Orlando Sentinel (3/4) No reference
            An ingeniously dry and bittersweet comedy about that 1940s and '50s research.

By Steve Schneider of Orlando Weekly (3/4) No reference
            One of those rare winning exceptions to the axiom that movies should move, this one shows what ad...

By Steven Rea of Philadelphia Inquirer (3/4) No reference
            A thoroughly charming oddity. And, in the end, a moving one, too.

By James Berardinelli of ReelViews (3/4) No reference
            ...it's a simple story told well, with plenty of lighthearted moments and kernels of thought-prov...

                         Reviews of Kitchen Stories
By Peter Travers of Rolling Stone (3/4) No reference
            ...the movie does get a fair share of laughs...

By Sean Means of Salt Lake Tribune (3/4) No reference
            Hamer's pacing is poky, and the 'well, duh' moral ... hits the audience well before it is reveale...

By Chris Hewitt (St. Paul) of St. Paul Pioneer Press (3/4) No reference
            Almost perfect, a film about loneliness that makes you feel less alone.

By Josh Larsen of Sun Publications (Chicago, IL) (3/4) No reference
            ...makes the full-circle journey all the way from distant to cloying.

By Desson Thomson of Washington Post (3/4) No reference
            An enjoyable movie.

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