No Reservations Needed, This Movie Won’t Fill a House

Catherine Zeta-Jones isn’t American but her sister and niece are. That doesn’t make sense to me, so, what could have been a lovely movie about a practically frigid woman discovering hot sauce in her own austere kitchen, turns out to be a blitz on the very genre it's trying to re-define.

First of all, it's sad. Don't they know the first rule of Romantic Comedies? Keep death to the comedic moments. If someone croaks, they better be wearing a clown suit. Rule number two, every time your main character cries, the story becomes less romantic and more like a drama. And we know the people who like dramas aren't the same ones who like rom-coms. And three, if the romantic interest isn't at odds with your hero (CZJ), what's the point of watching the movie in the first place?

That said, in a summer of food movies, Ratatouille, to name one (there must be others, no?), this sizzle pic is a fallen soufflé.

Yes there are crying scene, yes Abigail Breslin (Little Ms. Sunshine…) is wonderful, CZJ is beautiful and Aaron Eckhart is lovable, but, well, eh.

Please help me comment as I’m at a loss for words about a film whose title has nothing to do with the plot.

No Reservations Can stay booked, for all I care.

It smells like yesterdays fish.