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by Diane Browndinner and movie pairingFall is coming, and my DH and I are welcoming it with a big screen TV. No, we’re not football fans, nor are we Davenport Duds. We are planning our purchase to pursue our favorite cold weather sport, dinner and a movie. |
I love romance and he loves action, he loves a thriller and I like a sweet comedy, but one thing we always agree on: enjoying a sumptuous dinner while tuning into the plot. I love to follow the theme of the movie with a menu to match, especially if food is featured in the flick. I’m turned on by food porn, those intimate, sensual shots that make you want to tear into the screen.
The first dish and a flick I’m planning is Big Night, a witty tale about brotherhood, food, and a tentative quest for the American dream. Although the love story is slightly uncomfortable and unrequited, true amore is expressed through the execution of luscious Italian cuisine. Two brothers, Primo and Segundo, open an authentic Italian restaurant called The Paradise on the Jersey shore in the 1950’s. When Primo’s uncompromising commitment to purism fails to bring financial success, Segundo agrees to host a banquet for entertainer Louis Prima to boost their reputation.
The centerpiece of the story is the delivery of that “big night”, displaying all the culinary details of serving an exuberant and reverent multi-course dinner, while Mambo Italiano recklessly ramps up the manic tempo of gluttony. Each dish is lovingly shot as Primo gives his best culinary performance and Segundo questions what he really wants out of life. In the end, they rediscover what they’ve known all along; from the intricate timpano to the simple omelet Segundo prepares the morning after what could have been their Last Supper, food bridges a universal connection to others.
Diane’s timpano recipe
