Review: Mistura

Mistura is a cinematic vehicle to promote Peruvian cuisine

It was almost a full house at VIFF at dinnertime to make us salivate while watching Mistura, a 2024 Peruvian foodie film.

Set in 1965 in Lima, Norma is half French and half Peruvian, the daughter of a French ambassador who has lived in rarified circles. But she discovers her husband has cheated on her, leaving her to figure out how to pay off the mortgage on the house.

Viewers quickly see what pressure she is under with everyone gossiping about her situation, and how Norma deals with it. Despite her husband's infidelity reported in the papers, Norma is determined to keep her head held high, and retain the house -- her house -- somehow.

Norma's driver inspires her to open a restaurant

At the encouragement of her chauffeur, Norma decides to open a restaurant in her mansion, and hires a Spanish-speaking Japanese chef who had once cooked for her father. The chef makes food that diners cannot relate to, let alone pronounce the names of the dishes.

There are also scenes showing her relationship with her adult son. As she is prim and proper, Norma vehemently disapproves of his hippie look and lifestyle, but an incident later brings them closer.

Eventually the restaurant evolves to reflect Peru and the people in the kitchen, and the film's end note explains "mistura" means mixture, combining different things together, which best describes Peruvian cuisine -- featuring Indigenous, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Middle Eastern, African and Italian influences. 

While the scenes in the kitchen didn't show as much cooking as the 2023 film The Taste of Things (Le Pot-au-Feu), we got the idea, watching Norma chop luscious tender beef cubes with her manicured hands, see how ceviche is made, and grilled meat skewers.

Norma is a half-French, half-Peruvian socialite

Mistura is a good movie, though in some parts one wonders if it's really possible for Norma to have a 180-transformation in her perception of others, or maybe she realises she needs all the help she can get? 

Actress Barbara Mori who plays Norma carries the film, and subtly shows her character's emotions below the surface, while having an unconventional relationship with her driver, played by Cesar Ballumbrosio.

Nevertheless, the film is a cinematic vehicle to promote Peruvian cuisine, and it definitely gets viewers curious (and hungry) to try some!

Mistura

Written and directed by Ricardo de Montreuil

101 minutes