80
Metascore
29 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumEntertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumThe personalities in this well-drawn family combine to produce subtle new flavors — and in the end, no one is spiced as you’d imagined they’d be.
- 89Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenAustin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenWith great subtlety and knowing humor, Eat Drink Man Woman emerges as one of those unforeseen treats.
- 88ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliDealing with subjects that could easily have emerged half-baked, Lee instead applies his talent and comes up with a dish cooked to perfection.
- 88Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonChicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonIt's a movie that literally makes your mouth water. A smart, sprightly, lip-smacking comedy about a Taipei master chef who's lost his sense of taste and his tangled family problems with three romantically troubled daughters. It crackles with iridescent style and wit.
- 80The DissolveNoel MurrayThe DissolveNoel MurrayEven if Eat Drink Man Woman had no plot, it’d be a pleasure to watch.
- 80EmpireAngie ErrigoEmpireAngie ErrigoThis is a startlingly superior piece of craftsmanship, with the flavour of life and richness of the script conveyed via uniformly wonderful performances. Above all, though, it's Lee's foodie masterstrokes, as Chu prepares his elaborate menus, that make the film so mouth-wateringly unforgettable.
- 75San Francisco ChronicleEdward GuthmannSan Francisco ChronicleEdward GuthmannDirector Ang Lee ("The Wedding Banquet") spared no effort in giving the food its perfect preparation and display. Brace yourself for a visual orgy.
- 70Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonThe movie’s main appeal—beyond stomach yearnings caused by its cuisine—comes from the actors, who infuse their archetypal roles with comedic appeal.
- 70The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinIts thoughts about its characters don't go much deeper than the bottom of a soup bowl, but those thoughts are still expressed with affection, wit and an abundance of fascinating cooking tips.
- 60Time OutGeoff AndrewTime OutGeoff AndrewTasty ingredients (Sihung Lung's Mr Chu and Chien-Lien Wu's Jia-Chien are especially good), but the food metaphor never carries weight, and the characterisations are too shallow to lend the film emotional punch.