No Reservations

No Reservations is rated PG: for some sensuality and language.

Romance happens in all kinds of locations from the tollbooth in While You Were Sleeping to a garden greenhouse in Sabrina. So it's no surprise love is heating up in the kitchen.

As an executive chef in a New York restaurant, Kate Armstrong's (Catherine Zeta-Jones) life is dictated by a long list of rules---everything from whom she'll date to how she runs her kitchen. These regulations keep her safely distanced from all those around her. But her tightly controlled routine is shattered when her sister, Christine (Arija Bareikis), is killed in a traffic accident, leaving Kate responsible for her young niece Zoe (Abigail Breslin).

Although Kate may be a perfectionist in the kitchen, she is a long way from mastering the role of motherhood. Adjusting to her new responsibilities and juggling her demanding work, she occasionally leaves Zoe alone at home and once forgets to pick her up from school. Even finding food the nine-year-old will eat seems to be a daunting task.

Yet as unsettled as things are at home, life gets even hotter in the restaurant after the owner (Patricia Clarkson) hires a new sous-chef without Kate's approval. Nick Palmer (Aaron Eckhart) is everything the master chef is not. He brings an air of fun to the intense kitchen, singing along with opera and joking around with the line cooks. He even whips up a recipe Zoe is willing to try. And although his arrival behind the stainless steel counter initially leaves Kate boiling mad, she soon finds herself warming up to the new assistant.

Like most love stories, this one doesn't always run smoothly, especially with a high-strung participant like Kate. Luckily for viewers, the film contains little in the ways of content concerns. Brief sexual comments and profanities are used along with some depictions of alcohol use and a scene of passionate kissing, implying the couple spends the night together.

Cooking up a recipe for love, the film uses all the classic ingredients. Still, the final dish is a palatable romance that comes with few reservations for adult viewers.

Studio: Warner Brothers.

Kate’s sister is killed during a traffic accident, and although details are not shown, the injured, grieving Zoe is seen in the hospital. Alcohol is served in the restaurant and after work, Kate and Nick share a drink. Later Kate appears to be drunk. She also hires a babysitter who leaves behind an ashtray full of cigarette butts. A couple passionately kisses and it is implied they spend the night together. Dialogue includes some sexual comments and repeated terms of Deity used as expletives.

As part of her employment requirements Kate must enroll in therapy. How effective do her sessions seem to be? What part does her attitude play?

Kate is a disciplined, controlled woman. How do those attributes contribute to her success as a chef? What life experiences may have contributed to her personality? How do those traits negatively impact her life?

How does Zoe deal with the death of her mother? Why is she afraid of forgetting her mom? In what ways can adults help children cope with tragedy?

In Raising Helen, a young woman in the modeling business becomes the guardian of three children. In Fly Away Home, another car accident forces an estranged father to assume total responsibility for his grieving daughter.

DVD Notes: No Reservations

DVD Release Date: 12 February 2008

You’ll need No Reservations to bring this DVD release home. Fans of food and the film can cook up some fun with Emeril Live (join Aaron Eckhart and Abigail Bresling in the kitchen with the celebrity chef) and be the guest of host Marc Summers in Unwrapped (who visits the set and talks to the film’s stars for an episode on his Food Network Series). Audio tracks are available in

Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 Surround (English, French and Spanish), with subtitles in English, French and Spanish.