La’Raye Francisco

March 8, 2020

Reel Food and World Cinema

What’s Cooking?

Thanksgiving has been celebrated every year for generations in America. It’s a holiday where families come together for a beautiful feast to spend time and have fun with their loved ones. In the film, What’s Cooking, you can say the families had an interesting Thanksgiving. Each family went through their trials and tribulations during the dinner, regardless of their diverse backgrounds. It seemed as though the children of the family did not agree with their parents regarding their lifestyles.

The characters’ ethnic identity is shown throughout the film in multiple ways. For example, when the scene would switch to a different family, the music would change. When the scene would switch to the Latino family, the music would change to Hispanic music, or Mariachi music. In each family, the women prepare the Thanksgiving meal. This shows the ‘woman’s traditional role in each culture. Another way their ethnic identity is shown is, of course, through their food they made. Each family makes a traditional dish that represents their ethnic backgrounds. Every family cooks the traditional turkey at some point in the film, but each family does something different in their meals.

The Vietnamese family, the Nyugens, make two separate dinners. Each dinner showing how different they are culturally, due to their generations and living in America. The mother cooks a turkey with one side covered in chile paste and the other half empty. They still have their traditional Asian dishes. Due to the turkey burning, the family gets fried chicken to replace it. This shows the multiculturalism. This shows the influence of American dishes.

The African American family, the Williamses, steer away from the tradition Thanksgiving meal that would represent their culture. The wife makes shiitake mushrooms dressing, oysters, and more. This is an example of different influences in their lives. The grandmother later cooks macaroni and cheese, a traditional meal for Thanksgiving. The Latino family, the Avilas, also include turkey in their meal, but it is cooked with fruit vegetables. They also eat tamales and tortillas. This shows their ethnic background. The Jewish family. The Seeligs, sticks to the traditional thanksgiving meal, but she cooks polenta.

Each family did something different in their meal to show their culture and the American influence.

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