''Le Grand Chef'' () is a 2007 South Korean comedy-drama film starring

Kim Kang-woo Kim Kang-woo (; born July 11, 1978), who debuted in 2002. He is known for his work in various fields such as movies, dramas, and theater, and is a graduate of Chung-Ang University's Department of Theater and Film. He is best known from his roles ...

, Im Won-hee and Lee Ha-na. Produced by ShowEast and distributed by CJ Entertainment, it was released on November 1, 2007 with the length of 114 minutes. Based on the popular

manhwa Manhwa () is the general Korean term for comics and print cartoons. Outside Korea, the term usually refers to Korean comics. Modern Manhwa has extended its reach to many other countries. These comics have branched outside of Korea by acce ...

'' Sikgaek'' by Huh Young-man, the film tells the story of two chefs competing for the title of heir to the last Royal Chef of the

Joseon Dynasty Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...

Synopsis

At a press conference, the cooking knife of the last Royal Chef of Joseon Dynasty is presented to the public. The chef, who did not wish to cook for the Japanese imperial rulers, cut off his hand with this knife. The Japanese bureaucrat at the time was moved by the chef's loyalty to

king King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

and country, and kept it upon his return to Japan. Now, to redeem past evils, his son has decided to return it to Korea. In order to find a deserving owner he announces a nationwide culinary competition to find the best cook to own this knife, and become the true heir of the last Korean Royal Chef of Joseon Dynasty. Archenemies Seong-chan (

) and Bong-ju ( Im Won-hee) rekindle their longstanding rivalry as they sharpen their knives. Five years before, the two had competed to take over Unamjeong, a renowned Korean restaurant. But Seong-chan suffered a critical blow when his blowfish dish poisons the jurors. Distraught, he retires to the countryside, while Bong-ju exploits the wealth and fame of his inheritance. With the help of Jin-su ( Lee Ha-na), a pretty, energetic reporter, Seong-chan makes a comeback. But now, he must not only battle the blindly ambitious Bong-ju, but also face the corrupt jurors and take care of his Alzheimer's-struck grandfather, and also take a few moments to contemplate the budding romance with Jin-su.

Cast

as Seong-chan ** Lee Tae-ri - young Seong-chan - (credited as Lee Min-ho) * Lee Ha-na as Jin-su * Im Won-hee as Bong-ju * Jung Eun-pyo - Ho-seong, Seong-chan's sous-chef in the competition * Kim Seong-won - finals commentator * Jung Jin

Reception

The film grossed a total of in South Korea, after six weeks of screening. It sold 3,038,868 tickets nationwide and was the 4th most attended film of 2007.

Spin-off

The manhwa was also adapted into the television series ''

Gourmet Gourmet (, ) is a cultural idea associated with the culinary arts of fine food and drink, or haute cuisine, which is characterized by their high level of refined and elaborate food preparation techniques and displays of balanced meals that have ...

'' starring Kim Rae-won, Nam Sang-mi and Kim So-yeon, that aired on SBS in 2008. A sequel to the film, '' Le Grand Chef 2: Kimchi Battle'' was released in 2010, starring Kim Jung-eun and

Jin Goo Jin Goo (; born July 20, 1980) is a South Korean actor. He won Best Supporting Actor at the Grand Bell Awards and Blue Dragon Film Awards for his role in Bong Joon-ho's 2009 film noir, noir thriller (genre), thriller ''Mother (2009 film), Mother ...

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grand Chef, Le 2007 films 2007 drama films South Korean drama films Cooking films Films about chefs Films based on manhwa Films based on works by Huh Young-man CJ Entertainment films 2000s Korean-language films Live-action films based on comics 2000s South Korean films Korean-language drama films