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

Kim Kang-woo Kim Kang-woo (born July 11, 1978) is a South Korean actor. He is best known from his roles in '' The Taste of Money'' and '' The Missing''. Career Kim Kang-woo majored in Theater and Film at Chung-Ang University. In early, Kim work as singer in ...

Im Won-hee Im Won-hee (born October 11, 1970) is a South Korean actor. Im was an alumnus of the legendary Daehangno, Daehak-ro theater troupe ''Mokhwa'' (), starring in many of Jang Jin's stage plays. He made his film debut in Jang's black comedy ''The Happ ...

and

Lee Ha-na Lee Ha-na (born September 23, 1982) is a South Korean actress. Lee made her acting debut with '' Alone in Love'' (2006). She is best known for her role as Kang Kwon-joo in the multiple seasons- procedural thriller ''Voice'' (2017–present). ...

. Produced by ShowEast and distributed by

CJ Entertainment CJ Entertainment (Hangul: CJ 엔터테인먼트) is a South Korean film production and distribution company under CJ ENM. The company operates as a film production company, film publishing house, investment and exhibition. History During early 1 ...

, it was released on November 1, 2007 with the length of 114 minutes. Based on the popular

manhwa (; ) is the general Korean language, Korean term for comics and print cartoons. Outside Korea, the term usually refers to South Korea, South Korean comics. is greatly influenced by Japanese Manga comics. Modern Manhwa has extended its rea ...

'' Sikgaek'' by

Huh Young-man Huh Young-man (born June 26, 1947) is a South Korean manhwa artist. Early life Huh Young-man was born Heo Hyeong-man in present-day Yeosu, a far southern coastal city of what is now South Jeolla Province, South Korea in 1947. He was the third ch ...

, the film tells the story of two chefs competing for the title of heir to the last Royal Chef of the

Joseon Dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

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 the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

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 (

) 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 Tetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish of the order Tetraodontiformes. The family includes many familiar species variously called pufferfish, puffers, balloonfish, blowfish, blowies, bubblefish, globefish, swellfis ...

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 (

), 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 Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As t ...

-struck grandfather, and also take a few moments to contemplate the budding romance with Jin-su.

Cast

as Seong-chan **

Lee Tae-ri Lee Tae-ri () (born Lee Min-ho; June 28, 1993) is a South Korean actor. He is well-known for his role as young Yang Myung in ''Moon Embracing the Sun'' (2012), Song Man-bo in ''Rooftop Prince'' (2012), Jung Joo-hwan in '' The Beauty Inside'' (20 ...

- young Seong-chan - (credit as Lee Min-ho) *

as Jin-su *

as Bong-ju *

Jung Eun-pyo Jung Eun-pyo (born March 27, 1966) is a South Korean actor. He is active in both stage and screen since 1990, notably in the film ''Kilimanjaro'' (for which he won Best Supporting Actor at the Grand Bell Awards) and the television dramas ''Moon ...

- Ho-seong, Seong-chan's

sous-chef A sous-chef is a chef who is second in command in a kitchen; the person ranking next after the head chef, usually the more hands on manager with regards to training staff and organising the kitchen. Duties and functions The sous-chef has many re ...

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 refined, even elaborate preparations and presentations of aesthetically balanced meals of several contrasting, of ...

'' starring

Kim Rae-won Kim Rae-won (Korean: 김래원; born 19 March 1981) is a South Korean actor. He first rose to fame with his appearances in the 2003 romantic comedy series ''Cats on the Roof'', and movies such as ''My Little Bride'' (2004), ''Sunflower'' (2006), ...

Nam Sang-mi Nam Sang-mi (born May 3, 1984) is a South Korean actress. Career Nam Sang-mi was working in a Lotteria restaurant near Hanyang University in the fall of 2001 when someone posted her personal photos on the internet. Her popularity as an ulzzang ...

and

Kim So-yeon Kim So-yeon (born November 2, 1980) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for starring in a number of well-known television dramas, notably ''All About Eve'' (2000), '' Iris'' (2009), ''Prosecutor Princess'' (2010), '' Happy Home'' ( ...

, 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 Kim Jung-eun (born March 4, 1976) is a South Korean actress best known for her roles in the film ''Marrying the Mafia'' (2002) and the television series ''Lovers in Paris'' (2004), '' I am Legend'' (2010) and ''Make a Woman Cry''. In 2008, Kim ...

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 noir thriller ''Mother''. He is also known for his role in the critically ...

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