The New Zealand Institute of International Affairs - Wellington Branch is delighted to invite members and guests to a to a social evening with a special private screening of "The Taste of Things" at Lighthouse Cuba on Thursday August 15 at 5.30pm.

Date: Thursday 15 August 2024

Time: 5:30pm - 8.20pm (approx); Start of film: 6pm

Film: "The Taste of Things" French film with English subtitles

Venue: Lighthouse Cuba Cinema, Mezzanine Floor, 29 Wigan Street, Te Aro, Wellington

Price: $18 Members + Humanitix fee (includes a glass of bubbles plus choc dipped icecream) $26 for a Guest of members (non-member)

Terms and conditions

This event is charged at a discount, and non members are welcome. Please note all attendees are required to provide full name, email address and mobile phone number. NZIIA membership and tickets will be checked at the venue by staff.

The price includes a glass of bubbles before the start of the show at 6pm and an icecream to take in. Which is just as well; as the Times of London wrote in its review, make sure you eat before the banquet.

No refunds after 5pm Tuesday 13 August.

The Taste of Things

After its premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, The Taste of Things has had mouths watering worldwide. This delicious adaptation of Marcel Rouff’s classic 1924 novel The Life and Passion of Dodin-Bouffant, Gourmet, is the perfect blend of cooking and romance. The film won director Tran Anh Hung the Best Director prize at Cannes.

Set on an idyllic rural French estate in 1885, Academy Award winner Juliette Binoche stars as Eugénie, a renowned cook whose talents are unmatched. Benoît Magimel (The Piano Teacher) plays Dodin, a brilliant epicure. With their talents combined, the pair prepare a meal for a visiting prince, revolving around a “pot-au-feu” (an iconic French dish of slow cooked beef stew). Eugénie and Dodin’s culinary collaboration transcends the kitchen, blossoming into a deep friendship that occasionally flirts with romance.

Can Dodin’s exceptional culinary instincts and longing for a deeper connection persuade Eugénie to marry him? France’s submission to the 2024 Oscars, The Taste of Things not only celebrates French cuisine but also underscores the devotion, care, and time it demands.French-Vietnamese director Tran Anh Hung was awarded best director for The Taste of Things at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Other awards include best cinematography at both the French Lumières Award and the Boston Society of Film Critics.

The Guardian said The Taste of Things “defies expectations”.

And that Times quote in full: "This is a film in which food is used to impress, seduce, placate and heal. Make sure you eat before you watch it, though, or you will be salivating on the floor."