The Waitress

M: For me, this movie was a lot like Johnny Depp's Chocolat. Everybody around me seems to be nodding their head in a deep and understanding way, as the actors talk of, and passionately cook, some sort of food product. I just sit there, thinking to myself that I must be missing something. Is it just me? Is food production really that meaningful and sexy. I don't get it. Also, I am not a huge fan of affairs in a movie. If one is going to happen, I like the spouse that is cheated on to sort of have it coming. Maybe I am naive in that way. This show had two spouses who were cheated on. One had it coming, the other, as far as I could tell, didn't. This made it very difficult for me to like the main characters. And when you don't care for the main characters, that can't be a good sign, can it? 2 1/2 Stars

V: This show has plenty of charm. It does, however, revolve around an affair, which made me uneasy for the duration. In defense of the food thing, (see above) . . . it's not the food (pies, in this case)- it's the care she puts into making the pies, the nostalgia she feels from when her mother taught her how to make them (she has been missing a caring/nurturing presence in her life), and the genuine interest and appreciation the co-adulterer has for the heroine's talent - those things mean something. Plus pies, specifically, are wholesome and comforting - things also missing from her life at the onset. It doesn't really matter what it is, food, music, art, nature - as long as someone cares about what you care about - it's romantic. Did it work romantically here? Yeah, a little. Mostly the pies were a great device for her to express any kind of emotion, e.g., frustration, gratitude, anger, guilt. And at times it was pretty funny. Keri Russell does a good job in this movie. I think I would recommend this show, with reservations because of the infidelity. 3 stars.