Critiquing Wisdom from Ratatouille

Right. Here I am again with another of those lines from the movie from Pixar and Walt Disney, Ratatouille. I just love it. And maybe my son, too - if the 10-minute unblinking-attention he gave it is something to get by [kids really have an amazingly short attention span!].

But then, how can I not love it? Foodie and a trying-hard cook that I am. Lol.

But really, I see wisdom in the movie. And I'm sharing one of those now. Although in the movie the statements below referred to cooking, this can actually be a guide to how we should look at other people, their works and their lives.

“... In many ways the works of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism...

But the bitter truth we critics must face is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating itself.

But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to a new talent, a new creation. The new needs friends.

Last night, I experienced something new, an extraordinary meal from a singularly unexpected source. To say that both the meal and its maker challenge my preconception of our fine cooking is a gross understatement, they have rocked me to my core.

In the past I have made no secret of my disdain for Chef Gusteau’s famous motto: anyone can cook. But I realize only now do I truly understand what he meant. Not everyone can become a great artist but a great artist can become from anywhere...”

Anton Ego (playing as food critic), Ratatouille