BOTTOM LINE: “No Reservations” has a subtle European sensibility with beautiful images and pacing, which works in its favour in the first half, particularly with its likeable lead actors and plot set-up. Unfortunately, the film meanders along aimlessly to a ho-hum climax in the second half due to weak scripting and dramatic direction.

THE GOOD: The first half of “No Reservations” has a subtle, emotional and intellectual style that is very refreshing for a ‘Hollywood’ film. There are moments of genuine emotion as Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones) becomes the guardian of her niece Zoe (Abigail Breslin) after her mother, and Kate’s sister, dies in a terrible car accident. Watching control-freak Kate lose her sense of self-control while trying to maintain her schedule as head chef at a popular restaurant is exquisitely handled by director Scott Hicks, as is the performance of Breslin as Zoe who proves to be a wonderful child actor. Kate’s life changes further when to bring up the slack in the restaurant, her boss hires a co-head chef in Nick (Aaron Eckhart), who is for all intents and purposes the exact opposite to Kate in terms of personality and temperament. Seeing this as encroaching on her turf, Kate opposes Nick at every turn, becoming more frustrated while simultaneously not doing a great job as Zoe’s guardian. Eventually, Nick helps both Kate and Zoe to get back on their feet with his charm and good nature. “No Reservations” does not set out to be anything grandiose, nor should it as its subtle approach is quite pleasing to watch. Director Scott Hicks coaxes some excellent performances out of his cast, and he also composes some beautiful and rich images that are elegantly edited together. “No Reservations” is a nice film, with a well executed first half.

THE BAD: The film unfortunately starts to fall apart in the second half, thanks largely to what looks like indecisiveness on the part of the writers and director in terms of where the story should go. The film begins to meander aimlessly without offering any sort of real climax aside from the obligatory happy ending. Tensions and conflict that arise in the first half or not resolved; the B-story with Kate’s amorous neighbour, or her fight with her boss at the restaurant when Kate has Nick removed from the kitchen permanently. There’s also a “Child Services” angle where Kate is threatened to have Zoe taken away from her if she does not stop taking her to the restaurant every night that is never resolved. The film leads you in to thinking that the story will bring these conflicts to a head at some point in the second half but nothing materialises, leaving a film that does not end up going anywhere aside from the obligatory, and very arbitrary happy ending where everyone lives happily ever after. As a result, you leave this film wondering if you actually experienced anything at all in the lives of these characters and their ‘story’.