Babette's Feast

Overview

The Danish/French Babette's Feast is based on a story by Isak Dinesen, also the source of the very different Out of Africa 1985. Stephane Audran plays Babette, a 19th century Parisian political refugee who seeks shelter in a rough Danish coastal town. Philippa Bodil Kjer and Martina Birgitte Federspiel, the elderly daughters of the town's long-dead minister, take Babette in. As revealed in flashback, Philippa and Martina were once beautiful young women played by Hanne Stensgaard and Vibeke Hastrup, who'd forsaken...
See more details below
DVD (Color / Wide Screen)
$14.99
BN.com price
(Save 50%)$29.99 List Price
Note: This item does not qualify for coupons or promotional discounts unless expressly stated.

More About This Product

Overview

The Danish/French Babette's Feast is based on a story by Isak Dinesen, also the source of the very different Out of Africa 1985. Stephane Audran plays Babette, a 19th century Parisian political refugee who seeks shelter in a rough Danish coastal town. Philippa Bodil Kjer and Martina Birgitte Federspiel, the elderly daughters of the town's long-dead minister, take Babette in. As revealed in flashback, Philippa and Martina were once beautiful young women played by Hanne Stensgaard and Vibeke Hastrup, who'd forsaken their chances at romance and fame, taking hollow refuge in religion. Babette holds a secret that may very well allow the older ladies to have a second chance at life. This is one of the great movies about food, but there are way too many surprises in Babette's Feast to allow us to reveal anything else at this point except that Ingmar Bergman "regulars" Bibi Andersson and Jarl Kulle have significant cameo roles..
Read More Show Less

Special Features

Trailer; New interviews with director Gabriel Axel and actor Stéphane Audran; Karen Blixen-Storyteller, a 1995 documentary about the author of the film's source story, who wrote under the pen name Isak Dinesen; New visual essay by filmmaker Michael Almereyda; New interview with sociologist Priscilla Parkhurst Ferguson about the significance of cuisine in French culture
Read More Show Less

Editorial Reviews

Barnes & Noble - Ed Hulse
An entrancingly bittersweet and comedic blend of austerity and opulence, Babette's Feast -- which won the 1987 Oscar for Best Foreign Film -- is a delightful combination of the talents of Danish director Gabriel Axel and the luminous French actress Stéphane Audran. Set on the bleak Jutland Peninsula in the 1870s, the film revolves around two spinster sisters Bodil Kjer and Brigitte Federspiel who maintain the strict religious philosophy of their late father, and Babette Audran, a Parisian refugee who turns up on their doorstep seeking refuge and becomes their cook and housekeeper. Fourteen years elapse before it is revealed that Babette is a cordon bleu cook -- a fact that leads to a cathartic event for her, her employers, and the community. This superb adaptation of an Isak Dinesen novella remains true to its literary source, and Axel's cinematic flourishes particularly the deftly deployed flashbacks are as exquisitely delicious as the titular repast itself. Subtle, warm, and altogether engaging, Babette's Feast is a film about missed chances that is not to be missed.
All Movie Guide - Dan Jardine
The sophisticated and subtle screenplay for Babette's Feast, adapted by director Gabriel Axel, is based on a story written by Isak Dinesen, the writer memorably played by Meryl Streep in the biopic Out of Africa. In the film's first half, the emotional detachment of the pious characters is mirrored in the directorial approach, which allows the narrator to explain the matters before us, keeping us at a distance. When the feast begins, the narrator steps aside, Axel's direction becomes more evocative, and our participation becomes more active. Axel plays things low-key: his camera doesn't swoop or dance, but lingers lovingly over every aspect of the meal. The soundtrack includes some beautiful period music, but Axel mostly allows the sounds of the meal to become the symphony of the feast. Made out of humility and love, the feast is Babette's supreme artistic expression, and her hedonistic present encourages the feasters to look a little more closely at their own lives, as the magical and voluptuous feast dramatically counterpoints their puritanical existence. Babette's offering is a ritual sacrifice, intended to encourage the austere characters with the possibility that their material nourishment may provide spiritual sustenance as well. The film also contains a cultural context, as the political revolutions in 19th century Europe lead to Babette's displacement and the resultant cultural blending of Babette's southern European Catholic sensuality with sober northern European Protestantism. Their pact, to say nothing about the magnificence of the feast, ironically reveals the ineffable truth that Babette's artistic expression of love cannot be properly praised with words. Like the guests' spiritual values, it exists on a higher plane, where simple acts of generosity can erase personal prejudices. The film leaves us with a haunting echo of the roads not taken, as the characters must ponder the paths they have chosen and ask themselves: have they made the most of their gifts? Babette's Feast won several major awards, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film and the British BAFTA Award for Best Film of 1987.
All Movie Guide - Dan Jardine
The sophisticated and subtle screenplay for Babette's Feast, adapted by director Gabriel Axel, is based on a story written by Isak Dinesen, the writer memorably played by Meryl Streep in the biopic Out of Africa. In the film's first half, the emotional detachment of the pious characters is mirrored in the directorial approach, which allows the narrator to explain the matters before us, keeping us at a distance. When the feast begins, the narrator steps aside, Axel's direction becomes more evocative, and our participation becomes more active. Axel plays things low-key: his camera doesn't swoop or dance, but lingers lovingly over every aspect of the meal. The soundtrack includes some beautiful period music, but Axel mostly allows the sounds of the meal to become the symphony of the feast. Made out of humility and love, the feast is Babette's supreme artistic expression, and her hedonistic present encourages the feasters to look a little more closely at their own lives, as the magical and voluptuous feast dramatically counterpoints their puritanical existence. Babette's offering is a ritual sacrifice, intended to encourage the austere characters with the possibility that their material nourishment may provide spiritual sustenance as well. The film also contains a cultural context, as the political revolutions in 19th century Europe lead to Babette's displacement and the resultant cultural blending of Babette's southern European Catholic sensuality with sober northern European Protestantism. Their pact, to say nothing about the magnificence of the feast, ironically reveals the ineffable truth that Babette's artistic expression of love cannot be properly praised with words. Like the guests' spiritual values, it exists on a higher plane, where simple acts of generosity can erase personal prejudices. The film leaves us with a haunting echo of the roads not taken, as the characters must ponder the paths they have chosen and ask themselves: have they made the most of their gifts? Babette's Feast won several major awards, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film and the British BAFTA Award for Best Film of 1987

The sophisticated and subtle screenplay for Babette's Feast, adapted by director Gabriel Axel, is based on a story written by Isak Dinesen, the writer memorably played by Meryl Streep in the biopic Out of Africa. In the film's first half, the emotional detachment of the pious characters is mirrored in the directorial approach, which allows the narrator to explain the matters before us, keeping us at a distance. When the feast begins, the narrator steps aside, Axel's direction becomes more evocative, and our participation becomes more active. Axel plays things low-key: his camera doesn't swoop or dance, but lingers lovingly over every aspect of the meal. The soundtrack includes some beautiful period music, but Axel mostly allows the sounds of the meal to become the symphony of the feast. Made out of humility and love, the feast is Babette's supreme artistic expression, and her hedonistic present encourages the feasters to look a little more closely at their own lives, as the magical and voluptuous feast dramatically counterpoints their puritanical existence. Babette's offering is a ritual sacrifice, intended to encourage the austere characters with the possibility that their material nourishment may provide spiritual sustenance as well. The film also contains a cultural context, as the political revolutions in 19th century Europe lead to Babette's displacement and the resultant cultural blending of Babette's southern European Catholic sensuality with sober northern European Protestantism. Their pact, to say nothing about the magnificence of the feast, ironically reveals the ineffable truth that Babette's artistic expression of love cannot be properly praised with words. Like the guests' spiritual values, it exists on a higher plane, where simple acts of generosity can erase personal prejudices. The film leaves us with a haunting echo of the roads not taken, as the characters must ponder the paths they have chosen and ask themselves: have they made the most of their gifts? Babette's Feast won several major awards, including the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film and the British BAFTA Award for Best Film of 1987
Read More Show Less

Product Details

  • Release Date: 7/23/2013
  • UPC: 715515107617
  • Original Release: 1987

    • Rating:

  • Source: Criterion
  • Region Code: 1
  • Aspect Ratio: Vistavision (1.66:1)
  • Presentation: Color / Wide Screen
  • Sound: Dolby Digital Mono, Dolby Digital Surround
  • Language: Français
  • Time: 1:44:00
  • Format: DVD
  • Sales rank: 62

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits
Stéphane Audran Babette Hersant
Jean-Philippe Lafont Achille Papin
Gudmar Wivesson Lorenz Lowenhielm as a Young Man
Jarl Kulle Lorenz Lowenhielm as an old man
Bibi Andersson Swedish Court Lady-in-waiting
Bodil Kjer Old Philippa
Birgitte Federspiel Old Martina
Ebbe Rode Christopher
Hanne Stensgaard Young Philippa
Bendt Rothe Old Nielsen
Vibeke Hastrup Young Martina
Lisbeth Movin The Widow
Pouel Kern The Vicar
Michel Bouquet Voice Only
Ghita Nørby Voice Only
Tina Kiberg Voice Only
Axel Ströbye Driver
Ebba With Lorens' Aunt
Else Petersen Solveig
Asta Esper Andersen Anna
Finn Nielsen Grocer
Holger Perfort Karlsen
Erik Petersen Young Erik
Lars Lohmann Fisherman
Tine Miehe-Renard Lorens' wife
Thomas Antoni Swedish Lieutenant
Gert Bastian Poor Man
Viggo Bentzon Fisherman in Rowboat
Therese Hojgaard Christensen Martha
Cay Kristiansen Poul
Bernadette Lafont
Preben Lerdorff-Rye Kaptajnen
Technical Credits
Gabriel Axel Director, Screenwriter
Henning Bahs Special Effects
Just Betzer Co-producer
Elisabeth Bukkehave Makeup
Bo Christensen Co-producer
Sanna Dandanell Makeup
Michael Dela Sound/Sound Designer
Annelise Hauberg Costumes/Costume Designer
Tom Hedegaard Asst. Director
Finn Henriksen Editor
Grethe Hollenfer Makeup
Henning Kristiansen Cinematographer
Karl Lagerfeld Costumes/Costume Designer
Bente Moller Makeup
Pia Myrdal Costumes/Costume Designer
Lene Nielsen Production Manager
Per Nørgård Score Composer
Lydia Pujol Makeup
Birthe Lyngsoe Sorensen Makeup
Ase Tarp Makeup
Sven Wichmann Art Director, Production Designer
Read More Show Less

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- Babette's Feast
1. Opening Credits [1:30]
2. "There Once Lived Two Sisters ..." [4:57]
3. Lieutenant Löwenhielm [5:04]
4. "Each Time, He Grew More Insignificant" [4:51]
5. Achille Papin, From Paris [3:49]
6. Singing Lessons [9:22]
7. Madame Babette Hersant [6:43]
8. Cooking Lessons [4:11]
9. Fourteen Years Later [3:41]
10. Schisms In The Congregation [2:58]
11. "It's From France" [4:18]
12. Babette Asks A Favor [3:36]
13. Babette Returns, With Goods [4:03]
14. "As If We Never Had The Sense Of Taste" [3:07]
15. Preparations [3:05]
16. General Löwenhielm [2:11]
17. "They're Here" [3:48]
18. "Babette Says Dinner Is Served" [3:53]
19. Champagne, Blinis Demidoff [3:03]
20. Cailles En Sarcophage [5:48]
21. Salad [2:44]
22. The General's Toast [2:05]
23. Figs, Grapes, And Melon [2:24]
24. Coffee, Cognac Fine Champagne [2:59]
25. "It Is Time For Us To Leave" [3:51]
26. "It Was A Very Good Dinner" [3:05]
27. End Credits [2:12]
1. Color Bars [:20]
Disc #2 -- Babette's Feast
1. Chapter 1 [8:13]
2. Chapter 2 [:26]
1. Chapter 1 [25:32]
2. Chapter 2 [:26]
1. Chapter 1 [16:33]
2. Chapter 2 [:26]
Read More Show Less

Menu

Disc #1 -- Babette's Feast
   Play The Movie
   Chapters
   Trailer
   Subtitles
      Subtitles: On
      Subtitles: Off
Disc #2 -- Babette's Feast
   Gabriel Axel
      Chapters
         Play
   Stéphane Audran
   Table Scraps
      Chapters
         Play
   Karen Blixen-Storyteller
   An Artist Of The Everyday
      Chapters
         Play
   Subtitles
      Subtitles: On
      Subtitles: Off
Read More Show Less