Like cinema, food often creates a powerful communal experience, and movies have used food in a variety of ways. Food is one of the few universal experiences, and art has historically used it to communicate across different cultures. Different kinds of food can mean different things, as can the circumstances in which people prepare and eat it. Since long before film was invented, food has held an important place in all kinds of art all over the world.
Food is a basic human need, so it can serve many different roles in movies. Whether characters are discovering new dishes, pouring their hearts into meals for others or sharing food, there are endless potential connotations. Most of the time, movies can make food look extremely appealing using sight and sound alone. Animated movies tend to be especially good at this. Food scenes can create a visceral response, since evoking different flavors can be a powerful storytelling technique.
Related The 10 Best Food Movies Of All Time, According To Ranker
Ranker has ranked some of the best food films out there and many of these will leave audiences feeling hungry
15 The Exotic Feast
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
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8/10 6/10 Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
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*Availability in US Director Steven Spielberg Release Date May 8, 1984 Cast Harrison Ford , Kate Capshaw , Ke Huy Quan , Amrish Puri , Roshan Seth , Philip Stone , Roy Chiao
Temple of Doom isn’t often considered the best Indiana Jones movie, but Steven Spielberg still delivers plenty of memorable moments. When Indy, Short Round and Willie arrive at Pankot Palace, they are treated to an extravagant feast at the maharajah’s table. Unfortunately for Willie, each dish is far too exotic for her tastes. She’s starving after their exploits in the jungle, but she can’t bring herself to eat live snakes, monkey brains or eyeball soup. This is a completely ludicrous representation of Indian cuisine, but the scene still works as a way of selling Willie’s discomfort and her spoiled lifestyle. It also sets up a nice scene when Indy brings her some fruit later.
14 The Steak That Doesn’t Exist
The Matrix (1999)
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9/10 9.3/10 The Matrix
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*Availability in US Director Lana Wachowski , Lilly Wachowski Release Date March 31, 1999 Cast Keanu Reeves , Laurence Fishburne , Carrie-Anne Moss , Hugo Weaving , Gloria Foster , Joe Pantoliano
The Matrix is a thrilling action movie, but its unique premise also means that it has room for some deep philosophical discussions. One of the best quotes from The Matrix comes from Cypher, while he is betraying Morpheus and his associates to Agent Smith. While he eats a piece of steak, he comments that it’s delicious despite the fact that he knows it isn’t real. The Matrix repeatedly muses on the differences between perception and reality, and Cypher clearly thinks that pleasure and comfort are more important than any objective truth, even if that means that all humans are forever trapped.
13 The Welcome Feast At Hogwarts
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
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7.7/10 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
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*Availability in US Director Chris Columbus Release Date November 16, 2001 Cast Daniel Radcliffe , Rupert Grint , Emma Watson , John Cleese , Robbie Coltrane , Warwick Davis , Richard Griffiths , Ian Hart , John Hurt , Alan Rickman , Fiona Shaw , Maggie Smith
The first Harry Potter movie highlights the contrast between Harry’s dreary life with the Dursleys and his new situation at Hogwarts when the first-year students are welcomed with a grand feast. Harry is always treated as an afterthought by the Dursleys, and one of the first things he does with his newfound wealth is buy everything on the menu while he and Ron take the Hogwarts Express. Clearly, he equates food with the luxury and comfort that he has been deprived of his whole life, and the feast shows him that he has found a new home at Hogwarts. Although later Harry Potter movies used props, all the food in this first feast scene is real.
12 Mr. Creosote’s Wafer-Thin Mint
Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983)
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Monty Python’s The Meaning Of Life
Director Terry Jones Release Date March 31, 1983 Cast John Cleese , Terry Gilliam , Eric Idle , Terry Jones , Graham Chapman , Michael Palin , Carol Cleveland , Simon Jones
The Meaning of Life is often forgotten when discussing Monty Python’s movies, but the comedy anthology movie has plenty to offer. The Mr. Creosote scene is one of the funniest sketches. It’s a remarkably simple joke, but the execution makes it hilarious. Terry Jones’ irascible, morbidly obese grump is a brilliant character. Like so many great Monty Python sketches, the Mr. Creosote scene ratchets up the absurdity, but it has a clear message about class and British manners. This mixture of scathing satire and gross-out humor makes the sketch a classic. Many food scenes in movies showcase delicious dishes, but Monty Python, as usual, are uninterested in what is normal.
11 Stop-Motion Sushi
Isle Of Dogs (2018)
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7/10 7/10 Isle of Dogs
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*Availability in US Director Wes Anderson Release Date March 23, 2018 Cast Bill Murray , Tilda Swinton , Kara Hayward , Liev Schreiber , Bob Balaban , Jeff Goldblum , Greta Gerwig , Yoko Ono , Bryan Cranston , Courtney B. Vance , Edward Norton , F. Murray Abraham , Scarlett Johansson , Frances McDormand , Harvey Keitel Expand
Wes Anderson’s second stop-motion animated movie has a few scenes which show the director showcasing his flair for the medium. One of these is the sushi scene, in which a chef lovingly and expertly prepares a lavish meal, adding a single drop of poison wasabi at the end to assassinate the professor. The scene is largely filmed from a bird’s eye view, which gives it the appearance of a social media cooking video at times. This also has the effect of obscuring the face of the chef, so the focus remains on the surgical precision of the two hands which are in the shot. Detailed touches like this make Isle of Dogs one of Wes Anderson’s most underrated movies.
10 Fizzy Lifting Drinks
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)
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8/10 10/10 Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
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*Availability in US Director Mel Stuart Release Date June 30, 1971 Cast Jack Albertson , gene wilder , Peter Ostrum , Denise Nickerson , Julie Dawn Cole
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is filled with fantastical confectionery creations, as Charlie and the other golden ticket holders take a tour of Willy Wonka’s factory. The chocolate river, the ever-lasting gobstopper and the three-course dinner chewing gum are all brought to life with Roald Dahl’s inherent sense of wonder. The fizzy lifting drinks are no different, but this scene may be even more iconic because of the danger that Charlie and Grandpa Joe find themselves in. They almost end up like the other members of the tour group. It’s the perfect visual metaphor for how the children get carried away.
9 Elio’s Peach
Call Me by Your Name (2017)
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9/10 8.3/10 Call Me By Your Name
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*Availability in US Director Luca Guadagnino Release Date November 24, 2017 Cast Armie Hammer , Timothée Chalamet , Michael Stuhlbarg , Amira Casar , Esther Garrel , Victoire Du Bois
Food has always had a sexual connotation, not just in movies, but in literature and art dating back centuries. Fruit is especially well-suited to sexual metaphor, since it often embodies fertility and new life. In Call Me by Your Name, Elio is conflicted about his sexuality, but he finds a moment of cathartic release with a peach. The scene is an important turning point in his story, but it’s still a shocking moment even when taken out of context. Luca Guadagnino lets the scene play out in a long take focused on Timothée Chalamet. Elio’s subsequent altercation with Oliver is just as naturalistic.
8 Dinner In Prison
Goodfellas (1990)
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10/10 10/10 Goodfellas
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*Availability in US Director Martin Scorsese Release Date September 21, 1990 Cast Robert De Niro , Ray Liotta , Joe Pesci , Lorraine Bracco , Paul Sorvino , Frank Sivero
Goodfellas shows the importance of food in Italian-American culture. Even when Henry, Jimmy and Tommy have a body tied up in the back of their car, they still find time to stop for a home-cooked meal. Later, Goodfellas shows that even a long stretch in prison can’t keep the gangsters away from a good meal. They smuggle in enough fresh produce to make their favorite meals, paying off the guards to ensure they are left alone. There’s a stark contrast between the violent nature that the men have on the outside and the tender care with which they prepare their meals, including slicing garlic with a razor blade.
7 The Final Burger
The Menu (2022)
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7/10 9/10 The Menu
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*Availability in US Director Mark Mylod Release Date November 18, 2022 Cast Ralph Fiennes , Anya Taylor-Joy , Nicholas Hoult , Hong Chau , Janet McTeer , Reed Birney , Judith Light , John Leguizamo
The Menu is structured like a luxurious multi-course meal, with each new course usually corresponding to a new twist in the story. Each of the items on Chef Slowik’s hand-crafted menu is deeply meaningful, and Margot figures out that the only way for her to get through to him is by communicating via food. She asks for a simple cheeseburger, which reignites Slowik’s passion for food and reminds him of his youth. The meaning of The Menu‘s cheeseburger scene crystallizes the ethos of Slowik’s dark descent, and the cult that he has created in his kitchen. It also looks completely irresistible.
6 Sharing A Plate Of Spaghetti
Lady and the Tramp (1955)
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7/10 Lady and the Tramp
Director Clyde Geronimi , Wilfred Jackson , Hamilton Luske Release Date June 22, 1955 Cast Barbara Luddy , Larry Roberts , Bill Thompson , Dallas McKennon , Bill Baucom , Verna Felton , Peggy Lee
Probably the most iconic scene from Lady and the Tramp, the Italian meal shared between the two canine lovers is a perfect display of the irrepressible charm of old Disney animated classics. Lady and the Tramp is a story of love triumphing across social boundaries. The spaghetti scene is an important moment in the love story, because it shows how Lady and Tramp get to know each other without the drama of the dogcatcher or other outside forces. It’s simply a sweet moment between two new lovers, and the animation is beautifully done.
5 Po Fights For A Dumpling
Kung Fu Panda (2008)
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8/10 Kung Fu Panda
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*Availability in US Director Mark Osborne , John Stevenson Release Date June 4, 2008 Cast Jack Black , Dustin Hoffman , Angelina Jolie , Ian McShane , Jackie Chan , Seth Rogen
Master Shifu feels that he has been burdened with Po for a long time, and he doesn’t believe that the panda is the true Dragon Warrior. Po begins to show promise in his training when Shifu finds that food is the key to motivating him. At the end of a particularly long day of training together, Shifu offers Po a bowl of dumplings, but this merely sets up another challenge. The following fight scene over the last dumpling shows how far Po has come in such a short time, and it’s the perfect display of Kung Fu Panda‘s ability to mix creative action with moments of great humor.
4 Vito Corleone’s Orange Peel Trick
The Godfather (1972)
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10/10 9.8/10 The Godfather
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*Availability in US Director Francis Ford Coppola Release Date March 24, 1972 Cast Marlon Brando , Diane Keaton , James Caan , Al Pacino , Robert Duvall
Oranges are used as a recurring motif throughout The Godfather trilogy as an omen of impending death. They provide a bright pop of color that stands out from the rest of what’s on screen, so it’s a clear warning sign when Vito grabs one toward the end of The Godfather. Although he’s a violent criminal, Vito also has a few moments which show his family values and his more tender side. He cuts an orange peel to look like a set of fangs and puts them in his mouth to scare his grandson. The fact that Vito dies while playing with his grandson contrasts with Michael’s lonely death many years later.
3 The Chocolate Cake
Matilda (1996)
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7/10 8/10 Matilda
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*Availability in US Director Danny DeVito Release Date June 28, 1996 Cast Danny DeVito , Mara Wilson , Pam Ferris
Matilda manages to make a moist chocolate cake look revolting. Director Danny DeVito uses plenty of low angled shots and extreme close-ups to highlight the anguish on Bruce Bogtrotter’s face as Miss Trunchbull forces him to devour an enormous cake in front of the entire school as punishment for stealing a slice from the kitchen. Trunchbull gets a lot of perverse glee out of punishing Bruce. This isn’t the only extreme method of discipline she invents, but the sticky noises of the cake and Bruce’s exhausted face make it the most memorable. Fortunately, her plan backfires as Matilda and the other students cheer Bruce on.
2 Jules Tries A Big Kahuna Burger
Pulp Fiction (1994)
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10/10 8.3/10 Pulp Fiction
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*Availability in US Director Quentin Tarantino Release Date October 14, 1994 Cast John Travolta , Bruce Willis , Ving Rhames , Samuel L. Jackson , Uma Thurman , Christopher Walken , Tim Roth , Harvey Keitel , Eric Stoltz , Rosanna Arquette
Vincent and Jules have a habit of making idle chit-chat while on the job. Their work may be extremely violent and illegal, but they treat it like any other job, and they talk more about food than they do about business. When the two hitmen visit Brett to retrieve the mysterious briefcase, Jules adopts a casual tone. His friendly approach is chilling, since everyone in the room knows how dangerous he is and what he might be about to do. Still, he enjoys toying with Brett and his friends for a while, even helping himself to one of their cheeseburgers. The entire scene is a perfect encapsulation of how Quentin Tarantino uses dialogue counterintuitively.
1 Remy Prepares Anton’s Meal
Ratatouille (2007)
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9/10 10/10 Ratatouille
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*Availability in US Director Brad Bird Release Date June 29, 2007 Cast Patton Oswalt , Ian Holm , Lou Romano , Brad Garrett , Peter O’Toole , Janeane Garofalo , Brian Dennehy , Peter Sohn , Will Arnett
Ratatouille has no shortage of brilliant food scenes, starting with Remy learning about different flavor combinations and surreptitiously fixing Linguini’s soup. Food is integral to Ratatouille‘s plot, so it’s apt that the ending hinges on Remy making one last dish to impress the snobbish food critic Anton Ego. The ratatouille transports Anton back to his childhood, reminding him of his love for food long before he made it his job. In the same way, Ratatouille is a great reminder of the simple joy of food, and the power that it has to bring people together and create communal experiences.