This weekend while lounging on the couch, flipping through channels, I turned to “Pressure Cooker,” a documentary. It sounded decently entertaining. Students at an inner city Philadelphia public school, with various family or personal struggles, study Culinary Arts under a tough, and quite blunt, female instructor. This instructor believes in the kids and prepares her students to compete for substantial scholarships at top culinary schools that can help transform their lives. Sounds typical? Well it kind of is, its like Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, or Music of the Heart or any other movie with poor kids and a teacher who can save the world. To be honest, the movie wasn’t amazing or standout, the sound quality was mediocre, and the story could have been more developed, but it was still heart warming. I loved the teacher and I found myself cheering the kids on. No matter how many times we see it or how corny it is, we like the idea that one person can make a difference–and the idea that cooking can be a tool in this pursuit? Well, that makes me really happy. Check out the trailer and see for yourself.
