Robert Capon once wrote that “Grace is the celebration of life, relentlessly hounding all the non-celebrants in the world.” Babette’s Feast is Robert Capon on screen. It is a delicious blend of humor and smells; sights and music. It is virtually impossible to contemplate the movie without considering its vastly religious and sacramental implications.
The 1987 Danish drama is based on a short story by Isak Dinesen. The characters–two elderly maiden sisters–Martine and Philippa, continue the work of their deceased father, who was a prophet/pastor figure of a small Christian sect. After the death of their father, the two sisters immerse themselves in a life of charity while carrying their father’s work to a decreasing and dying number of followers. The two beautiful young women never married. Their father’s vision kept them from pursuing “worldly concerns.”
When two men enter the scene, they offer tangible changes to the life of the two maids.
Lorenz Lowenhielm, an intemperate young cadet enters into Martine’s world seduced by the vision of a purer life. But he soon finds himself lost in the unique, religious environment and chooses to pursue worldly success, which he duly accomplishes.
Next, Achille Papin, a gifted and renowned opera singer, finds himself on the remote coastland in search of rest. His solitude in this strange place plunges him into depression until he hears the angelic melody of Philippa’s voice. Papin believes Philippa is destined for musical greatness and decides to offer her his musical expertise in operatic training. But Philippa is pure and views the entire musical endeavor as an act of seduction and sends her potential suitor back to the continent without her.
Years later, during the French Civil War, Papin sends them Babette. Babette has lost both husband and son and is now seeking refuge from the war on the small island.
Babette’s work ethic and great culinary gifts bring happiness and economic stability to the sisters. Babette’s role in the small community–especially among the few devout–is that of a peace-bringer. But the remaining disciples find themselves increasingly at odds with one another. In the movie, Babette’srole is to bring shalom to the community as she embraces a spirit-figure restoring and putting broken pieces together.
In order to reconcile and restore peace to the saints, the two sisters decide to offer a meal in honor of their late father’s one-hundredth birthday. As the date draws of the feast draws near, Babette receives news that she has won 10,000 francs in the French lottery. The sisters are certain that Babette will now return to France and live off her new prize. Instead, Babette decides to use her lottery wins to prepare a feast of a lifetime for the hundredth birthday celebration.
Babette, the culinary artist, goes to France and returns with all the ingredients (living and dead). Befuddled by the exotic ingredients to the feast–turtles, live quail, salmon-stuffed faux-blini, and more-the sisters and the disciples decide to make a vow that they will lose their sense of taste and smell during the feast.
As the guests pour in and as each course is served and each glass filled, the vow becomes harder and harder to fulfill. Each bite and each sip bring them new life and vitality, which begins to undo the bitterness and restore the small community. The quarrels are turned into joy and the memories are turned into frameable moments in their history.
The movie ends with a heavenly picture of the saints singing around a well. The well, the very biblical image of wars and wedding bells, become the symbol of joy and restoration, sins forgiven and relationships healed.
Babette’s Feast provides an image of the holy. The holy is not other-worldly, it is the entrance of the heavenly into the world. The feast becomes a celebration of life. Bread and wine are not merely earthly nourishment, but the relentless call of grace to those who are afar off. Come and taste the feast.
