Jiro Dreams of Sushi

For most of his life, 85-year-old sushi master Jiro Ono has dedicated just about every waking moment – and a large amount of his dream time – trying to figure out how to make the sushi he serves in his tiny Tokyo restaurant taste better. He knows he will never create the perfect sushi dish, but he also knows that he will never stop trying to get as close to perfection as he can. Food fans will flock to a film like this because they get a chance to watch a master craftsman raise the act of cutting raw fish and serving it on rice to the level of true art. The film has a lot to offer non-foodies, too, particularly in the way director David Gelb weaves the story of the man’s life into the story of his food. Gelb also does a marvelous job of capturing the final product of all this dedication, work and devotion – Jiro’s sushi – on film. He doesn’t use a lot of tricks; like the master he is documenting, Gelb shoots the sushi in a pure and natural way and food has never looked so absolutely beautiful.