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Jiro Dreams of Sushi

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Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#11

Post by chnx »

siglesias wrote: post #7

For the uninitiated, the subtext of this movie is pondering whether Jiro's son Yoshikazu will be able to successfully take over the restaurant when Jiro retires. It's the age old question of what does it take for apprentice to finally surpass the master; who is a worthy successor to the master, etc. This is particularly relevant because the valley's succession story du jour is Apple and whether Tim Cook et al can tak…

Near the end of the documentary it is said by Jiro that his son (Yoshikazu) was the one making the sushi when it was being graded for the three Michelin stars and that being the head chef is the easy job because all the hard preparation work is done by the people under him. I think this somewhat applies to Apple as well — while Jobs was an excellent curator of sorts, he was supported by excellent people like Sir Jonathan Ive and others. So I wouldn't be surprised if they continue to create highly innovative products.

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#13

Post by siglesias »

chnx wrote: post #11
siglesias wrote: post #7

For the uninitiated, the subtext of this movie is pondering whether Jiro's son Yoshikazu will be able to successfully take over the restaurant when Jiro retires. It's the age old question of what does it take for apprentice to finally surpass the master; who is a worthy successor to the master, etc. This is particularly relevant because the valley's succession story du jour is Apple and whether Tim Cook et al can tak…

Near the end of the documentary it is said by Jiro that his son (Yoshikazu) was the one making the sushi when it was being graded for the three Michelin stars and that being the head chef is the easy job because all the hard preparation work is done by the people under him. I think this somewhat applies to Apple as well — while Jobs was an excellent curator of sorts, he was supported by excellent people like Sir Jona…

That's the sad part—the products will be every bit as good but the public perception, until the products double the best of Jobs, will be yawn.

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#15

Post by rdl »

chnx wrote: post #11
siglesias wrote: post #7

For the uninitiated, the subtext of this movie is pondering whether Jiro's son Yoshikazu will be able to successfully take over the restaurant when Jiro retires. It's the age old question of what does it take for apprentice to finally surpass the master; who is a worthy successor to the master, etc. This is particularly relevant because the valley's succession story du jour is Apple and whether Tim Cook et al can tak…

Near the end of the documentary it is said by Jiro that his son (Yoshikazu) was the one making the sushi when it was being graded for the three Michelin stars and that being the head chef is the easy job because all the hard preparation work is done by the people under him. I think this somewhat applies to Apple as well — while Jobs was an excellent curator of sorts, he was supported by excellent people like Sir Jona…

The thing I particularly liked was how he picked his vendors based on their expertise. He admitted to knowing less about tuna than his tuna guy, less about rice than his rice guy, etc., and his relationships were long-term and mutually beneficial.

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#16

Post by rdl »

pheon wrote: post #4

that the full menu costs $300 and you will finish in 30min. also reviews of the his sons restaurant say they get angry if you dont eat everything...

They ask you in advance if there is something you don't like/are allergic to (my friend ate there), which isn't normal for omakase actually (I hate Uni, so this is a concern for me).

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#17

Post by opminion »

rapidstuff wrote: post #10
dleibovic wrote: post #9

I'll be the dissenter here-- I was not a fan of the movie. It was a boring piece about a man obsessed to the point of craziness about sushi. His kids said to the mother: "Mommy, who is the strange man in our house?" The man was Jiro, their father. Is that the childhood you want your children to live? For me, the mastery of a craft is not worth this price.

IMO, most comments & takeaways around the documentary focused on being passionate and loving your work. But the documentary does make you ponder over whether it is worth the price of not being there for your children. On a separate note, the scenes of the fish market shows the ugly side of over fishing our seas.

the scenes of the fish market shows the ugly side of over fishing our seas.

What do they show? I can't figure out how one thing could show the other.

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#18

Post by timr »

opminion wrote: post #17
rapidstuff wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IMO, most comments & takeaways around the documentary focused on being passionate and loving your work. But the documentary does make you ponder over whether it is worth the price of not being there for your children. On a separate note, the scenes of the fish market shows the ugly side of over fishing our seas.

the scenes of the fish market shows the ugly side of over fishing our seas. What do they show? I can't figure out how one thing could show the other.

You have to know some subtext: those tuna take human lifespans to grow. There are dozens of them there, every day.

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#19

Post by patio11 »

pheon wrote: post #4

that the full menu costs $300 and you will finish in 30min. also reviews of the his sons restaurant say they get angry if you dont eat everything...

Not finishing what you're served in Japan is, approximately, the same comment as a $0 tip is in America, except about food quality rather than service. Culturally, the act of not eating something prepared for you reads like "Your food is inedible and unfit for human consumption" rather than "I wasn't that hungry" or "This particular dish, well, I wasn't quite feeling it." This will generally not endear you to fancy chefs, although you might get a bit of leeway if you look obviously foreign.

(Japanese people get in trouble on the tip thing all the time in the US, so much so that my travel agent helpfully tried to instruct me on "peculiar customs of Americans" when selling me a ticket to my hometown.)

Re: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

#20

Post by marban »

I would rank it among a typical Gary Hustwit movie but it did become repetitive at times. Obviously not as thrilling as Man on Wire but when it comes to documentaries about devoting every waking minute to your passion, it's a top pick.
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