This is a fun little documentary about an 85-year-old man so committed to his craft - making sushi - that he rarely ever takes a day off. Such dedication! Truly the Greatest Generation...
Here's the thing - if you've seen food porn, you've seen food porn. And this being the godfather of our current cultural obsession with food porn doesn't make it a particularly special or exemplary example of food porn. But hey! This was still enjoyable and very easy to watch. Except for all the subtitles, I mean.
I will say this. There's a second season episode of Documentary Now! called "Juan Likes Rice and Chicken" that was always one of my favorites in the series, and in hindsight it's a pitch-perfect parody of Jiro Dreams of Sushi. Watch it! It's only one third as long as Jiro Dreams of Sushi and I think it stands alone just as well.
Ah... I have to see season two of "Documentary Now!" I thought this documentary was interesting, though. It was really intriguing to get an insight into Japan's culture that revolves around truly appreciating your craft -- in this case making sushi.
ReplyDeleteWatching that one apprentice working again and again to make that egg-type of sushi dish only to be told do it over. I'm sitting there looking at it and thinking, Jiro is just fucking with him... I mean, that dish looks perfect. I would happily eat it. Then there's the moment where Jiro finally approves of his work and the apprentice kind of breaks down after achieving such an accomplishment.
On one hand, I really applaud the idea of perfecting your craft. Taking no short cuts. And the pride that follows that achievement. On the other hand, where is the line in the sand to mark this "perfection"? At some point, could it be considered unnecessarily obsessive?
Eh, maybe the guy who only cooks food in a microwave shouldn't comment about high standards in the culinary arts.
It really is a great philosophical debate. I love too how the restaurant no longer offers appetizers or cocktails. Just sushi! Because Jiro used to make appetizers and cocktails and he figured his sushi was suffering for it.
ReplyDeleteBut here's what's up. You take this to the extreme, and suddenly Jiro can stop doing shrimp sushi, lobster sushi, etc. - because it's distracting him from perfecting his tuna sushi. And then you take THAT to the extreme, and he bails on doing everything but lean tuna.
It's the age-old "is it better to be a jack of all trades, or a master of one?" debate. I'm definitely, firmly, an "all trades" guy. You can see it on the blog - I go for books, for movies, for video games, and I do all kinds of genres of each. You see it in my career, too - I don't and will never have a Ph.D. in any specific field, nor will I be the foremost expert at any particular subject, most likely, ever. But I know a lot of things about a lot of things, and I want to know more about more. I'm all about that breadth, not about that depth.
And I think I'm not alone - I think most modern, Western men are like me. We get bored focusing on one thing, we want to mix it up, we don't have the patience or discipline required to absolutely perfect any given techniques or skillsets because we'd rather be well-rounded, eclectic, etc.
I guess what I'm driving at is, what's the price of being a Jiro? To devote your life to a single craft and to make it your life's purpose to be "the very best, like no one ever was?" Is this a particularly Eastern way of thinking? Or is it just an older way of thinking?