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After a really stressful week, I decided to browse Netflix’s recommendation list. One movie poster I noticed was for “The Ramen Girl” starring Brittany Murphy dressed in a kimono sitting in a very awkward position. This film has been rotating in my queue for quite a while, so I thought I would give it a shot. What’s with the name “Ramen Girl?” It has everything to do with the movie: Girl + Ramen.

Before I get into the movie review, here’s a brief history of ramen noodles and the introduction of the dish into Japan.

Ramen (ラーメン, らーめん, 拉麺 ) is a Japanese noodle dish that originated in China. From the research I’ve done, there wasn’t an exact time period when this dish was introduced in Japan. Ramen is served in meat or fish-based broth flavored with miso or soy sauce. Some of the ingredients include kombu (kelp), katsuobushi (skipjack tuna flakes) niboshi (dried baby sardines), beef bones, shiitake mushrooms, onions and sometimes corn.

Ramen became increasingly popular in Japan during the early 20th century. In 1958 instant noodles was invented by Momofuku Ando, the Taiwanese-Japanese founder of Nissin Foods. There’s even a ramen museum in Yokohama called the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum. It’s used in the film as a place where Brittany Murphy’s love interest takes her. In Japan, high-end ramen restaurants are called izakayas (ramen-ya). These are popular places where there can be 10-20 seats at a bar or three tables.

“The Ramen Girl” is about, Abby, a spoiled American who rushes to live in Tokyo with her boyfriend. He leaves her alone in Tokyo because he’s a “traveller and he’s not feeling the relationship.” Not sure what to do next, Abby finds solace in a neighborhood ramen shop, unable to speak any Japanese. She works in a law firm as a copywriter and she is barely given any work to do. She sees the ramen shop as her sign to begin her long journey as a ramen chef.

She begs the old chef to train her, but he is not a delight to work with. He makes her clean everything, including the barely non-existent toilet in the restaurant. The two are complete opposites, which make for hilarious moments during the film. She stomps her feet and yells at him while he calls her an “idiotic girl” in Japanese. Eventually, she works her way up to learning how to make broth (boiled with a pig’s head) and chop ingredients.

Like all typical romantic comedies, Abby is not going to be left alone. She meets a Japanese-Korean businessman played by Sohee Park. He’s very attractive and helps play off some of the more ridiculous moments of the film.

I thought the film was worth watching and perfect for wanting something light. It’s very predictable, but what chick flicks aren’t? There were a few times when I wondered why the director included specific scenes in the film. For example, Abby is letting customers take sips of her ramen soup. She was told by the chef’s mother she needs to “feel the ramen” and to “let the spirit guide her.” (It sounds like something out of “Star Wars.”) Abby uses her sadness and tears as her spirit guide to making the perfect bowl of ramen. Everyone at the table begins to burst out in tears because one probably will never get married and an older woman is upset due to her husband not having sexual relations with her for 15 years. (That’s a bummer.) This entire scene seemed out-of-place and strange.

Overall, it was a very simplistic chick flick, but worth the watch. It’s funny to watch the chef yell at Abby in Japanese and her trying to cope with her minor linguistic skills. Personally, I’ve never been a fan of ramen because I’ve only had the instant noodles one can buy in the supermarket. After watching Brittany Murphy prepare it in the film, I’ll have to give it a second try.

♥ – Erin