Often cartoon style movies have very grown up humor and/or make/discuss important issues. With Ratatouille, a very serious issue lies underneath the plot that has to do with the Michelin rating system. The Chef Gousteau character clearly imitates the real life situation of what happened to Chef Bernard Louiseau of La Côte d'Or restaurant in Saulieu, France. Chef Gousteau even looks like him. Chef Louiseau achieved his life's ambition to become a Michelin 3 star chef (the best) but then confided to another chef that he would kill himself if he lost a star. In February of 2003, he did just that, shooting himself with his hunting rifle after his restaurant had been downgraded by Gault Millau and there were rumors surfacing that he would lose a star.
As in the case of Chef Gousteau in the movie, Chef Louiseau may be physically gone, but his ideas had and still do have great influence on French cuisine. He introduced many ideas and products. As well, his restaurant is still flourishing and still has 3 Michelin stars, due to the efforts of the current chef and his wife. Young chefs are still learning and benefiting from his style.
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