Film Addict's April Film Choice

Continuing on from last month where I decided that I was going to review a relatively new addition to my film collection, the Film Addict's April Film Choice is Chef, a film I really wanted to see that came out in October last year but never got the chance to see.

Chef is Jon Favreau's 2014 comedy-drama film revolving around a chef who quits his job after being pressured by his boss to keep from experimenting with his menu at his restaurant.  Stars includes Jon Favreau himself (Marvel Cinematic Universe, Couples Retreat), Sofía Vergara (Modern Family, Four Brothers), John Leguizamo (Romeo + Juliet, Ice Age), Emjay Anthony (It's Complicated, The Divergent Series: Insurgent), Scarlett Johansson (Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Island), Oliver Platt (Casanova, X-Men: First Class), Bobby Cannavale (Will & Grace, Win Win), Dustin Hoffman (Meet the Fockers, Rain Man), and Robert Downey, Jr. (Marvel Cinematic Universe, Sherlock Holmes).

Rating: 7

Recommended To: Those looking for a happy film

Favourite Characters: Martin - plot might not have worked without him

Favourite Part: Carl: I gotta pick up some equipment for the truck.  You wanna come with me and help me pick out a stove 'til Mom calls back?
Percy: Fine.
Carl: Alright.  Let's go.

Good Points: Great cast; the way social media was incorporated; great feel good film

Bad Points: Made me massively hungry; predictable plot

Originally from Miami, Carl Caspar (Favreau) is the head chef of Gauloise in California who has become tired with making the same "classics" he's been making for years and wants to make new, innovative dishes that his staff including Martin (Leguizamo), Tony (Cannavale), and Molly (Johansson) love but the owner of Gauloise, Riva (Hoffman), doesn't like him being experimenting.  On top of feeling unfulfilled in his career, Carl has a strained relationship with his son, Percy (Anthony) since he and his ex-wife, Inez (Vergara), divorced.  When one of California's most prestigious food critics, Ramsey Michel (Platt), is coming to review the restaurant.  When Ramsey writes a scathing review about Carl and Gauloise which throws Carl through a loop and after challenging him to a rematch through a new Twitter account that Percy helps him set up, Carl intends to cook him something new but is unable to because of Riva forbidding him so he quits.  Unfortunately, Ramsey is unaware that Carl isn't behind the food at the restaurant and inadvertently causes Carl to come down to the restaurant and angrily berate Ramsey in front of all of the customers, some of whom film the confrontation which goes viral.  So to get away from it all, Inez invites Carl to come to Miami while she is working so to keep an eye on Percy and look into a new opportunity, a food truck, leading to a bright new adventure for Carl.

Recently, I have found that most of the films I have reviewed have a great cast and once again, the cast of Chef are fantastic.  They are a collection of fun, lively actors that brought these characters and the story to life, making an old story bright and vibrant.  The way the entire cast interact doesn't feel forced, it's as if they're not actually acting and have in fact known one another a long time.  It's this quality that makes a film for me because it allows me to suspend my disbelief, even if it's just for a few hours; films need to be convincing and if you don't believe the actors are even remotely friends or at least getting along, it can ruin a film.

The way in which social media - especially Twitter - was fantastic, bringing both positive and negative points to light.  It enables Carl to bond with his son as the latter teaches Carl the basics of Twitter which leads to his initial downfall - a positive and a negative.  It's great to see social media being embraced in this way, showing the advantages and pitfalls because a vast majority of people use social media to share their opinions on places they've been to or eaten at, making more people aware of new places as well as old hidden gems.  It is the digital age; we should embrace what we've created but we shouldn't be dependent on it.

Chef is a great, feel good film because it is full of fun and lively characters that bring life to the plot coupled with good food and friends that make Carl's story interesting.  Along with these factors, the Cuban music also helps keep the feel good spirit up throughout even when it's getting tough for Carl; the Cuban music also brought a sense of passion because of the association with Latin dancing we may have, I know I do - I have the urge to dance like Martin does when he is preparing the first ever sandwiches in Carl's food truck.

While Carl is a wonderful protagonist, I found Martin appealed to me a lot more because he's one of Carl's biggest supporters; he literally drops everything to help Carl start up his new business, El Jefe Food Truck, after everything Carl has been through.  Even though Tony was Carl's sous-chef at the restaurant and Martin was a line cook, he comes across as the one that Carl trusts the most because he relies on him as Martin has been with Carl for years, implying there is a sense of loyalty that has been built up over the years to the point where Martin is about to quit along with Carl before the latter stops him.  I believe that the food truck wouldn't be successful without a character like Martin there for Carl and the same could be said about the film as Martin is a fantastic, fun, colourful character amongst the rest of the main cast.  He's even important to the plot, bringing Carl closer to his son which brings him back to the woman he loves as well by encouraging Percy to join in making the sandwiches and agreeing to let him stay with them on the road which leads to more father/son bonding.

While it isn't a major downside, it's more that it irritated me, but Chef made me absolutely ravenous because of all the wonderful looking food - even a simple grilled cheese.  It implies that they want to make a great film about a chef rediscovering his passion for food and seeing Jon Favreau make all of this wonderful food, at least that is what I am led to believe from articles about Chef saying he learnt how to cook like this, bringing authenticity to the film.  It's an accomplishment that he's made food look so appealing but it's irritating when you have no food to suppress the urge to eat the food in the film.  Don't watch Chef if you're hungry, or I recommend having something to snack on.

As with a number of films that revolve around some who has lost their passion, their lust for life, the plot was fairly predictable with Carl, obsessed with his career but inadvertently neglects his son, quits his job when he hits the brink and comes to realise how important his friends and family are to him.  It's a good story but it's a familiar recipe which can be comforting every so often.

Carl: I gotta pick up some equipment for the truck.  You wanna come with me and help me pick out a stove 'til Mom calls back?
Percy: Fine.
Carl: Alright.  Let's go.

This part was a wonderful moment for Carl and Percy because it's the first real time that Carl brings Percy along with him that has anything to do with his work voluntarily, something Percy has wanted since the beginning of Chef.  It's when they start to bond really and Percy begins to learn about what his dad loves to do, allowing them to learn more about one another, an integral part of a story about a man rediscovering his passion for life.  It's such a simple trip but leads to many trips in the future and lots of bonding moments for them, something we all could do with at his age.

While it's a familiar recipe of a man rediscovering his passion with ingredients for this such as his friends and family, Chef is a wonderful feel good film with a fun and colourful cast that bring the characters and story to life.  Incorporating social media into the story, showing the positives and negatives, is a great plot point, bringing father and so together as well as bringing new opportunities to Carl's life.

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