The Book, The Film, The T-Shirt
  • Home
  • News
  • Features
  • Movies
  • Books
  • TV
  • Gaming
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
Movies 2

Chef (2014)

By Dave Griffiths @goodbaduglyshow · On June 17, 2014


The Gist:

Carl Casper (Jon Favreau) was once the talk of the town. There was a time when he was the ‘it’ Chef among America’s top chefs. But things have certainly changed since then. His marriage to Inez (Sofia Vergara) is over and he never gets to spend as much time as he would like with his son, Percy (Emjay Anthony). Things reach boiling point however with his boss Riva (Dustin Hoffman) no longer giving him any creative freedom and popular food critic Ramsey Michel (Oliver Platt) trashing his food all over the internet. Urged on by Inez and colleagues Martin (John Leguizamo) and Molly (Scarlett Johansson) he decides to start exploring ways to get his creativity back.

The Review:

There’s no doubt that cooking is the ‘in’ thing at the moment. Shows like Master Chef have become must sees for a majority of people while chefs like Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver are now household names. Often though when a filmmaker decides to latch onto a popular topic the result is a rushed film that never reaches full potential. That is not the case with Chef though, no this surprise little hit is one of the biggest surprises of 2014.

As a director and actor Jon Favreau often surprises his fans. Over recent years he’s been involved with the much maligned Cowboys & Aliens and has also been the man wearing many hats on the Iron Man franchise. That’s why it comes as such a surprise that he is the man behind Chef, a well-thought drama with just the right hint of comedy. It is also just inventive enough to make it different to a lot of the films around at the moment.

Favreau brings a long of heart to the film as it warms the soul and titillates the tastebuds. Watching Casper cook up a sizzling pasta dish that more than impresses the beautiful Molly and then produce mouth watering toasted sandwiches leaves you planning what restaurant you are going to eat at when you leave the cinema. Luckily though the characters and storyline are so interesting they’ll make sure you don’t plan for a quick getaway from your seat.

Casper is a nice guy. Yes he may let out a few obscenities here and there but at the end of the day he is a frustrated creative man who doesn’t realise just how much damage he is doing to his family. He’s also a believable character and Favreau adds to that believability by the fact that he isn’t some drop dead gorgeous model type. No instead he looks just like your average everyday father, okay given that it is a bit far-fetched that he may date both Sofia Vergara and Scarlett Johansson, which is certainly going to mean that the males in the audience are going to relate to the story a hell of a lot better.

As far as directing goes this is Favreau’s best film to date. His ability to capture the essence of each city the food van travels through is a gift upon itself, while he also manages to capture the whole Twitter storyline with a little bit of creativity and not stooping as low as making it a full on advert for the social media giant. Perhaps the best part of Chef though is the way the film seems to just drift between genres with such little effort. Part family drama, part road movie with a smatter of comedy Chef is perhaps the first film in this new ‘culinary’ genre that doesn’t just focus on the food and not have an interesting story at its helm. Certainly a lot of the French directors that have tried to raise this genre from the dead could learn a lot from Chef.

The other major plus that Favreau brings to Chef is the little black book of actors that he has worked with. Bringing actors of the calibre of Scarlett Johansson and Robert Downey Jnr. on board is a major coup for the film. While they are kept to minor roles people such as Favreau himself and John Leguizamo get a chance to shine. Leguizamo is very much one of Hollywood’s forgotten stars but here shows why he should never be completely written off. He plays the side kick very well here and to his credit never becomes a walking cliché.

Also putting in a wonderful performance here is young Emjay Anthony who plays the inventive Percy. With the limited experience the young actor had before Chef it is a real surprise just how well he delivers a performance that is well beyond his years. Also worth a mention is Sofia Vergara who at times can be annoying in films, but here holds her own and is extremely likable. For some reason Favreau seems to be one of those directors who can bring out the best in his entire cast.

The Verdict:

The term ‘culinary’ genre has almost become a negative. Many French directors have tried to develop a monopoly on the genre but most of their films have ended up being snooze fests that are a sure cure for insomnia. That certainly isn’t the case for Chef which ends up being the perfect mix of sizzling food fuelled visuals and heart-felt storyline. This is one of the surprise hits of 2014.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgFws3AoIUY&feature=kp

Certificate: 15

Director: Jon Favreau

Starring: Jon Favreau, John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson, Emjay Anthony, Sofia Vergara, Robert Downey Jnr., Dustin Hoffman

Running Time: 114 minutes

Release Date: 25th June 2014

Share this:

  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Related

ChefDustin HoffmanEmjay AnthonyJohn LeguizamoJon FavreauRobert Downey Jnr.Scarlett JohanssonSofia Vergara
Share Tweet

Dave Griffiths

Dave Griffiths has worked as a journalist for over twenty years now -covering topics including film, television, music, travel and sport (with a main focus on AFL Football). That time has seen him host the popular X-Wired television program for seven seasons as well as write for various magazines such as Buzz Magazine, Heavy Mag, Stage Whispers, The Banner and Eternity.. He has even branched out into writing online for Subculture Entertainment, Media Search and The Book The Film The T-Shirt. He also worked as the online editor for Entertainment 360 for three years. Dave's radio work has seen him work on various radio stations including 3RPP, Triple R and Light FM. He is currently the resident film reviewer on Sydney's 2UE radio station and can be heard reviewing what is new at cinemas and on DVD each week on Wednesdays at 3pm with Ed Phillips. He is also the co-host of Melbourne's 94.1FM's breakfast show 'The Motley Crew' and he can sometimes be heard on J-Air's 'First On Film'. David is also the co-host of two popular podcasts - ‘The Good, The Bad, The Ugly Film Show,' and 'The Popcorn Conspiracy' As far as Film Reviewing goes David is an elected committee member of AFCA (Australian Film Critics Association and a member of IPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics)/FIPRESCI (Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique). He has also served as a jury member for a number of international film festivals and is considered an expert on cult cinema, horror movies and Australian films.

You Might Also Like

  • Movies

    F1: THE MOVIE Review

  • Movies

    M3GAN 2.0 Review

  • DVD

    FLIGHT RISK Review

2 Comments

  • » WIN THE SOUNDTRACK FROM JON FAVREAU’S CHEF says: July 8, 2014 at 9:59 pm

    […] CHEF IS OUT IN CINEMAS NOW! (read our review) […]

    Reply
  • WIN THE SOUNDTRACK FROM JON FAVREAU’S CHEF - The Book, The Film, The T-Shirt says: September 4, 2015 at 7:02 am

    […] CHEF IS OUT IN CINEMAS NOW! (read our review) […]

    Reply
  • Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Subscribe & Follow

    Follow @thebookthefilm
    Follow on Instagram
    • Popular
    • Comments
    • Tags
    • The Rise of Lockdown Streaming

      May 3, 2020
    • Salvo (2014)

      September 27, 2014
    • Penny Dreadful S1 EP 3 ‘Resurrection’ & EP 4 ‘Demimonde’ Review

      June 22, 2014
    • Pet Movie

      Spoiler Alert – Top 5 Horror Movie Twists

      March 17, 2017
    • warner bros. for her dvd collection

      Christmas Gift Guide: For Her – Heart Warming DVDs

      December 14, 2016
    • Win a copy of The Apartment on Limited Edition Blu-ray Courtesy of Arrow Academy

      December 23, 2017
    David Griffiths marvel Kyle McGrath Ben Affleck J.K. Simmons Amy Adams Jai Courtney Lee Griffiths Hugh Jackman Chris pratt Scarlett Johansson Jason Clarke Daniel Craig Brad Pitt Emilia Clarke Henry Cavill keanu reeves benedict cumberbatch
    • Home
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Affiliate Disclosure

    ABOUT

    Over opinionated and online. The Book, The Film, The T-Shirt was created for lovers of entertainment everywhere. We hope you enjoy it. Don't feed the writers after midnight.

    Latest News

    • 4

      F1: THE MOVIE Review

      July 3, 2025
    • 2

      M3GAN 2.0 Review

      June 26, 2025
    • PINS & NEEDLES – James Villeneuve Interview

      June 25, 2025

    SEARCH THE SITE

    HIBS100 Index of Home and Interior Blogs
    HIBS100

    © 2016 Last Exit to Hollywood Media Limited. All rightsreserved. “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.”