Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Jon Favreau, John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson
Release Date: May 9, 2014
Jon Favreau started off his career through the independent film starting with the 1996 film Swingers. Since then Favreau has played the actor-director role since then with his biggest hit being what some considers Marvel's best stand alone film in Iron Man.Not everything Favreau has touched has been gold as he received criticisms for his last two films: Iron Man 2 and Cowboys & Aliens. The latter came out in 2011 and three years later Favreau is back and is taking the indie route again with Chef. With a casting that consists of John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, Sofía Vergara, Robert Downey Jr. and more, will Favreau make his return worth while?
Carl Casper (Jon Favreau), a chef who originated from Miami and was once considered one of the uprising chefs in the game. 10 years after his splash into the cooking world, Casper is the top chef in a Los Angeles. Even with a good job and control of the kitchen, things don't go in Casper's favor. Divorced and failing to connect with his son is the least of his worries as a food critic, Ramsey Michel (Oliver Platt), delivers a bad review that goes viral. The review results in Casper having a break down, leaving his job, a trip to Miami and a launching a food truck business. Joined with his close friend Martin (John Leguizamo) and his son Percy (Emjay Anthony), the trio set back to LA while selling their Cuban sandwiches on the way.
Chef takes you on a two hour long sentimental self-realization journey filled with one-liners, social media jokes, and tasty mouth drooling dishes. The film possibly can be a metaphor of Favreau's career. Came into the industry with much praised but after years of success he takes a few step back due to criticism received then top it off by taking a few notches down and going back to the basics.
Favreau does an amazing job casting with every single character. Sofía Vergara adds a perfect amount of spice to the film that pushed Casper into Cuban sandwich route. Robert Downey Jr. gives you an hilarious quick cameo while providing a food truck for the chef.
On May 9th, Chef is set to make its theatrical debut along with seven other films, the possibility of the film being overlooked is high. But with an amazing supporting cast filled with tasty dishes, Chef should be on top of your list to see if you pick any movie to see out of those eight films. This film is perfect to see if you love food or a perfect chance to bond with your child just like Casper did with his son throughout the film. If you decide to not see this film in theaters then I do highly suggest that you add Chef to your DVD collection.
Labels: 2014, Chef, Full Movie, John Leguizamo, Jon Favreau, Movie Review, Scarlett Johansson
