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Chef (2014)



Chef (2014)




6/10



Starring
Jon Favreau
Sofía Vergara
John Leguizamo
Scarlett Johansson


Directed by Jon Favreau


Chef is a feel-good movie that will make you smile by the end. You keep waiting for everything to fall apart, as they often do in movies like this, but it doesn’t—and the movie just leaves you feeling good. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a movie that felt this uplifting, and it was nice to be reminded that stories can have joyful endings (you know, the “they lived happily ever after” kind). What made it even better was that this movie was written, directed by, and starred Jon Favreau—the same guy behind Iron Man.

I wasn’t initially looking forward to seeing this movie because when one person writes, directs, and stars in a film, I start to doubt the depth and strength of the story. Chef didn’t completely eliminate that thought, but it made me realize that when a writer directs their own movie, it often comes out in a way that feels like the director knows exactly what they’re doing. It gave me the feeling of, “I’m in safe hands.”

Jon Favreau used aspects of his own life in this movie, like coming from a broken home, struggling to balance being a dad with his career, and deciding to step away from big-budget films to direct this low-budget indie project. Similarly, his character, Carl, leaves a major restaurant to work in a food truck.

Carl (Jon Favreau) is a popular and successful chef working at a reputable restaurant owned by Riva (Dustin Hoffman). Riva insists that Carl stick with what works when a food critic visits, but Carl wants to try new menus. He reluctantly sticks to the old menu and gets panned by the critic. The review goes viral online, and Carl’s angry reaction leads to him leaving Riva’s restaurant and becoming infamous for not handling criticism well.

Carl decides to spend more time with his son and ex-wife, hoping the scandal will blow over. Inez (Sofia Vergara) suggests he use this time to start a food truck business, where he can be his own boss and decide what goes on the menu.

Honestly, the actors in this movie delivered flawless performances. It felt like everyone was playing a role perfectly suited for them, and I was so impressed that I got completely lost in the movie’s world.

The movie has earned over $45 million, which is a huge financial success for an independent film. I hope many people get to see this movie and appreciate it as much as I did.

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