The audience never knows what’s coming next in the mayhem of this black comedy.
It is a clever mixture of satire, fantasy and horror – a social commentary, with lots of chuckles and shocking surprises along the way.
Twelve invited guests anticipating a wonderful degustation menu are transported by boat to an exclusive island restaurant called The Hawthorne, run by celebrity Chef Julian Slowik (brilliantly played by Ralph Fiennes).
The entitled guests include a minor movie star (John Leguizamo) and his date for the evening (Aimee Carrero), a caustic food critic (Janet McTeer) and her editor (Paul Addstein), three businessmen of dubious reputation, an older couple who are regular customers, obsessive foodie Tyler (Nicholas Hoult) and his last minute date Margot (the wonderful Anya Taylor- Joy, The Queen’s Gambit, The Witch) – wearing a revealing dress, boots and black nails.
She is the only one who is not on the chef’s list to experience a meal costing $1250.
The guests are greeted by the chef’s dedicated assistant Elsa (Hong Chau) who shows them around the facilities and the Spartan living quarters of the many dedicated cooks. The chef lives separately in a private house.
Once seated, the Chef suggests his guests “not eat, but taste and relish every mouthful”.
The kitchen is run with military precision, the cooks marching food to the guests who are offered dishes such as “foraged huckleberry foam bathed in the smoke of Douglas fir cones”, and tasting plates of “breadless bread”, all served with the rarest wines.
Margot is the only one who doesn’t care for the pretentious rudeness of the self-satisfied rich guests, or the food. It seems the Chef has information about his guests’ lives – and makes his food to match. It is a dangerous menu which shows his contempt with heavy and sometimes bloody savagery.
Director Mark Mylod (Game of Thrones) has made an unnerving film with great performances from its two stars and ensemble cast in a black comedy that is a thriller, about the pomposity of the entitled rich who are more interested in prestige than food.
Screenplay is by Seth Reiss and Will Tracy, and Colin Stetson’s music adds to the feeling of impending tension and horror.
Bon appetit!
107 minutes.
Now showing at Luna Leederville, Windsor Nedlands and Luna on SX Fremantle.
Watch the trailer…
