Chef – Hungry (Recommendation)

Year: 2014

Director: Jon Favreau

Starring: Jon Favreau, John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Emjay Anthony, Scarlett Johansson, Dustin Hoffman, Sofía Vergara, Oliver Platt, Amy Sedaris, Robert Downey Jr.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF_rYNupPwg

 

I love food and will usually try anything once. I find it amazing how chefs are able to create artwork that transcends simply using sight, and through simple cooking ingredients they can engage our sense of taste, smell, and touch, to produce a dish that stimulates. Unfortunately for me, I’m not a connoisseur of the kitchen, so I have to watch films to gain knowledge and inspiration for meal ideas.

When I’m peckish, I will usually watch something like The Great British Bake Off or a BuzzFeed cooking tutorial video. However, when hunger strikes, one of my go-to films is Chef; another Indie addition to Jon Favreau’s filmography. This director, writer, producer, and actor plays the lead protagonist, Carl Casper, who quits his job as a head chef to set out on his own, all in hopes of recapturing his creative mojo. On this journey of reinvention, Carl opens a Cuban food truck, El Jefe, and attempts to fix his broken family.

At the beginning of Chef we see Carl being pressured into serving traditional restaurant-style food, which restricts his imagination and results in him repeating the same menu: Caviar egg; scallop; French onion soup; frisée salad; lobster risotto; filet; and chocolate lava cake each night. Carl’s passion for food is only truly understood when he’s seen cooking at home, as it’s a space where he can create freely and without restrictions: for instance, he seems calmer when making his Pasta Aglio e Olio for Molly (Scarlett Johansson), a scene proving that the way to a woman’s heart is through her stomach!

Favreau is able to transfer his characters’ enthusiasm to the audience, inspiring us to achieve the same enjoyment from food. Once Carl reclaims his pride something is ignited within, and we are treated to a wonderful montage of him obsessively creating numerous dishes. The kaleidoscope of vibrant colours automatically translates the notion that flavourful and healthy meals are being prepped, making you salivate like one of Pavlov’s dogs.

Once Carl, his son Percy (Emjay Anthony), and his friend Martin (John Leguizamo) go on the road with El Jefe, we slowly see Carl’s joy for cooking return, making him more enthusiastic about life and love, promoting innovation while on the road. This resourcefulness is encouraging to an audience, as it promotes the idea that you can create something delicious from the ingredients within your cupboard. Obviously it won’t be an “Arroz Con Pollo” or “Austin Midnight,” but you finish the film with a renewed appreciation for food, motivated to use your own initiative when preparing meals.

My recreation of Carl’s Pasta Aglio e Olio