The feel-good movie of the year so far and one that completely flew under the radar (despite its 88% fresh rating and $31 million box office gross) without question is Chef, a movie written, directed, and starring Jon Favreau. Yes, that Jon Favreau. The same guy you’ve seen in character roles in films like Swingers, The Wolf of Wall Street, John Carter, Elf, and the Iron Man franchises for the last 20 years. Unbeknownst to me until a couple of days ago is that he is an accomplished director. He’s directed Iron Man, Iron Man 2, and Elf, among others. All three were satisfying movies that earned well over $150 million at the box office. I enjoyed all three of these movies. And while I would still rank the first Iron Man as his best film, Chef is an absolute gem. It is heartwarming, funny, poignant, and original. It does for 2014 what The Way, Way Back did for 2013. Both movies were lesser known. Each earned about the same amount of money at the box office. And each had about the same rating on Rotten Tomatoes. While I was a big fan of The Way, Way Back, there was something about Chef that has reserved a permanent place in my 2014 Top Ten list.

This is certainly not the most complex screenplay in the world. You’d be hard-pressed to find a simpler movie with a more straightforward premise. Carl (Favreau) works as a chef at a local restaurant in Los Angeles. He likes being a chef but is dissatisfied with his current place of employment because he doesn’t have the power to change up the menu and create dishes that inspire his creativity. He’s been at the same restaurant for a decade, and the few times he has had the chance to switch up his menu, the customers didn’t order those items. So instead of continuing to try new recipes, Carl is relegated to churning out the same things that sell the best. While the kitchen is his, ultimately, the menu is not. What keeps him going is that Martin (John Leguizamo – Ice Age, The Happening) and Bobby Cannavale (Blue Jasmine, Win Win), the two cooks who work under him at the restaurant, are two of his very best friends. He has a son in middle school named Percy, who he loves but doesn’t know how to be the best dad. Carl is an excellent chef, but that is the only place he excels. He tries in the other areas of his life but sometimes comes up short. He seems to have a great relationship with his ex-wife Inez (Sofía Vergara – television’s Modern Family), who Percy lives with. Though their relationship isn’t a central focal point in the movie, I’m glad it was included. I felt like the relationship between Carl and Inez was extraordinary. They both love Percy and respect each other. You could tell there were some wounds in the past, but their relationship was, at one point, built on a solid foundation of love and that love, at least to some degree, is still present. Percy is a cherished child whose parents are no longer in love but still care for each other. As a result, Percy is much better off than he would be if his parents always argued or undermined one another.

Ultimately though, this movie is about pursuing a dream. After restaurant critic Ramsey Michel (Oliver Platt – Flatliners, Kill the Messenger) blasts Carl’s cuisine (food that Carl himself didn’t choose), Carl goes on a tirade that is captured on camera and instantly goes viral while also engaging in a war of words on Twitter. Carl doesn’t understand Twitter and thinks his attack on Ramsey was going to him (like an email) and not on a public wall for the entire world to see. Nonetheless, he put the words out there, and soon there is a no holds barred battle between Carl and Ramsey. Ultimately this leads to Carl quitting his job at the restaurant. A down and out Carl then is convinced to give up his dream of cooking whatever food he wants and making all of his own decisions by pursuing a food truck. He returns to his native Miami and begins creating Cuban-inspired meals. Most importantly, he can pick and choose his meals, and he can change them at a moment’s notice. This is where the movie takes off. I don’t have much experience with a food truck, and I’m guessing that this is the first feature film that has ever revolved around one, but it seems like working a quality food truck can be stressful. You must shop every morning for the ingredients you’ll need for the day and budget how much to purchase based on factors such as where your food truck is located, the season, the weather forecast on a particular day, etc. And then the peak hours from 11-2 each day are probably super stressful in terms of getting quality food to the patrons in the shortest amount of time possible. But some people thrive on that, and Carl wants to see if he is one of those people.

The movie isn’t your traditional comedy, but it’s hilarious. My favorite type of comedy movies tend to be the raunchy type. I enjoy movies like Hall Pass, Old School, Knocked Up, Meet the Parents, etc. Chef is a much more intelligent comedy, and I loved that about it. Favreau is hysterical. I would never have thought that he had it in him to be a leading man, but he has shown he has what it takes. He is super talented and has crafted a movie that, I think, can be enjoyed by all kinds of different audiences. Favreau also didn’t hold back in using his Hollywood contacts to get his fair share of A-list actors to show up for one or two scenes here or there. In addition to Vergara, Leguizamo, Cannavale, and Platt, he landed Dustin Hoffman (Kramer vs. Kramer, Rain Man) as the greedy restaurant manager who could care less about the artistry of the food and was only concerned with the revenue generated each night, Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man, Chaplin) as the eccentric businessman and ex-husband of his ex-wife who gives Carl his beat-up food truck, and Scarlett Johansson (Match Point, Lost in Translation) as the hostess of the restaurant where Carl works. This talented ensemble, in addition to the simplistic but heartwarming story, the charming humor, and the beautiful imagery of all of the delicious food, all help make Chef the most underrated movie of the year and one that everyone should see.

Plot 9/10
Character Development 9/10
Character Chemistry 10/10
Acting 9/10
Screenplay 8.5/10
Directing 9/10
Cinematography 9/10
Sound 9/10
Hook and Reel 9/10
Universal Relevance 10/10 (I think most of us at one point think about dropping whatever our job is and pursuing what our ultimate passion is. Far fewer of us do this because of the risks involved. I think a movie such as Chef will encourage more people to pursue the chance)
92.5%

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