The Menu

Mark Mylod brings a new, unique genre to the table and it's a blast. An original cocktail of suffocating, uncomfortable and chair-pinning psychological terror mixed with a light-hearted satirical side, all underscored by original and playful symbolism with excellent acting performances - what more could you ask for? A bunch of ungrateful guests are invited to an exclusive chef's menu on a remote island, but in time things start to happen. The cast is absolutely brilliant, Anya Taylor-Joy is great as always, but clearly the best performance here is given by Ralph Fiennes, I haven't seen such sharp mimicry and heartfelt acting in years, and he gave the character as compelling a personality as he did with Voldemort back then. The story is suspenseful from the start, forcing the viewer with bated breath to follow the unexpected developments of events that escalate to the absurd, there's gore and a surprisingly great and interesting culinary side to all the oddities on the plate. The symbolism comes in a rather large portion, is dispensed in a casual manner, and up until the last few minutes I felt I was shooting for a full five star. But the finale is so strange and odd that I have to take a moment to sort out in my head what they meant by that, and think about whether it's the element that knocks the fifth star off, or the one that makes it even more emphatic and makes me think about The Menu. For now, a strong four-star that will (maybe) morph into a score in time. EDIT: in retrospect, I'm realizing some of the film's flaws and starting to figure out things that were given a rough outline but not followed through or explained in a meaningful way, so I'm sticking with four (11/15/2022)

A luxury restaurant and a film of similar nature must have a concept, but here, starting from about the fourth course, it began to fall apart in terms of credibility and ideas. Perhaps this is because the characters offer only caricatured traits for a run-of-the-mill satire (except for Hoult’s character, who, due to being deep in the chef's anus, somewhat fails to perceive what’s happening). I bet that if Fiennes took off his chef’s coat, we’d see a dragon tattoo covering his entire back. Nevertheless, it doesn’t change the fact that Mark Mylod should hand in his apron. (01/09/2023)

It's been a while since I've enjoyed every single minute of a movie this much. From the start, you never know what’s coming next, which keeps you hooked and entertained throughout. The cast is fantastic, with Ralph Fiennes delivering an especially standout performance. The plot is a blend of horror, drama, and dark comedy, but it balances these elements perfectly without going overboard in any direction. An unexpected delight that's definitely worth watching. (01/16/2023)

SPOILERS! Such potential. And such a mediocre film. Instead of an intelligent sociological study of the conflict between social classes, The Menu turned out to be a bittersweet tale about an angry chef who punishes some for once criticizing his cooking and others for something else completely unrelated. And this tale is told in an unimaginative and, in places, even silly way (the theatrical punishment of the angel investor, without whom the chef wouldn’t even have had a restaurant). The main villain is worthy of zero respect. Even the character of the restaurant critic is not construed as a metaphor for the film reviewers who would like to rip this film. The main character (Anya Taylor-Joy) is the only one who makes sense with her perception of the situation and her reactions to it. She also gives the plot concept the only imaginative creative impetus by revealing her identity. A weak three stars. (11/23/2022)

A satire through the culinary arts (not original in that respect) that initially combines tension with humour while setting up the characters for a "breaking point" in an exemplary way. But everything it wants to say, it's said in the first half and... And then nothing. In the second half it's just gropes and somehow stumbles to the conclusion. Moreover, after the "break" it's downright woeful in the character work, which retroactively devalues the beginning. Everything is "aptly and sophisticatedly satirised" in the first half and the second half works just fine thanks to the actors, who do their best not to let it sink completely. It should have been a short instead of a feature film. (11/16/2022)