THE MENU
(September 2022)
“Twelve customers, total.”
“A night? How
do they turn a profit?”
“Twelve-fifty
a head. That’s how.”
“You’re
f*cking kidding, right? What are we eating, a Rolex?”
Searchlight Pictures invites us to experience The Menu (or so the opening title cards
tell us).
Mark Mylod, largely known for directing some major
HBO titles (like Entourage, Game of Thrones, and Succession), takes a script written by
Seth Reiss and Will Tracy*, and presents us with this darkly humorous, class
conscious piece that sees Ralph Fiennes as noted celebrity chef Julian Slowik.
“Here, we are
family.
“Each day
starts at 6, with 5 hours of prep work.
“We harvest.
We ferment. We slaughter. We marinate. We liquefy. We spherify. We gel.”
Slowik, who we are told has “… always been keenly
aware of food as a history of class” has risen in the ranks of celebrated chefs
and now runs an exclusive restaurant on Hawthorne Island (apparently named
after the restaurant, the island is “twelve acres of forest and pasture”
surrounded by “the bounty of the sea”, as explained during the guided tour).
A restaurant that charges largely self-involved,
entitled richies $1,250 a head for the privilege.
A restaurant described by Slowik as his “entire
life”.
A restaurant run obsessively by Slowik in a
practically cult-like manner, on an island without a boat or phone service.
So
many red flags…
“Trust me,
he’s telling a story. That’s what makes his food so exciting. He’s not just a
chef. He’s a storyteller. And he doesn’t give a f*ck about the rules.”
To say any more would risk ruining the “wonderful surprises”
indicated on the one sheet featuring Fiennes, so perhaps we should leave it at
that, for those of you curious enough to seek this title out.
Not exactly a comedy, but not really a full-on
horror movie either**, The Menu is
smart, biting commentary with a killer cast (yes, that is indeed Anya Taylor-Joy on the second one sheet) that just begs
to be savored and relished, as Slowik would have it…
So go on and do just that, yeah?
“You will eat
less than you desire and more than you deserve.”
* The script appeared on the 2019 Black List,
alongside the screenplays for:
The Unbearable
Weight of Massive Talent (Kevin Etten and Tom Gormican);
Don’t Worry
Darling (Carey Van Dyke and Shane Van Dyke; the screenplay
as filmed is credited to Katie Silberman, with the Van Dykes and Silberman
getting “Story By” credits);
and the upcoming Knock at the Cabin.
What appeared on the 2019 List was the initial
draft, still titled The Cabin at the End
of the World, adapted by Steve Desmond and Michael Sherman from the Paul
Tremblay novel.
What we’re going to get with Knock at the Cabin is the script, as rewritten and directed by M.
Night Shyamalan (on the one sheets, the credits read: Screenplay by M. Night
Shyamalan and Steve Desmond & Michael Sherman).
** Even the awards-giving bodies seem torn; most of
the film’s nominations fall under the Comedy category, but Colin Stetson was
nominated for his score at 2022’s Hollywood Music in Media awards under the
Horror/Thriller Film category…
To be fair though, the HMMA apparently has no
Comedy categories…
And, for the record, Michael Abels took home that
particular award for his Nope score…
(The Menu OS’
courtesy of impawards.com.)
