The Menu

This agreeable but inconsequential social satire from Mark Mylod (Ali G Indahouss, The Big White, What's Your Number?) finds a self-confident Anya Taylor-Joy as the last-minute date of a fawning Nicholas Hoult venturing with an elite group of diners to the private island restaurant of a world-renowned chef played by Ralph Fiennes. But the pompous haut monde in attendance get more than they bargained for when they discover what's on this night's menu. The dark-comedy skewers the cult of the celebrity chef and our modern obsession with cooking as a form of entertainment, identity, status, philosophy, religion, and just about everything apart from nourishment.

While the premise is delightful and Fiennes's performance is effectively creepy, the script is undercooked and the sidedish characters are insufficiently seasoned. Writers Seth Reiss and Will Tracy deliver the movie's themes on a silver platter, which they then spoon-feed to us via lengthy monologues. But Fiennes leans into this with such gusto, shouting what should be subtextual so as to obliterate any and all subtly, that it's difficult not to enjoy being force-fed simply because the presentation is so impressive. After a few twists and revelations, the dynamics of Taylor-Joy and Hoult's relationship no longer make sense, and this whole cinematic souffle collapses if you stop to think about its inner logic for too long. Yet I still had a good time. If you come to this feast expecting a The Cook, The Thief level banquet that will disturb your equilibrium and remain in your digestive system for days, you'll be greatly disappointed. If, on the other hand, you go in aware that this is an Adam McKay production and expect his facile brand of societal scorn comedy, you might be pleasantly surprised. It's the film equivalent of a box After Eight mints—looks elegantly decadent but unwrapped it's just tasty empty calories.