Chef (2014)

Chef (2014) - A multi-star cast heats things up with this honest movie about a chef who self-destructs on social media.

Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Friends) is twitter-clueless chef Carl Casper who gets in
a sniping war with food critic Ramsey Michel (Oliver Platt) on Twitter.  In an attempt to change the critic's mind about his cooking, he offers to do a special menu.  This plan is nixed by the restaurant's owner Riva (Dustin Hoffman) who wants him to stick to the same tired menu.  Casper quits on the spot, but returns later that evening to rage at Michel in the crowded dining room.  Several phone videos are shot, the rant goes viral, and it seems as though chef Casper will never work again as a result.  He gets a beat-up food truck from his ex-wife's ex-husband (Robert Downey Jr.) and manages to turn things around in a heartwarming journey across country with his sous-chef (John Leguizamo) and ten-year-old son.  Scarlett Johansson as the hostess, Sofia Vergara as the ex-wife... lots of great actors help nudge this movie from great to outstanding.

This movie hit a lot of the right notes.  There were a few awkward moments that seemed a bit out of place considering the story overall, such as the seductive midnight snack with Johansson's Molly.  It didn't really illustrate his passion for food or highlight his desire for Vergara's Inez character.  I also thought the cornstarch scene was a bit weird.   Male bonding?  Sure.  But didn't we get enough of that with the kitchen, the beer after work, and the chef's knife?  It could have easily been skipped, and we still would have ended up with a heartwarming, fun movie.

I counted seven laugh out loud moments overall, but some of them blended in one after the other, so it was hard to get an accurate count.  I did drop the knitting needles twice in the beginning to concentrate on the story (and the awesome food visuals!) and then gave up knitting altogether about halfway through.  The food just looked too damn good.  If you've ever had beignets or a good Cuban sandwich, then you know what I'm talking about.

I give it a four and a half out of five stars.  It's a decent family or romantic-comedy that's good for foodies, with only cussing to really worry about with the kids.  A bit hard on the knitter who wants to see the food, though.