Thanksgiving is a wonderful time where family can gather around a big meal and be thankful for what they have. After the turkey’s been eaten and the pie’s been sliced, nothing is better than settling down for a nice feel-goodmoviewith the family. Jon Favreau’sChefis the perfect film for this occasion.
Released in 2014 with a budget of $11 million,Chefpremiered at South by Southwest to great acclaim.This indie film receivedpraise for its acting, story, and overall positive mood. Favreau reportedly wrote the screenplay forChefin just two weeks after a long time of wanting to write a movie about chefs and food. Considering the smaller scale of the story, Favreau felt the film worked best as an indie film rather than a big-budget film.
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The Story Of Chef
Cheftells the story ofCarl Casper, the head chefat a well-reviewed fancy restaurant. Carl consistently clashes with his boss about the menu, with Carl wanting to invent new dishes rather than cook the same, tired dishes. After a scathing review from a food critic, Carl replies to the critic on Twitter, not realizing his replies are public. A few more social media blunders lead to Carl going viral, although he is unfortunately fired. After this, Carl moves to Miami, starts up a food truck with his son, and the movie’s good feelings truly take off.
The story ofChefwas inspired by Jon Favreau’s actual life, although not in a direct manner. Favreau has drawn many parallels between himself and Carl in that they are both working fathers whose respective jobs keep them away from their families for longer than they’d like. He also cites the fact that both come from broken homes. One of the bigger comparisons Favreau made was between Carl’s job as a chef andFavreau’s job as a director. He said that both men benefitted from stepping away from bigger projects, Carl with his restaurant and Favreau with big-budget films, to pursue smaller projects, Carl with his food truck and Favreau with this indie film.
How Does Chef Set Itself Apart?
There’s a lot to love in this movie, as pretty much everything following the initial setup is filledto the brim with positive attitudesas Carl finds himself again. After his stumbles, Carl sets off on a journey of rediscovery. Whereas many other films would simply settle into a more depressive mood about where Carl had found himself in life, this film instead almost immediately showcases a support system. Nearly every one of the supporting characters in this film supports and helps Carl as he moves past the rut he had been in.
This support system is partof what helps this film along. The throughline of this story is more than Carl attempting to become a real chef again, and everything that entails, it’s about clawing one’s way out of a spiral. When the movie begins, Carl is doing what he loves but not in a way that he loves. The incongruous nature of this is a common rut that many people can find themselves in at some, or several, point in their life. This film showcases the healthiest way to get past this, not by simply wallowing in it but rather by taking a step back and re-assessing your life.
After this assessment, sometimes the best way forward is actually a step back. For some people this isgoing back to college, finding a new job, or even buying a food truck. This film shows that life can sometimes necessitate some radical change to find oneself again, and this is exactly what Carl does. He falls in love with food and cooking again as he works on his food truck.
This upward trend of the film in the latter half can be both metaphorical fora real mental health recoveryas well as sharing a positive story that many people can enjoy. Part of what this film uses to share its message is the actual food itself. The food is fun to watch being made, and there is a clear passion that Carl showcases whenever he has to make a dish, even if it’s a simple grilled cheese sandwich. Favreau shadowed real chefs in preparation for the role, and all of the food made in the film was actually fed to the crew after takes were over.
The food represents a long-lost passion that is properly rekindled, something that many people could use.The way this ignited passionbrings Carl back to life in a sense showcases how healthy it can be to pursue passions if one feels stuck. This film works so well because it not only shows what can be healthy pursuits for those stuck in a rut, but it also shows one of these people successfully rising above it. Seeing Carl’s happiness and how his life comes back together leaves one with no other option but to smile. By the end ofChef, the joy that it puts forth becomes unstoppably infectious.
