Jon Favreau’s Chef is food porn. I’m fairly confident the crowd at the Paramount Theater attending the Opening Night screening at the The 2014 South By Southwest Film Festival left happy. The audience laughed throughout Favreau’s warm, funny and surprisingly autobiographical food dramedy, and erupted into enthusiastic applause as it drew to a close.
I also guarantee that they left the Paramount starving. There are more scenes of Favreau’s character, Carl, cooking up delicious dishes – often as a method to relieve his stress – that you better go in with a full stomach. Popcorn and a fountain drink from the concession stands aren’t going to cut during your Chef screening.
Favreau’s movie is a return to his roots (and, depending on how you read it, a rejection of the popcorn blockbusters that have become his calling card in the days of Iron Man and Cowboys & Aliens). It has biting commentaries about the film industry, but a much bigger heart when it comes to the relationships forged between fathers and sons.
At a special event held on behalf of Chef in East Austin, I was able to jump on a replica food truck, a prop similar to the ones used in the film. My review of Chef is above. I hope you dig it!
I’m running to Veronica Mars, followed by Seth Rogen and Zac Efron’s Neighbors. Coverage of those two films will be on the site later. In the meantime, scan our guide to the 10 Can’t Miss titles playing this year’s festival, and tell us which movies you are hoping we cover. Maybe it will alter my flexible schedule!
