Burnt

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Daniel Bruhl, Riccardo Scamarcio, Omar Sy, Alicia Vikander, Sam Keeley, Henry Goodman, Matthew Rhys, Emma Thompson, Uma Thurman
Directed by: John Wells
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
2015

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A chef (Bradley Cooper) who wrecked his career tries to get back in the game, but faces challenges from his past.

Review:

Tim: I'm somewhat intrigued by movies set in the culinary world, although they do face an obstacle of feeling very similar. The path is usually a young, inspired chef trying to change things up and achieve recognition for their skills. This movie twists that a little, although it ultimately feels a bit too similar to other movies out there. This is a decent film, but it didn't do enough to completely win me over.

I like the idea of the main character being a chef who achieved great success, but lost it due to addiction and erratic behavior. We're not seeing the fresh face trying to make it in the world, we're seeing a grizzled veteran trying to distance himself from his past. The character's arc is similar, in that he's working hard to achieve culinary world acclaim, but it at least felt a little different than the usual chef movie.

Bradley Cooper was a good choice for the lead role. He projects enough intelligence and dedication to be believable as a chef, and he's mischievous enough to be believable as a reformed bad boy. Not a lot of actors would be able to pull off both facets of this character, so Cooper was a great choice. Like always, I was completely underwhelmed by Sienna Miller. I don't get why people continue to cast her. I forgot everything she did about 2.5 seconds after she did it. If there's a more forgettable actress alive, I can't think of her (so maybe there is and I don't recognize her?). Miller did nothing that a dozen other actresses couldn't have done better. Daniel Bruhl gave a really, really strong performance. He's the best member of the supporting cast and really did add to the film greatly. I very much enjoyed him in this film. Alicia Vikander was fun to see, but she had almost nothing to do. Emma Thompson had a few good moments but felt underutilized. I was surprised to see Uma Thurman, but her role was fairly minor. As a whole, the cast was better than I'd expect for a film like this. It's one of the movie's biggest strengths.

While the movie has some nice moments throughout, it ultimately felt like I'd seen it all before. There's some enjoyment to be had in a story that's predictable, but I wanted to be wowed more. Or, if the film wasn't going to give us something new, it needed to execute perfectly. It didn't do that. Burnt does nothing terrible, but it never separates itself, either. It chooses the middle path toward mediocrity. Now, I do want to say there was a few very unexpected twists towards the end. I really appreciated those, as it was a reminder that this film at least attempted to be more than the norm. It fails, but at least the attempt was made.

Ultimately, you can do far worse than Burnt. If you like these kinds of movies, this one is playing right into your wheelhouse. You'll likely enjoy this movie. Looking at it in the greater context of other culinary movies, it's an average entry. It's a bit too forgettable and never really gets any emotional punches in. If you're looking for a decent but lightweight movie, Burnt has the right recipe.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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