Overall mixed reviews, it really depends on your exposure to the food & beverage industry.
I try my best to avoid reading Rotten Tomatoes before watching most movies, as I usually side with the audience over the movie critics. My viewing experience for Burnt was a little more unique than most, as I watched this movie with my fiancé who is a sous chef at a well known local restaurant. We both enjoyed the movie and highly recommend it for any individual working in the food & beverage industry and/or any individual who enjoys watching The Food Network at home.
Burnt is a story of a Chef Adam Jones (Bradley Cooper), a two Michelin star chef who got his start in Paris, only to lose everything to drug addiction. The story follows Adam’s journey from rock bottom to his attempt at redemption in the cooking world, as he sets his sights on achieving a third Michelin star. Instead of returning to his former glory, Chef Adam finds himself in a new backdrop to diners with a completely different palate.
Building a new brigade, Chef Adam assembles a dream team including Helene, (played by Sienna Miller – former co-star in American Sniper) a single mother with unparalleled saucier skills. There is also the tough guy Max (Riccardo Scamarcio) that has a short-temper and David (Sam Keeley) who admits to calling Chef Adam Jones his idol. The rebirth of Chef Adam’s career is all possible with the help of an old friend Tony (Daniel Brühl), a struggling restauranteur looking to impress his father before it is too late.
The action in the kitchen is very realistic and the various frames of dishes being prepared will leave you hungry. The movie Burnt subtlety showcases the day to day struggle for aspiring chefs to succeed, as many often compromise everything else in their life to get ahead. It is an industry that is not for the faint of heart. If all you can only stomach a 9 to 5 job then being a chef definitely isn’t for you, as the movie briefly looks into the challenges faced by Helene and her daughter.
If you are a chef, or in my case engaged/married to a chef, I would give this movie 4 out of 5 stars
For those who aren’t familiar with the industry and don’t have any interest a fair review would be 3 out of 5 stars
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