Absolute Review: The Menu: A movie that will put your craving for an amazing Horror-thriller to rest

By: Shachi Chaturvedi

Cast: Ralph Fiennes as Julian Slowik, Anya Taylor-Joy as Margot, Nicholas Hoult as Tyler and ensembles

Director: Mark Mylod

Ratings: 3.5/5

Synopsis

Margot and Tyler, a young couple, travel to a remote island to dine at Hawthorne, an exclusive restaurant run by celebrity chef Julian Slowik, who now has planned a lavish gourmet menu where meals are treated as visual art, but his method of cuisine has some disturbing surprises for the affluent guests.

Review

Tyler (Nicholas Hoult) is a die-hard fan of uber-chef Julian Slowik (Ralph Fiennes), so the insane price tag is no barrier to his visit to Hawthorne, the chef’s secretive, invite-only restaurant. Margot (Anya Taylor-Joy), on the other hand, isn’t afraid to express her displeasure with all the pomp and circumstance. Hawthorne is the type of restaurant that expects steadfast dedication from its employees, and Mylod critiques this cult-like kitchen dynamic with amusing exaggerations

The other diners include an older gentleman (Reed Birney) whom Margot appears to know, a washed-up actor (John Leguizamo), and a strict food critic (Janet McTeer), who all have a clear sight of the clockwork kitchen from the open dining set. Slowik commands everyone’s attention with each clap of his hands. Guests and employees hold their breath as Fiennes passionately describes the sentimental motivation behind each dissected dish and its dramatic demonstration.

Each of the characters in the film plays a minor but significant role in the plot. They were the bricks that helped to build a beautiful and sturdy structure (Film).

The film’s transition from evaluated mystery to horror-comedy is aided by violent accelerations that arrive unexpectedly and frequently.

Julian, a familiar type of kitchen dictator, extends his brutal reign into the dining hall, pressing his guests to growingly incredible levels of distress. He refuses to feed them. He makes fun of their wealth. When it becomes clear that no amount of exclaiming “Do you know who I am?” will save them from Julian’s planned horrors, the guests shift their focus to figuring out how to survive the night alive.

The mental and physical toll of having to work under a chef like Julian is studied in a particularly brutal manner in one course simply titled “the Mess.” The film also alluded to the industry’s prevalence of sexual harassment, including a scene in which a woman who refused Julian’s advances is allowed to exact brutal vengeance on his body.

It’s the kind of vengeance scenario that employees who their bosses and co-workers have abused may dream about. The scene feels like a particularly pointed critique of the restaurant industry’s use of stunning spaces and beautiful dishes to conceal its abuses.

In terms of music and technicalities, the film is well shot, with the final frame of all the guests and staff being the highlight. As far as the music is concerned, the film does not have a concrete song but the background music is good enough to keep the suspense and horror quotient intact.

Conclusion

The fates of the guests are sealed by the end of the night; the ending is way more entertaining than it is scary, and it is an excellent cap to nearly two hours of panic and fear. The Menu is both a comedy and a horror film, and for anyone who has ever worked in the restaurant industry or anyone who genuinely want to see a masterpiece, this film is for you.