Trophy wife

Lead cast: Cristine Reyes, Heart Evangelista, Derek Ramsay, John Estrada; Direction: Andoy Ranay; Screenplay: Keiko Aquino; Editing: GeorgeJarlego; Cinematography: Lee Briones-Meily Producer: Vic del Rosario III; Music: Teresa Barronzo; Location: Metro Manila; Genre: Drama-Suspense Distributor: Viva Films

Technical Assessment:  2 Moral Assessment: 1.5

MTRCB rating: R13     CINEMA rating:  V18

       Ang tanging ambisyon ni Lani (Reyes) ay makatuntong sa Amerika at makilala ang kanyang sundalong ama at magkaroon ng mas magandang buhay. Kaya lahat ng paraan ay kanyang ginagawa, pati ang pakikipagmabutihan sa mga lalaking may kakayahang dalhin siya sa ibang bansa. Kaya naman napakadaling nahulog ng kanyang loob kay Chino (Ramsey), isang spoiled brat na playboy. Pero dahil sa isang tunggalian sa anak ng maimpluwensyang mayor, mapipilitan si Chino na magtago sa Amerika kaagad-agad. Pero buntis si Lani at susubukan niyang humingi ng tulong kay Sammy (Estrada), matandang kapatid ni Chino. Subalit malupit si Sammy at bubundulin si Lani na magiging sanhi ng pagkalaglag ng kanyang dinadala. Sa labis na galit, gagawa si Lani ng paraan para iangat ang sarili upang makapaghiganti sa magkapatid. Makakasalamuha niya ang mga mayayaman at sa isang okasyon makakatagpo niya si Sammy na lubos na maaakit sa kanya. Samantala, sa Amerika, mahuhulog ang loob ni Chino kay Gwen (Evangelista) at papakasalan ito. Uuwi sa Pilipinas ang magkabiyak para makilala ang bagong asawa ni Sammy at laking gulat ni Chino nang madatnan niya ang labis na nagbagong Lani. Sa pagdaan ng araw, lahat ng paraan ay ginagawa ni Lani para maakit si Chino sa kanya at masira ang relasyon nila ni Gwen habang unti-unting nabubunyag ang mga nakatagong lihim at motibo.

       May maganda sanang balangkas ang Trophy Wife kung naisulong lamang ang pagbuo ng kwento nito sa halip na binigyang-tuon ang paghuhubad at mga eksena ng pagtatalik na wala namang naidagdag sa kwento. Malaki ang pagkukulang ng direktor na maipalabas ang misteryo at poot sa likod ng katauhan ni Lani dahil pinili nitong maya’t mayang itambad ang katawan ni Reyes kaysa sa paghusayin ang pagkwekwento. Para tuloy isang pamamasyal sa buwan ang pelikula—malubak at punong-puno ng butas: kaya naman pala ni Lani na iangat ang saril, bakit hindi pa niya ginawa nuong una e ang tindi naman ng ambisyon niya? Bakit bigla na lamang sumulpot sa eksena si Gwen gayon malapit daw sila sa isa’t isa nuong mga bata pa sila? Papaano nagka-usap muli sina Lani at Gwen? Kung iisa-isahin natin ang paglilinaw sa pagsasalaysay ay kukulangin ang nakalaang puwang sa pagsusulat ng reaksyon. Ang walang kalatuy-latoy na mga usapan ay lalo pang napasama ng walang kabuhay-buhay na pagganap ni Reyes at Evangelista at mala-sarswelang atake ni Estrada.  Tanging sina Tongi at Fabregas  (gumanap na unang asawa at kaibigan ni Sammy) lamang ang nagkaroon ng makatotohanang atake sa kanilang mga papel. Salat na salat si Reyes sa kakayahang umarte. Iisa ang damdaming kayang ipahayag ng kanyang mukha at kilos—isang babaeng nilalapastangan ng industriya.  Kapag isinama pa ang kapabayaan sa produksyon tulad ng lulubog-lilitaw na puntong Kapampangan ni JackieLou nang nagalit siya kay Lani, o ang di-mawaring nagkulang na prosthetics sa kamay nito (kamay ba iyon o maruya?) o ang patalun-talong pagdaloy ng eksena at paglipat ng angulo, lalo lamang darami ang lubak at butas ng pelikula, hay naku!

       Walang nahihita sa paghihiganti gaano man kalaki ang atraso ng isang tao. Lagi, sa dulo, talo ang nagtatanim ng matinding poot at nagpapanukala ng masalimuot na paraan para sa ikababagsak ng kalaban. Ang mga pagsubok at dagok sa buhay ay dapat gamiting paraan upang buuing muli ang nawasak at pira-pirasong sarili, palakasin ito at ibangon hindi para sa nang-api kundi para maging kapaki-pakinabang ang buhay. Ang tema ng paghihiganti at pagsisimulang muli ang siya sanang tuon ng Trophy Wife pero tulad nang nabanggit, pinili na pahabain ang mga senswal na eksena. Marahas ang mga tema ng Trophy Wife: panlilinlang sa asawa, paggamit ng katawan para maghiganti, sabwatan at pang-aakit para makasakit, pagpatay at pagkasadista. Nakasama pang lalo na sa pagtatapos ng pelikula, ang mga may sala pa ang dali-daling binigyan ng “happy ending” sa halip na maipakita ang tunay na ibinunga ng kanilang maling pagpapasya.  Ganito lamang bang katapusan ang kailangan para makamtam ang rating na R13 ng MTRCB?  Walang matinong magulang ang papayag na mapanood ng trese-anyos nilang anak ang mga eksenang inihahain ng Trophy Wife.  Hindi kaigaya-igaya ang pelikula para sa bata man o matanda dahil sakit na nga sa ulo ang palpak nitong produksyon at kuwento, negatibo pa ang mga dala-dala nitong mensahe. 

Hercules: The Thracian Wars

DIRECTOR:  Brett Ratner  LEAD CAST:  Dwayne Johnson, Ian McShane, Rufus Sewell, Joseph Fiennes, Peter Mullan, John Hurt  SCREENWRITER:   Ryan J. Condal & Evan Spiliotopoulos  PRODUCER:  Brett Ratner, Barry Levine, Beau Flynn  EDITOR:  Mark Helfrich & Julia Wong   

MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Fernando Velazquez   GENRE:  Action & Adventure, Science Fiction & Fantasy  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Dante Spinotti  DISTRIBUTOR:  Paramount Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer Pictures  LOCATION:  United States RUNNING TIME:  99 minutes

Technical assessment:  3.5     Moral assessment: 2.5

CINEMA RATING:   V14

       Moving on from the painful loss of his family, Hercules (Dwayne Johnson) with his friends become mercenaries riding on the legend of the demigod Hercules and his countless impossible pursuits. The stories, whether true or fabricated, help to scare his enemies and make him the most sought after hero. Princess Ergenia (Rebecca Ferguson), on behalf of her father, Lord Cotys (John Hurt), king of Thrace, requests Hercules to defend Thrace against the supposed centaur demon army of Rheseus (Santelmann) and promises to pay him gold equal to his weight. Hercules trains the Thracian army and defeats Rheseus—who turns out to be just a man on a horse. Later, Hercules discovers his team has been used by Lord Cotys in the latter’s greed to establish an empire. He refuses to be part of the king’s future plan and decides to put a stop to his greed only to be confronted by the bitter truth about his family’s murder which challenges him to embrace his true calling.

      Hercules is a mash-up of the Greek Myth Labors of Hercules and the graphic novel Hercules and the Thracian Wars. The movie offers an interesting plot and script equipped with humor and honest portrayals by McShane and Hurt. But while buffed and didactic Johnson is pleasant, he is as stiff and bland as a rock during his pep talks and supposedly inspirational moments. His Hercules is not engaging enough and is easily overthrown by all the cinematic hostility. Cinematography is dynamic as an action movie should be and production design justifies the setting of the Athens period. But neither the action sequences nor computer-generated scenes offer anything new or epic save for the body count and body parts spewing out blood all over the screen. Hercules’ greatest achievement is bringing down the massive supernatural legend of a demigod into bite-sized logical stories of a hero. Hercules is good but not great enough to merit a standing ovation in its genre.

        No matter how painful an experience Hercules may have had, he still chooses to move on and remain positive in carrying out a mission such as taking the task of training the soldiers to fight and to win. Though it is a compensated task that Hercules accepted together with his friends, his team ensured that their trainees would be equipped not only with the skills to fight but with the right attitude and values and trust in God. The film shows the importance of teamwork in the context of friendship, brotherhood, trust, concern, support, and fidelity to one another during tough times.  Hercules is about heroism. But how does one become a hero? Through a great packaging and hard sell marketing which blurs the lines between what is real and what is fantasy? Through overrated stories of one’s accomplishments? While the film shows courage and strength to be the outer qualities of a legend, it underlines more the fidelity to one’s innate nature of service and selflessness as the more important qualities of a hero. Whether Hercules is really the son of Zeus or just an ordinary mortal is irrelevant once he chose to defend the weak and save the innocent. But then again, a hero takes a higher road of forgiveness and peace—which unfortunately Hercules is incapable of when he chose to murder the people behind his family’s fate. The movie is violent and graphic and not appropriate for young children. Themes are also obscured and need adult guidance and direction.

Begin again

DIRECTOR:  John Carney  LEAD CAST:  Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine, Hailee Steinfeld, James Corden  SCREENWRITER:  John Carney  PRODUCER:  Anthony Bregman, Tobin Armbrust  EDITOR:  Andrew Marcus  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Gregg Alexander  GENRE:  Drama, Musical & Performing Arts, Comedy  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Yaron Orbach  DISTRIBUTOR:   Weinstein Company  LOCATION:  United States  RUNNING TIME: 104 minutes

Technical Assessment: 3.5  Moral Assessment: 3

CINEMA Rating: V 14

Begin Again tells a tale of two persons whose spirits are currently crushed by their different circumstances. Dan (Mark Ruffalo) has just lost his job from the music label company he co-founded, and has been battling a long-time a crisis in his marriage. Greta (Keira Knighley) has just broken-up with her boyfriend (Adam Levine) whom she discovers to be unfaithful after she flew all the way from England just to accompany him and have a music career in New York. One fateful night in a bar, Dan sees Greta playing a song and he is immediately mesmerized by her music that he convinces her to produce an album with him. But Greta is set to go back home to England after what happened to her and her boyfriend. After much convincing, Greta agrees. Without much resources and a backing of a label, the two together with a ragtag band of musicians collaborate to record an album in the streets of New York.

        The film banks on the fine performances of the lead cast. Knightley and Ruffalo morphed into their roles with so much heart and intensity without going melodramatic. The scenes depicting simple conversations come out as the most powerful scenes given its naturalistic appeal. There’s magic when actors need not try hard to make scenes very dramatic. Like music, the film is at its best when it just flows. Never mind if they get corny sometimes but they will just carry on and let the natural rhythm of life bring them to destination. Begin Again successfully connects life and music and how one affects the other in the nexus of complications brought about by relationships, ambition and materialism.

      The original title of Begin Again  is “Can a Song Save Your Life?”. It is a rhetorical question that the film has tried to answer. Well, obviously, the film answers the question with a resounding “yes”. Music indeed has saved the lives of Dan and Greta. They meet when they are at their lowest points and music becomes the invisible and powerful bridge that led them to become the best of friends. Music binds them together and they are able to get through life’s blows because of their faith that transcends genre and generations. The film also questions the entire music industry’s commercial system, proving that persistence pays off at the right time. The film somehow serves as a glimmer of hope to those who have been betrayed and seemed to have lost confidence and faith in other people, in God, and in themselves. Dan may have resorted to excessive drinking, which can be a bit disturbing but taking it into context, it will be seen that his drunkenness makes situations worse and does not do anything good. Music is God’s gift and creation and as the characters are seen to genuinely love a creation of God, so they remain on track because of such love. However, the movie’s theme, emotional stress and some vulgar language make the film appropriate only to audience 14 and above.

Step up, all in

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DIRECTOR: Trish Sie   LEAD CAST:  Ryan Guzman, Briana Evigan, Alyson Stoner, Adam Sevani, Isabella Miko, Mari Koda, Christopher Scott, Luis Rosado  SCREENWRITER:  John Swetnam  PRODUCER:  Jennifer Gibgot, Adam Shankman  EDITOR:  Niven Howie  PRODUCTION DESIGNER: Devorah Herbert  COSTUME DESIGNER: Soyon An  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Jeff Cardoni   GENRE:  Drama, Romance, Musical & Performing Arts  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Brian Person   DISTRIBUTOR:  Summit Entertainment, Lionsgate  LOCATION:  United States  RUNNING TIME:  122 minutes

Technical assessment:  3  Moral assessment: 3

CINEMA rating: V14  MTRCB rating:  PG

A squabble over financial issues leads to a split up between Sean (Ryan Guzman) and the dancing group Mob.  The group returns to Florida while Sean is left alone to slug it out in Los Angeles, applying for a job in a dance hall owned by the immigrant parents of his friend Moose (Adam Sevani).  Humiliated that the job he gets is not as a dancer but as a janitor, he has no choice but to take it, burdened with a long overdue rent.  Soon he learns about The Vortex, a dance contest in Las Vegas hosted by Alexxa Brava (Isabella Miko), and wastes no time putting together a dance group, determined to compete, especially as the winning group will get a three-year contract in Las Vegas as prize.  In the contest, Sean finds his new group competing not only with the formidable Grim Knights but also with his ex-crew, the Mob.

Moviegoers who come to see Step Up All In for the dance move—and not for a psychological insight into young dancers aspiring to leave their mark in a ruthless industry—will not be disappointed because the plot, trite and even more predictable than the series’ four predecessors, is all but overshadowed by the spectacular dance numbers.  Director Sie—music video director and former competitive ballroom dancer—made sure her team of three choreographers delivers the clever and eye-popping fresh moves to inspire the young moviegoers with a yen for dance contests.  If the thin plot and the matching acting seem like a cure for insomnia, the 3D dances are like caffeine consumed intravenously.

This is not to say that Step Up All In is totally bereft of a redeeming message.  Determination is one value that is emphasized, particularly for talented young people facing all sorts of difficulties.  The movie is strong on pursuing one’s dream at all cost, including humbling oneself and taking on menial jobs in the hope of being in the right place at the right time in order to turn dreams into reality.  Admirable, too, is the new realization among the dancers that winning the competition is not the end all and be all of dancing, and that developing the art is a most worthy motive. 

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

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Direction: Matt Reeves; Cast: Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Toby Kebbel, Ken Russel; Screenplay: Mark Bomback,Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver based on the Pierre Boulle’s Planet of the Apes; Producer: Peter Chemin, Dylan Clark; Editing: William Hoy, Stan Salfas; Music: Michael Giacchino; Genre: Sci-Fi Action; Distributor: 20^th Century Fox ; Location: San Francisco Running Time: 131 minutes

Technical Assessment: 3  Moral Assessment: 3.5 
MTRCB Rating: G     CINEMA rating: V14

            In 2016, the ALZ-113 virus—the genetic drug developed in Rise of the Planet of the Apes to cure Alzheimer’s disease but enhanced the intelligence of Apes and became deadly to humans—has spread causing humanity to totally collapse. Ten years, later, some of remaining survivors immune to the virus establishe a colony in the ruins of San Francisco but are badly in need of replacement for their dwindling power supply. A group led by Malcolm (Jason Clarke) travel to the Mur Woods and get confronted by two apes. In a moment of panic, the humans shoot one of the apes and the next minute stand face to face with thousands of highly intelligent apes led by Caesar (Andy Serkis). Malcolm and the group return to their home but Caesar decides to remind the humans that the apes will protect their home as well. In a show of force, Caesar and the rest of his ape leaders enter the human refuge and tell them to keep off their territory. But Malcolm convinces his fellow leader, Dreyfuss (Gary Oldman) to give his team three days to try to talk to the apes to allow them to repair an old dam which could provide electricity to their community.  Malcolm and Caesar reach a truce and eventually earn each other’s trust. However, Koba (Toby Kebbell), Caesar’s second-in-command who still holds a grudge against humans for being maltreated as a laboratory experiment, betrays Caesar, incites the apes to revolt against Caesar’s teachings and starts a war against the humans.

            The greatest strength of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is the level of emotions both the narrative and the expression of the apes give us. It is amazing how the faces of the apes deliver the range of feelings while suspending our belief that they are still non-human. The motion actors (those performing as apes) make up for the very little requirement from human actors. The scoring is brilliant, punctuating excitement and drama in a specific way. This being said, the latter action sequences of apes fighting humans and Caesar fighting Koba are indulgent—a little tightening could have served the film better. While the storyline is heart-tugging it not entirely new, and while the computer-images are impressive, they are not distinctive. Nonetheless, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a passionately insightful film whose sequel is worth waiting for.

          Society is a matter of trust. It would be hard to perform one’s responsibility if you do not have faith in one another. Trust relies on love and selflessness as its foundation. Trust, in turn, is the precursor of respect and peace. Leadership necessitates trust because it is not about power or who dominates whom but about who helps, who espouses peace and who desires to sacrifice for the greater good. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes also emphasizes family—both the immediate and societal. At the end of the day, a good leader serves his people for the sake of his family and theirs as well. Although the film delivers a strong positive message, some themes and violent action sequences are not appropriate for younger audiences.

She's dating the gangster

DIRECTOR:  Cathy Garcia-Molina  LEAD CAST:  Kathryn Bernardo, Daniel Padilla, Sofia Andres, Khalil Ramos, Pamu Pamorada, Richard Gomez, Dawn Zulueta  SCREENWRITER:  Bianca B. Bernardino (based on a novel) Carmi Raymundo  PRODUCER:  Malou Santos, Charo Santos-Concio  MUSIC: Jonathan Manalo  GENRE:  Romantic Comedy-Drama  DISTRIBUTOR:  Star Cinema  LOCATION:  Philippines RUNNING TIME:   105 minutes

Technical assessment:  3.5  Moral assessment: 3.5  
 MTRCB rating: PG  CINEMA rating: V14

Galit si Kenneth (Daniel Padilla) sa ama niyang si Kenji (Richard Gomez) dahil akala niya hindi siya minahal nito, at naging malungkot ang buhay ng kanyang yumaong ina. Pero nagkukumahog siya ngayong papunta sa Legaspi at umaasang nakaligtas ito sa isang airplane crash. Kasama niya si Kelay (Kathryn Bernardo) na gusto ring dalhin si Kenji sa kanyang tiyahing si Athena (Dawn Zulueta) na malapit nang mamamatay. Habang nagbibiyahe ay ikinuwento ni Kelay kay Kenneth ang dakilang pag-ibig ni Kenji at Athena. Noong high school pa sila, pinilit ni Kenji (Daniel Padilla) si Athena (Kathryn Bernardo) na magkunwaring kasintahan nito upang pagselosin ang ex-girlfriend niyang si Athena Abigail (Sofia Andres). Hindi nila inakalang sa pagkukunwaring ito magsisimula ang isang tunay na pag-ibig. Subalit ano nga ba ang tunay na pag-ibig?

Ang She’s Dating the Gangster ay halaw sa isang online nobelang isinulat ni Bianca B. Bernardino na inilathala sa Wattpad. Mahirap isapelikula ang isang nobela dahil madalas ay hindi maisalarawan ito nang sapat. Sa She’s Dating the Gangster, napakaraming pagbabago ang ginawa ng screenwriter na si Carmi Raymundo: mga katangian ng mga tauhan, balangkas ng kuwento, pati ang panahon, ang katapusan, atbp. Para itong pinaghalong Romeo and Juliet at The Fault in Our Stars pero hindi isang karaniwang romantic comedy ang She’s Dating the Gangster.  Karaniwang sinasabi, kapag naisapelikula ang isang nobela, na mas mainam ang libro kaysa sa pelikula. Taliwas ang nangyari sa pelikulang ito. Naging makulay at katuwa-tuwa ang paglipat sa dekada 90 ng kwento, pati na rin ang pagsasalarawan nito at mga kasuotan.  Kahit na halatang naka-wig si Bernardo ay magaling niyang naisakatuparan ang kanyang papel bilang Athena. Akma din at bagay kay Padilla ang pagiging gangster—na sa pelikula, maging sa nobela, ay nangangahulugang: “irritating, loud, and he’s not sweet! He’s weird, he smokes, he drinks, he goes clubbing on a weekday, and he fights and bullies a lot… He is very moody and a bit blunt.” Makatotohanan nilang naipamalas ang mundo ng mga kabataan sa panahong iyon, pati na ang mga problemang kinaharap nila. Dahil sa mahusay na pamamatnubay ng direktor na si Cathy Garcia-Molina, nabalanse ang mga eksenang nakakatawa at nakakakilig at mga eksenang ma-drama. May mga eksenang medyo pilit at masasabing imposibleng mangyari, pero dahil mahusay gumanap ang mga aktor ay pwede na itong palampasin. Ipinakita din sa pelikula ang marilag na bulkang Mayon, isa sa tinaguriang Seven Wonders of Nature sa buong mundo, at ang kagandahan ng karatig-pook. Nakatulong din ang angkop na musika ng dekada 90.

Natural ang pagrerebelde ng kabataan, pero sa kaso ni Kenji, tumindi ito dahil sa kawalan ng pagmamahal ng mga magulang. Uhaw sa pagmamahal, handa siyang gawin ang lahat magkabalikan lang sila ni Abigail, kahit na pilitin si Athena na magkunwaring kasintahan niya. Naipakita ng direktor ang “adolescent angst” at ang paglalim ng pagiging magkaibigan at pagmamahalan ni Kenji at Athena na hindi kinasangkapan ang sex. Sa pelikula, pinatunayan din ni Athena ang katapangan hindi lang sa kanyang pamumuhay ng normal sa kabila ng malalang karamdaman, kundi sa pagpaparaya alang-alang sa iba. Isang anggulo ng pagmamahal ang malakas na isinisigaw ng pelikula—walang pag-ibig na walang sakripisyo. At ang pinaka-malaking sakripisyo ay ang kalimutan ang sarili para sa minamahal. Pero hindi kailangang mabuhay sa takot. Sapagkat sabi nga ni Athena: “Pagmamahal at hindi takot ang nagbibigay-buhay.” Naalala ko tuloy ang isang awitin ni Barry Manilow na nagsasabing: “Letting go is just another way to say I'll always love you so.” Kay gandang makita sa pinilakang tabing na magagawa ng kabataan ang magmahal nang dakila at tapat, magparaya at magmalasakit, magpatawad at magpakatatag.

Sabi ng isang kabataang nakausap ko, “Parang hindi naman makatotohanan yung magpaparaya sila. Wala nang gumagawa ng ganun ngayon eh. Kapag in-love ka, siyempre gusto mo ikaw ang masaya, hindi ba?” Siguro, dahil bihirang makita ang pag-ibig na walang pag-iimbot sa telebisyon at pelikula, akala ng marami ay imposible at hindi totoo ito. Umabot na sa PhP130M ang kita sa box office ng pelikula sa unang linggo pa lamang. Hindi kaya pagpapatunay ito na maliban sa katanyagan ng mga nagsiganap, pinahahalagahan ng manonood ang panunumbalik ng genuine values sa pelikulang Pilipino?

Begin again

DIRECTOR:  John Carney  LEAD CAST:  Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine, Hailee Steinfeld, James Corden  SCREENWRITER:  John Carney  PRODUCER:  Anthony Bregman, Tobin Armbrust  EDITOR:  Andrew Marcus  MUSICAL DIRECTOR:  Gregg Alexander  GENRE:  Drama, Musical & Performing Arts, Comedy  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Yaron Orbach  DISTRIBUTOR:   Weinstein Company  LOCATION:  United States RUNNING TIME: 104 minutes

Technical assessment: 3.5  Moral assessment: 3  CINEMA rating: V14 

Two persons in crisis, one on his family life and profession and the other on her love relationship with a singer boyfriend of five years, meet and become friends, which leads to mutual transformation and development of their music profession. Instead of retaliating against the infidelity of their respective partners, they both seek for pro-active solution and find normalcy in their life.

Chef

DIRECTOR:  Jon Favreau  LEAD CAST:  Jon Favreau, Sofia Vergara, John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson, Oliver Platt, Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman, Robert Downey, Jr.  SCREENWRITER:  Jon Favreau  PRODUCER:  Jon Favreau, Karen Gilchrist, Sergei Bespalov  EDITOR:  Robert Leighton  Production Company:  Aldamisa Entertainment  GENRE:  Comedy  CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Kramer Morgenthau   DISTRIBUTOR:  Open Road Films  LOCATION:  United States RUNNING TIME:  114 minutes

Technical assessment:  4;  Moral assessment:  3.5;  MRCB rating: R13  CINEMA rating:  V 14

Miami born chef Carl Casper’s (Jon Favreau) creativity in the kitchen is squelched by his boss, Los Angeles restaurant owner Riva (Dustin Hoffman), who threatens to fire Casper if he serves anything other than the old favorites that the clientele come back for again and again and again. This tug of war results in a scathing review by food blogger-critic Ramsey Michel (Oliver Platt) and then in a head-on collision with Riva who stubbornly refuses to give Casper’s fresh cuisine a try, the chef quits cold turkey—but not before he gives Michel a dressing down in Riva’s very own restaurant. The drama surrounding Casper’s dogged refusal to compromise his creative freedom and his public humiliation of the food critic go viral on social media, making him a celebrity of sorts.  Jobless and angry, Casper agrees to go with his ex-wife Inez (Sofia Vergara), who invites him to take the opportunity to bond with their young son Percy (Emjay Anthony).  Miami proves to be a surprising chapter in Casper’s life.

Favreau does a great job of directing, writing, producing AND starring in this movie, no doubt a pet recipe that’s spiced up by big names—Hoffman and good friends from Iron Man sequels Favreau has directed Downy Jr. and Johansson.  With the made-to-measure cast, audiences will find it easy to empathize with the characters. Action is tight and fast paced, complemented by lilting Cubano music and mouthwatering footage of food tasting, shopping, preparation, and presentation.  As the closing credits roll, Favreau is shown being mentored by chef Roy Choi on how to make the perfect grilled cheese sandwich, brown and crisp and with layer upon layer of different cheeses peeping out between the bread slices.  Yummy!

Chef is billed as a comedy—but was it really made to make people laugh?  More like a cooking dramedy movie, it’s a lighthearted treatment of serious subjects—passion in one’s lifework, social media ethics, the many faceted relationships in and branching out of the family.  With female actors as sultry as Sofia Vergara (a hybrid between Sofia Loren and Eva Mendez) and Scarlet Johansson (voted 2014 Sexiest Woman in the World) we half expected some steamy scenes inserted into the movie but to our delight none came.  In that department it is actually wholesome; the foul language issues from the mouth of irate male characters.  Social media is shown as an implement that can both destroy and build, given this age’s predilection for scandal and sensationalism.  As an afterthought, though, we wonder whether Chef used Twitter or Twitter used Chef.  The story developed with Twitter as its compass.  If it had been set in a pre-internet era, would the satisfying conclusion come that quickly?