Movie Review # 565: The Menu (2022)

Well everyone, today, we are going to be reviewing a film that a friend, and I saw earlier this week that was, let’s just say, for now, different than I expected. It stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Fiennes, Nicholas Hoult, John Leguizamo (whom I’m sure quite a few of us animation fans know for voice acting in animated films like Titan A.E., the Ice Age film franchise, Encanto, and likely other films as well), Hong Chau, and quite a few other people as well. Oh, and it is a movie with a premise that involves food, and an island. Presenting to you all my review of a film called The Menu.

Plot: When a businessman named Tyler (Nicholas Hoult), his companion Margot Mills (Anya Taylor-Joy), and some other businessman that includes George Diaz (John Leguizamo), Felicity (Aimee Carrero), Richard Liebbrandt (Reed Birney), among some others, travel to Hawthorne to meet food critic, and celebrity chef Julian Slowik (Ralph Fiennes), and try his food, they discover that the restaurant ends being run more like a restaurant, and a prison. So, will the new customers be able to escape Hawthorne before they get themselves in potential trouble with both the shady food, and the psycho paths that run the place?

Here is an example of expecting one thing from a film, and getting something different from your expectations. Please let me explain! When I first saw trailers for The Menu, I was expecting something like a mystery thriller type of movie, or something along those lines. Instead, what I got was a film that was more like a horror film with more violence, and gore than should have been either in here, or in any other fictional film for that matter. Okay, I get that blood is real, and that violence is real too. I mean movies that were based on actual events like 1995’s Braveheart, or 2000’s The Patriot, for instance, are good examples of this. But when you have too much blood, and gore, and you’re putting it in there just for the sake of just showing it too much, and maybe even for entertainment, that’s likely a problem, wouldn’t you say? Putting that aside, the characters aren’t really all that likable. I mean even when it comes to the good characters, except for the main one, Margot Mills, they really don’t seem to stand out all that much, and/or be likable, or memorable. Yeah, the film obviously tries to flesh them out as best as they can. However, either because of pacing issues, whether the story seems to drag at some points, or ends up being too fast-paced at others, the characters don’t seem to stand out, except for Margot Mills, Julian Slowik, and maybe even Tyler. Some of the characters end up being downright sleazy as well. Okay, again, twist villains, or things like that are cool. Still, the way that some of the situations with some of the characters were handled in a case like this weren’t exactly handled the best. Finally, there’s the storyline overall. Let me tell you, the story feels rather convoluted, and sometimes even sickening as well. I mean you may, or may not be surprised how things turn out throughout the course of this film, and, sadly, more in a negative way than a positive one. So the film feels more like a downer than uplifting because of that.

Are there any positives for this film? Well, despite the mostly negative aspects about this movie. Well, even though Julian Slowik may basically be the villain of this film, he also has a complex side to him as well, especially around the middle, and near the end for reasons that I won’t explain as to why. Oh, and Ralph Fiennes did an excellent job as that character. If you liked his role in films like Prince Of Egypt as Ramses, for example, chances are you’d like his role for Julian Slowik in this film. The other thing is that Margot Mills ends up being the only character in this film that thinks critically about situations, especially when she, and the others are at Hawthorne, and the whole food deal is going on. She does well with distinguishing truth from deception, and knows how to make situations work to her advantage. Because of that, that is one of the additional rare to few things that you’ll find yourself enjoying about this film.

And that’s my review for The Menu. Is the film entirely horrible? No! The Menu does at least have a couple saving graces. That is especially when the main villain, and the main heroine being the main standouts of this film, along with some good acting. Still, because the storyline can feel convoluted, there being more violence than necessary, and some other mostly unlikable things in this film, The Menu is definitely not the best thing to see. I would say that only if you have the AMC, or United Artists/Regal deal, where you can see a certain amount of films a week for free, then maybe see it. Otherwise, probably just go see Devotion, Lyle, Lyle Crocodile, or some other film instead of The Menu. So, if you wish to have a friendly discussion about The Menu, then feel free to do so.

Final Grade: D+