Burnt

This review may contain spoilers!

I am sincerely blown away by how incredible this film is. I would give Burnt an 8/10.

I think what makes chef films so appealling isn't because it's a story about success or attaining greatness but crafting something that can be enjoyed; and really I think that's what this film excels at. The plot of this film really goes all out in making one of the best chef films that I've seen, with a protagonist and supporting cast that are all really well written. The pacing for this film was great, I never really felt bored and was hooked for the entire time. The cinematography was so vivid and crisp, everything leapt out at you in incredible detail. The editing was really interesting, at points the film just played out in these long takes but in others we saw swift cutting that just threw incredible imagery at you at breakneck speeds. The soundtrack for this film had a lot of soul; there was no weak link in that solid compilation.

Sienna Miller, who played Helene, gave a stand out performance in this film; her chemistry with Cooper was great but there were many scenes where you really felt that she outclassed him. Daniel Bruhl, who played Tony, was quite a fun role to watch; I liked the natural way the sexuality of his character was dealt with and portrayed. Omar Sy, who played Michel, had such a commanding presence in his scenes; however the best part about his character was the twist in which he betrayed Cooper. Henry Goodman, who played Conti, wasn't in the film much but gave such a genuine performance; I loved his wit in his scenes. Matthew Rhys, who played Reece, was one of the most incredible performances in this film; his ever shifting interactions with Cooper were some of the best scenes within the film. Uma Thurman, who played Simone, has a great minor appearance in this film; I loved her natural chemistry with Cooper and her sassy retorts. Alicia Vikander, who played Anne Marie, was the one aspect of the drug backstory that I really liked; the fact she had a mere two scenes with Cooper and still maintained a powerful relationship with him really shows her strength as a performer.

However the best performance came from Bradley Cooper, who played Adam Jones. This is one of Cooper's best performances in a long time, he really nails this role. It's the drive that you admire at first, his unwavering push to get his own kitchen and third Michelin Star. But you soon see Cooper performing exceptionally in tandem with the rest of the cast and you can't help but admire how well he's formed chemistry with almost the entire ensemble. Cooper is naturally quite good at playing up a character's wit; the sarcasm or sly digs that he makes in this film are brilliant. What really makes this performance stand out is how Cooper is so erratic in this film, sure he has a commanding presence in the kitchen but his outbursts and breakdowns are just completely unpredictable and I loved that.

There's not much I really disliked about this film but one thing that I thought wasn't well executed was the drug backstory. Cooper's character was too grounded in his present predicament with only slight references to the stuff from his past that it almost felt like his past didn't matter so much. We needed to see or be told more specifically about his earlier days when he crashed and burned.

Riccardo Scamarcio, who played Max, had no presence in this film; he was talked about as if he were important but you just didn't feel this in the execution. Sam Keeley, who played David, gave a weak performance that didn't stand out; something Keeley didn't seem to understand was that you can play a weak and cowardly role without lacking presence in a film. Emma Thompson, who played Dr. Rosshilde, is such a bad actress; everything she does just feels like a stale performance or one where she fails to put in enough effort. Lexi Benbow-Hart, who played Lily, was a bit too exaggerated and over the top in her performance; she wasn't the best child actress.