It's day 286 of the year and the project, which means, it's Day 12 of the 31 Days of Hallowe'en challenges. Today's movie Bitter Feast, fits both the main challenges. My own challenge 31 Days of Hallowe'en, which I talked about back in August, and the 31 Days of Horror being hosted by Nightmare on Film Street. My 31 Days of Hallowe'en mini challenge is Food Themed Horror, and the 31 Days of Horror challenge from Nightmare on Film Street mini challenge today is Give It A Second Chance.
After a food critic gives yet another bad review to one chef, the chef decides to kidnap the critic and get revenge.
This movie came out at the height of not just the food movies/food shows of the early 2000's, but just as the revenge/torture horror boom was happening. Someone I'm sure, was sitting there reading a review of a new hot celebrity chef and watching Saw at the same time; and thought it would be perfect to mix those together. And that's it in a nutshell. We get a tiny look at the mind of the chef in a couple small flashbacks that happen to bookend the movie; and one scene that sets up the personal life of the critic. The majority of this movie is done isolation style, within the confines of the chef's ranch.
I'm not sure if this is suppose to be a commentary on how the foodie world evolved in the early 2000's, or a commentary on how critics in general suddenly became a dime a dozen because of the internet? Or if it's about something else all together? I'm guessing a mixture of both.
The food scenes themselves are glorious, and could at times put you in mind of Julie/Julia that came out the year before. The close ups of onions being chopped, and pans of butter sizzling, make you momentarily forget you're actually watching a horror movie.
The beauty of this is the contrast of the characters. The character of the chef, who appears to be about passion outwardly; is actually cold and methodical. While the critic, who on the surface seems like a jerk, is the one in the loving marriage. You're never 100% supposed to cheer for either character, as they both become the victim and the villain.
Don't forget to check out my other daily lists on Letterboxd all October. As I am also doing the #100HorrorMoviesIn92Days challenge.
Come back tomorrow to see what I picked for the next round.
Kommentare