maria g

tbh i would give it a 3 star but like another review said on here, i'm giving it a 4 star because it's stuck in my mind so much i re-watched it again right after finishing it the first time. spoilers ahead. i recommend watching if you want to watch something new and different. if you enjoy weird, interesting movies and love watching artsy food shows like chef's table. also if you like thrillers that are a little more tame (but suspenseful in different ways). trigger warnings for the movie: suicide, some gore, mentioned sa. - a good watch for the conversation to be had with the themes of the movie. it's a fresh take on ideas and themes that have been done before. a suspenseful thriller with great cinematography (very similar to chef's table due to the creator of chef's table, david gelb, being on the directing team), dark humor that's digestible, relatable, opens up many discussions on service industry workers and the pressure seen on artists to please people and critics and how that can lead to a death in many forms. the acting was really well done. however, there are plot holes and not much backstory with characters. throughout the movie you yearn to learn more about the characters. you're kinda thrown into the experience type of thing but i guess that's "the experience you pay for". it has potential in moments but the execution is a little sporadic and story goes a little "huh???" at times but it is definitely an entertaining watch that's intense and has moments of being relatable and darkly humorous. though it can be argued that the antagonist can be seen as pretentious and lacking motive, he definitely has a voice. he essentially leads a food cult that eerily resembles some of the mentalities of people in that industry. it feels like he's playing a wounded god - like the world has wronged him so he thinks he has the right to punish and kill others due to his demise in life. the acting for the antagonist was superb, ralph fiennes did such a great job. so it's an interesting watch when you're listening to the messages the movie is trying to tell you and when you're not being super critical (that in itself is already ironic given the nature of the movie).