The Menu (2022)

Searchlight Pictures

A well cooked burger meets an underbaked idea—

With Glass Onion receiving a disproportionate amount of hate for being a perfectly fine popcorn flick, I’d like to draw attention to one that’s managed to garner a confusing amount of praise.

The Menu is a movie that goes out of its way to let you know that it isn’t striving for artistry or critical praise. The plot is obvious, the message is shallow, and the characters are vaguely drawn archetypes standing in for what’s wrong with…the world? Foodies? The elite?

We have the critic and her simpering publicist, a powerful old guy who’s cheating on his wife, a celebrity and his unhappy assistant, a table of “Do you know who we are?” business bros, a dangerously obsessive foodie and his date (an escort that he’s brought along to die), and—uh—the chef’s alcoholic mom.

The penultimate character is our protagonist, played by Ana Taylor-Joy. Despite being the lead, there’s not much for Taylor-Joy to do with this role, and those familiar with her previous projects will likely be let down by the shallowness of it. Though, she’s not alone in being poorly drawn and having little to do—the script is such that no one is outrageous enough to be campy (Nicholas Holt skirts the line; he’s certainly punchable) or grounded enough to provoke reflection.

This includes the actual chef, portrayed by Ralph Fiennes as the run of the mill artiste turned psycho. Together, he and his obedient kitchen subordinates enact a plan to punish their patrons and turn them all into human s’mores. Along the way, there’s suicide, tortilla blackmail, and overpriced foam.

The movie was mis-marketed as a horror/thriller, when in reality it’s more of a satirical comedy. Just not a particularly funny one. And while there’s plenty of violence, even the most squirm-inducing scenes are dulled by the film’s lack of commitment. In eschewing much attempt at meaning or a clear, tonal direction, The Menu misses an opportunity to go all in on satire, instead falling flat and forgettable. Like its characters, the movie simply isn’t exaggerated—violent, funny, or absurd—enough to stand on entertainment alone nor is it smart enough to leave the audience with any clever takeaway.

I know plenty will disagree and say I’m being too critical of a fun movie. To those, I say—
perhaps if The Menu wasn’t so bland, I wouldn’t need to be this salty.