Chef

Chef centres on Casper, a cook, once the darling of the LA food scene, who's stuck in a rut churning out uninspired nosh for his philistine restaurateur paymaster (Dustin Hoffman). Sound familiar? Chef is directed by and stars Jon Favreau, once the darling of the US indie scene (Swingers, Made), who's now stuck in a rut churning out uninspired movies (Iron Man 2, Cowboys & Aliens) for his philistine paymaster, Hollywood.

Favreau's picture doesn’t represent the filmmaking rehabilitation its meta plot alludes to, but it’s a step in the right direction. Bright and breezy, Chef's strongest elements are the blokey kitchen-line banter and the sweetly rendered relationship between Casper and his estranged son, with whom the crestfallen chef goes on the road in a clapped-out taco van to rediscover his culinary mojo. A subplot involving Casper’s social media naïvety and a public spat with a critic lifted straight from Ratatouille, however, is absurd – even more so than the notion Scarlett Johansson’s sommelier would be falling at Casper’s feet. [Jamie Dunn]