The film The Menu (2022) directed by Mark Mylod, has been greeted with rather mixed reviews. As more and more people have seen it, it has become more and more apparent that The Menu is one of those movies where you either love it or hate it. I am in the former category of viewers. I found myself in a theater and chose to see The Menu on a pure whim and what I found is quite possibly one of my favorite films I have ever seen.
Though some of the criticisms of The Menu are valid and certainly warranted, I believe that some misconstrue the film for what it is.
The Menu follows a group of wealthy diners who all visit an incredibly exclusive restaurant located on a private island, only to find that the menu isn’t what they would expect.
The main character that drives the story forward is Margot, played by Anya Taylor-Joy, a last-minute diner to come to the island. Her performance is enhanced and complimented by Ralph Fiennes who plays Chef Slowick, the head chef of the restaurant and creator of the menu. Though the performance given by these two is incredibly powerful, the rest of the cast certainly carries their weight. However, the controversial part of the film was not the quality of the acting, but the plot itself.
A certain point of contention I have seen concerning The Menu is a matter of misunderstanding the genre the movie is a part of. The Menu is primarily a satire with some of the blackest comedies I have ever seen. The comedic aspects of the film go so far as to become rather indistinguishable from the horror/thriller aspects of the movie.
I believe that some are unable to realize that the movie is a black comedy first and a horror second. Because they are expecting more horror, they leave confused and disappointed because their expectations are different from the reality of the film.
Another common complaint of The Menu is a matter of the plot. Even though I am highly fond of this movie, I will admit that the story is rather “out there”. Some find that the eccentricity of the story is unfollowable and too unrealistic. The way I see it, it’s supposed to be out there. It’s supposed to be artsy. It is not a film that is supposed to be deeply grounded in reality.
But here’s the thing—not all films have to be grounded in reality. Quite frankly, some of the best movies, in my opinion, are by no means grounded in reality. The Menu knows what it wants to be. The peculiarity of the film is what makes me adore it the way I do but I do understand that this becomes more a matter of personal preference.
I understand this becomes more of a matter of personal preference and I understand that this movie just isn’t for some people. However, I dislike when people claim that a movie, they didn’t like is an objectively bad movie. There are plenty of movies that I didn’t enjoy but I can still say that it was a well-made movie that did what it set out to accomplish.
I am personally a huge fan of The Menu and I highly recommend that those who haven’t seen it go and watch it. It isn’t a movie for everyone however I still believe it is worth the watch.
