Tony who?
Unbeknownst to us our Editor wanted to be a chef but his claims to have stepped away from fine dining were undermined when one day, after arriving very early in the office, he asked us how to make a toast. The late Anthony Bourdain, one of the greatest chefs in the US arguably was similarly in ability way back in 1975. Having thought he’d blagged his way into a literary scholarship he went out to a bar with a friend and built up the courage to chat fellow student Nancy (Emilia Jones) that ends in a brush off. But undeterred she does tell Tony that she’s working the summer in the seaside resort of Provincetown, Massachusetts before she starts college herself
Any hoped for romance should have ended there but when his scholarship interview failed to impress he heads off in a desperate bid to find Nancy in Provincetown. Once there, tanked up on lager and troughing down on oysters he gets thrown out face first and having been pickpocketed as he slept in the gutter the same bar owned by chef (Antonia Banderas ) a hardworking God fearing man and the opposite of one of his staff Sal (Leo Woodall in an eye catching turn) as the coke snorting womanizing lad about time who carves notches out of doorposts after bedding his latest conquest. But this feet in the gutter story finds Tony reaching for the stars when, despite being the kitchen dish washer, but it’s a job that will shape his future.
Who cooked this up?
Tony is the latest film from writer director performer Matt Johnson and like his excellent 2022 film, ‘Blackberry’ is another true life story that’s well handled. The cast are uniformly good with Dominic Sessa as Tony, a vulnerable but often cocky young man as a precursor to the brash confidence as Boudain’s career took off in later years.
It’s a small but perfectly formed film that demonstrates that experience shapes character that’s true of all of us.
related feature : ‘Boiling Point’ director Philip Barantini tell us how he shot his 92 minute film in one shot!
related feature : ‘Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie’ written directed and starring Matt Johnson
Here’s the trailer….
