La Cocina

If you saw "Boiling Point" (2021) then you'll get the gist of this drama set in an hectic New York restaurant kitchen. "The Grill" might look peaceful to the customers, but it's kitchen is a multi-cultural, multi-lingual and attitudinal melting pot of cooks, waitresses and cleaners under the guidance of a no-nonsense chef (Lee Sellars) and a slimy manager "Luis" (Eduardo Olmos). It's this latter man who finds there's a problem one morning when his boss reports that $800-odd is missing from one of the cash registers and the owner "Rashid" (Oded Fehr) is seeing red. Using the investigation as a pretext, we quickly discover that this room is full of characters who generally rub along ok with each other, except for "Pedro" (Raul Briones) and "Max" (Spenser Granese), with the latter man frequently and violently fed up with the lack of English being spoken in this kitchen of Babel. Meantime, "Pedro" is trying to rekindle his relationship with waitress "Julia" (Rooney Mara) who is expecting, but not intending to have, his baby. With everyone working flat out, the search for the missing cash and the prevailing, accumulating, sense of toxicity amidst this atmosphere, the scene is set for quite a lively look at the trade, it's traditions and the vulnerability of so many workers with a dubious legal status who are treated little better than slaves. Sadly, though, for me the film just didn't take off. Aside from the fact that there is simply far too much dialogue, it is much too long and the characterisations are way too shallow and under-developed. The acting isn't especially engaging, and the writing doesn't do enough to create anyone here that is liable enough to feel the remotest sympathy for. There are too many repetitious angry confrontations without enough humour to entertain or sustain much interest and as they quite literally wade through the story, it just runs out of steam before bordering on the farcical at the end. It's disappointing, sorry.

Pretentious BS. There, I said it. That ending solidified it. Ending on that silly green ray thing. And why are you giving me black and white when you're not showing me anything beautiful here? What is the point. Pretentious BS is what it is. Strong colours would have made this even more powerful.

The only thing this movie is doing to me is make me want to avoid restaurants. Cause I do not want to eat food from those people. Such a collection of a-holes. Pedro belongs in an institution. Any kind of institution will do, as long as he is not out into the world, among people. He is toxic, I don't care about his sob immigrant story. They all got sob stories. Doesn't justify anything. I for one took to the Moroccan lady. Or Nonzo. Raton? Yuck. The chef? A tyrant. The Latino lovers OMG. The sexism, the racism, the reverse racism. The funny thing is this movie is not making me empathize with their struggle and there clearly is a lot of struggle but they're so scummy that they do not deserve my pity. Julia, girl, what is wrong with you? Where your head at? I can say one thing though, I did not recognize Rooney Mara. If I hadn't seen her name in the opening credits I wouldn't have identified her. Well into the movie.

Sure took a lot of me to finish it. I mean I finished it in one go but I struggled to do so. This could have been a much better movie, I don't understand what it's trying to tell me or do to me cause it only put me in a bad mood.

Also, are there no food safety standards in the US or what? How can that happen? Also, I don't think I've ever seen more than 5 servers in any average sized restaurant. How big is this place that it needs a dozen servers or even more? Doesn't look that big to me. I know the turnaround is big there, but still... Just watch Boiling Point.

Half a star more only for the actors' effort.

Unpopular opinion: not every movie needs a 2.5-hour runtime. "La Cocina" (who I've been wanting to watch since its "Sundance" premiere) is a perfect example of this, feeling unnecessarily drawn out and lacking depth. While the film has its strengths-like its exploration of multiculturalism in a Manhattan restaurant-too much of it feels disjointed and unfocused. The narrative tries to juggle too many elements, resulting in a plot that feels messy and uneven. At times, it almost feels like it would have worked better as a play rather than a movie.

That said, there are parts of "La Cocina" that truly stand out. The multicultural dynamics in the restaurant setting are fascinating, and I wish they had been explored more deeply. The cinematography is stunning, especially with its black-and-white visuals that add a striking, artistic flair. But despite these highlights, the film's ambition ultimately outweighs its execution, leaving it feeling more like a missed opportunity than a compelling watch.

The movie is trying to immerse the audience into the microcosm of a major restaurant kitchen in New York. Great acting by many of the cast. However, 3 hours are too long for getting the story across. Some elements don't make sense at all and some characters are not getting the focus they deserve. Overall the topic of diverse cultures by migrants and their personal dreams of life are a crucial topic. I would have wished to allow this in a form that would focus on few and with a deeper vertical story line. Raul and Rooney Mara are amazing in their performances. We watched it at the world premiere and the audience was very receptive to the premiere.

A black and white comical tragedy or tragical comedy about various people who are attracted, like moths to a flame, to working in the kitchen of a famous restaurant on Times Square in New York. The working conditions are disgusting, the bosses are manipulative and threatening, most of the kitchen staff are illegal immigrants from places where life standard is considered to be worse than in US. But what can be worse? They are working under contant pressure, almost always tense and stressed, always yelled at, humiliated and even accused of crimes they didn't commit. The central characters, a local waitress and a Mexican chef, are more disturbed than the others; and they start sort of a love story and hell knows where it will end.

There's also humor, a lot of noise, sporadic fits of violence, a dream sharing session, some flirting with consequences, multiple languages (and multiple misunderstandings), food and drinks galore, a very tight schedule, obscene jokes and a ray of hope in everyone.

The international cast is great, the music is superb, the acting and photography are wonderful. The main theme, in my opinion, is how overrated the Times Square place is - the Cocina people go through so much suffering and maltreatment there, and they only got there in hope for a better life, the American dream. But is this the better life? True, it's not the lowest bottom level and most of them seem to get by but they, as everyone else, definitely deserve more than this overrated Times Square place has to offer.