Compliments to the Chef

First, I give Jon Favreau's Chef a thumb's-up review at SXSW. Then, said review is blurbed in a widely disseminated trailer for the movie. Yesterday, David Carr of The New York Times gets on the bandwagon. Today, Jeff Wells complains that, so far, the meanies at Open Road haven't yet screened Chef for him. And now, tonight at the Tribeca Film Festival, Chef is announced as winner of the Heineken Audience Award. Coincidence? I don't think so.

Trailer Park: Chef

As I noted in my Variety review: Chef is "a lightweight but high-calorie confection in which the actors often run the risk of being upstaged by all manner of scrumptious-looking cuisine. Written and directed by Jon Favreau, who also stars as a professionally frustrated chef who earns a second helping of happiness while operating a food truck, this amiably rambling dramedy will play best with audiences primed to go with the flow of its leisurely pacing while enjoying the cross-country ride. And, of course, savoring the views of that tempting grub." I also said it's "extremely funny" -- which presumably is why I got quoted in the new trailer. Not that such things matter to me, you understand.

By the way: My quote appears around the 1:38 point.

SXSW: Two reasons why I enjoyed Chef

It features a lengthy sequence set in my beloved hometown of New Orleans -- including a visit to Cafe du Monde -- and a brief musical performance by Gary Clark Jr. But, really, those aren't the only reasons why I enjoyed Chef, this year's opening-night film at SXSW. You can read my Variety review here.