Saturday 16 March 2024

Boiling Point (Philip Barantini, 2021)


A plunge into an evening even more hectic than usual at a small trendy London eatery, Boiling Point is as much about the impending nervous breakdown of the harassed head chef, played by the as about the sheer hell of working in a high-pressure restaurant environment. The threats are posed by snooty critics, shallow influencers and lairy customers, while the staff rail at each other, trying to keep to prep times counted in seconds rather than minutes, and simultaneously maintain the establishment's food quality and hygiene standards.
What really elevates the film above these basic ingredients is undoubtedly the challenges posed by shooting all 90 minutes in a single take, and unlike any single-take film ever seen in in the history of world cinema, being able to do this with dozens of characters, all fleshed out and playing their part, creating a coherent and meaningful story. It's simply a staggering piece of choreography.

8/10

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