The Menu (2022 film)

The Menu is a 2022 American comedy horror film directed by Mark Mylod and written by Seth Reiss and Will Tracy. It stars an ensemble cast consisting of Ralph Fiennes, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, Hong Chau, Janet McTeer, Judith Light, and John Leguizamo. It follows a foodie and his date traveling to a remote island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the chef has prepared a lavish menu but reveals shocking surprises throughout the meal.

The film had its world premiere at the 47th Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2022, and was theatrically released in the United States on November 18, 2022, by Searchlight Pictures. It grossed over $79.6 million worldwide and received positive reviews from critics, who praised the screenplay and performances of the cast. At the 80th Golden Globe Awards, Fiennes and Taylor-Joy were nominated for Best Actor and Best Actress – Musical or Comedy, respectively. The film earned five nominations, including Best Thriller Film, at the 51st Saturn Awards.

Plot
Foodie Tyler Ledford and his date Margot Mills travel by boat to Hawthorn, an exclusive restaurant on a private island operated by celebrity chef Julian Slowik. The other guests are food critic Lillian Bloom and her editor Ted; wealthy regulars Richard and Anne Leibrandt; washed-up movie star George Diaz and his personal assistant Felicity Lynn; business partners Soren, Dave, and Bryce; and Slowik's alcoholic mother Linda. The group is given an island tour by maître d' Elsa, who notes that Margot is not Tyler's designated guest.

Dinner begins and Slowik introduces a series of courses, during which he delivers increasingly unsettling monologues. For the third course, uncomfortable truths about each guest are exposed via images laser-printed on tortillas. During the fourth course, sous-chef Jeremy kills himself. When Richard tries to leave, the staff cuts off his left ring finger as a warning to stay. Slowik arranges for Hawthorn's angel investor Doug Verrick, to whom Slowik relinquished ownership during the COVID-19 pandemic, to be drowned in front of the guests. The fifth course commences with Slowik allowing himself to be stabbed by Katherine, an employee whom he had sexually harassed. The female guests dine with Katherine while the men are given the chance to escape the island via a game of cat-and-mouse, but Slowik's staff catches them all. When Lillian attempts to gain Katherine's favor by offering assistance in starting her own restaurant, Katherine reveals that she was the one who suggested Slowik kill the guests and staff.

Slowik explains that each guest was invited because they contributed to him losing his passion for his craft or because they make a living by exploiting the work of food artisans like him. He announces that everyone will be dead by the end of the night. Since Margot's presence was unplanned, Slowik privately gives her the choice of dying with the staff or the guests. When she hesitates, he chooses the staff. Margot is unmasked as an escort named Erin, whose clients included Richard, whom she stopped meeting because he hired her to pretend to be his daughter. Slowik reveals that Tyler was informed the guests would be killed. Despite this, he was so zealous to participate in Slowik's craft that he kept it secret and hired Margot to replace his ex-girlfriend because Hawthorn does not seat lone diners. Slowik invites Tyler to cook and his performance fails to live up to his pretensions. Slowik humiliates him by detailing his culinary mistakes, then whispers in his ear, and a deflated Tyler leaves the kitchen.

Slowik asks Margot to go to the smokehouse and retrieve a barrel needed for dessert. As she leaves the kitchen, she discovers that Tyler has hanged himself in a closet. En route, Margot sneaks into Slowik's house, where she is attacked by a jealous Elsa. After a scuffle, Margot fatally stabs her. After seeing a framed employee of the month award showing Slowik as a young and happy cook preparing hamburgers at a greasy spoon diner, Margot finds a radio, calls for help, and returns to the restaurant with the barrel. A Coast Guard officer named Dale arrives. After the guests are convinced they have been saved, Dale reveals himself to be a line cook in disguise and returns to the kitchen.

Margot confronts Slowik for his "loveless" cooking and complains that she is still hungry. When he asks what she would like, Margot requests a cheeseburger and French fries prepared without the pretentiousness of fine dining. Slowik personally attends to her meal and finds joy in doing so. After one bite, Margot praises the food, then requests to take it "to go". Slowik allows her to leave, and Margot escapes on the Coast Guard boat docked nearby.

The dessert is an elevated s'mores dish in which the staff decorates the restaurant with sauces and crushed graham crackers, then dresses the guests in marshmallow stoles and chocolate hats. Slowik sets the restaurant ablaze, detonating the barrel and killing the guests, staff, and himself. Margot watches the fire from the boat, eats her cheeseburger, and wipes her mouth with a copy of the menu.

Cast



 * Ralph Fiennes as Chef Slowik
 * Anya Taylor-Joy as Margot
 * Nicholas Hoult as Tyler
 * Hong Chau as Elsa
 * Janet McTeer as Lillian
 * Paul Adelstein as Ted
 * John Leguizamo as a movie star
 * Aimee Carrero as Felicity
 * Reed Birney as Richard
 * Judith Light as Anne
 * Rebecca Koon as Linda
 * Rob Yang as Bryce
 * Arturo Castro as Soren
 * Mark St. Cyr as Dave
 * Peter Grosz as sommelier
 * Christina Brucato as Katherine
 * Adam Aalderks as Jeremy
 * Jon Paul Allyn as a boat waiter
 * Mel Fair as a boatman
 * Cristian Gonzales as Server #1
 * Matthew Cornwell as Dale
 * John Wilkins as Server #2

Development
Will Tracy dined at Cornelius Sjømatrestaurant, an island restaurant outside Bergen, Norway, during a honeymoon and later suggested a story to Seth Reiss inspired by the experience. Several figures from the world of fine dining were brought on as consultants for the film, including chef Dominique Crenn, who recreated several dishes from her San Francisco restaurant Atelier Crenn for the fictional restaurant Hawthorn, and second unit director David Gelb, who was brought on to recreate the filmmaking style from his Netflix docuseries Chef's Table.

It was announced in April 2019 that Alexander Payne was attached to direct. In December 2019, the screenplay appeared on the annual Black List, a survey showcasing the most popular films still in development. By May 2020, Searchlight Pictures held the distribution rights, and Payne had left the film due to scheduling conflicts, with Mark Mylod replacing Payne as director.

Casting
In April 2019, it was announced that Emma Stone and Ralph Fiennes would star in The Menu.

In June 2021, Anya Taylor-Joy entered negotiations and was confirmed in July to replace Stone, who had left due to commitments to other projects; Hong Chau and Nicholas Hoult joined the cast the same month. John Leguizamo, Janet McTeer, Judith Light, Reed Birney, Rob Yang, and Aimee Carrero joined in September. In October, Paul Adelstein, Arturo Castro, Mark St. Cyr, Rebecca Koon and Peter Grosz were confirmed as parts of the ensemble.

Filming
Filming began on September 3, 2021, in Savannah, Georgia, with cinematographer Peter Deming and film editor Christopher Tellefsen. Film locations include the Jekyll Island shore.

Music
Colin Stetson composed the musical score, released by Milan Records on November 18, coinciding with the film's release.

Release
The Menu premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2022, and also made its US premiere at Fantastic Fest that month. It was released on November 18, 2022, in the United States in 3,211 theaters, the widest release in Searchlight's history.

The film was released to digital platforms on January 3, 2023, with a Blu-ray and DVD release by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on January 17, 2023.

Box office
The Menu grossed $38.5 million in the United States and Canada, and $41.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $79.6 million.

In the United States and Canada, The Menu was released alongside She Said, and was projected to gross $7–10 million from 3,100 theaters in its opening weekend. It made $3.6 million on its first day, including $1 million from Wednesday and Thursday night previews. The film went on to debut to $9 million, finishing second behind holdover Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Over its second weekend, The Menu made $5.5 million (and a total of $7.6 million over the five-day Thanksgiving frame), finishing fifth. During its third weekend, the film made $3.5 million, finishing fourth.

Critical response
Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, while those polled by PostTrak gave it a 78% positive score, with 53% saying they would definitely recommend it.