Keanu Reeves to Star in Chef Movie
"A Michelin-level chef tries to make a comeback from major personal issues. He gathers his old friends together as his ‘dream team’ and ends up falling in love with the newest member of the group.” Whoa or no, folks? Whoa or no? [Slashfilm, via Eater LA]
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31 Comments:
nooooooooooooo!
Laurel E at 9:50AM on 12/08/08
No. He comes off too flat to be a chef. No flavor--too blah.
dhorst at 9:52AM on 12/08/08
Oh come now everyone... He could be "The One"
bobfole at 9:59AM on 12/08/08
If the temperature of these Sous vide carrots drops below 500 degrees, the whole restaurant will blow up!
JudgeFudge at 10:02AM on 12/08/08
Whoa, he knows Tiramisu!
AdrianR at 10:10AM on 12/08/08
No way. That and how can you top Big Night?
missvenuz at 10:15AM on 12/08/08
NO!
Allan at 10:20AM on 12/08/08
It cant be worse than Catherine Zeta Jones - watching her pretenting to cook made my eye bleed. That being said, I've yet to see a realistic portrayal of a 'real' fine dining kitchen in a fictional movie.. anyone?
Chefhorn at 10:20AM on 12/08/08
well he does look like Rocco DiSpirito
eRicou at 10:24AM on 12/08/08
That's just brilliant, at least he can regurgitate the same one-liners as his previous films:
-"I used to eat there. Really good noodles."
-"There is no spoon?"
Food Monstar at 10:31AM on 12/08/08
Hell no. It always seems like he's talking through a bad case of heartburn.
JustNancy at 10:48AM on 12/08/08
I agree with dhorst. He is too 'meh' and all of his characters have the same personality. The only one that differentiates itself is Ted. Or Bill. I don't remember which one he was.
AuntJone at 10:51AM on 12/08/08
no
gastronomeg at 11:15AM on 12/08/08
@chefhorn
I thought ratatouille was actually relatively well done in terms of getting the kitchen right (at least a large european-style brigade).
kenjialtci at 11:21AM on 12/08/08
I don't know, guys -- he was pretty good (and surprisingly 'loose') in 'Something's Gotta Give.' Maybe lightning could strike twice...
suthungirl at 11:22AM on 12/08/08
Dude! those crudités are like... DUDE!
phoebad at 11:33AM on 12/08/08
@suthungirl -- I agree. He was really pretty good in 'Something's Gotta Give.' And, as pointed out correctly upthread -- he does have a bit if a resemblence to Rocco DiSpirito. It could be okay.
My one caveat: If he's going to cook at all in the movie, they have to give him some basic knife skills, and have him spend time in some actual professional kitchens. Ms. Zeta-Jones was so unbelieveable, as to make her movie painful to watch.
So.... make me a "Whoa" with reservations.
Brownie at 11:34AM on 12/08/08
NO. Ignoring Keanu Reeves for a little bit (which is what makes my "no" all-capitals, I think), I don't think any actor could pull that sort of role/plot off respectably.
Vincci at 11:39AM on 12/08/08
@kenji, The producers of Ratatouille hired Thomas Keller to get the kitchen right.
The best cooking lesson on television still comes from the Godfather, when Clemenza shows Michael how to make the sauce...
BirdDoggie at 11:54AM on 12/08/08
i wanted to be load and vocal and negative. i don't really think much of keanu. he was perfect for the matrix role BECAUSE he can say 'whoa!' and look slick in black trenches.
but then. i stopped. and thought. maybe he's not the best person to play a chef, maybe he is. but once the movie's made we'll all dissect it endlessly, and i'll be curious who we all think SHOULD have played the lead.
kitchengeeking at 11:56AM on 12/08/08
The real question should be, regardless of who is the star of the movie, which chef personality would you suggest the actor follow while researching the profession during pre-production?
So, if you had 5 minutes with Keanu, and a rolodex for every chef out there, who would you call?
BirdDoggie at 12:36PM on 12/08/08
@Brownie
Pfft...knife skills? If he can learn kung fu in 30 seconds, knife skills won't be a problem at all.
lawofmurphy at 1:31PM on 12/08/08
@lawofmurphy: Heh. "Tank, do you have basic, intermediate, and advanced knife skills in the database? And give me an advanced tutorial on mise en place."
Adam Kuban at 1:37PM on 12/08/08
Ever seen Stephen Chow's "The God of Cookery?"
namepl at 1:58PM on 12/08/08
Whoa. Dude. It might not be so bad - he can (sort of) play bass. Maybe he's got enough manual dexterity to make the knife skills believable. Maybe he even cooks at home. I'd be willing to reserve judgment on Keanu's chef-approximating ability until I see a few clips. Let's just hope they hire someone with a bit of spirit to show him the professional kitchen ropes.
butterface at 2:27PM on 12/08/08
Can he be naked while he cooks? If yes, then I'm in.
juliebugsmama at 2:45PM on 12/08/08
@juliebugsmama - HA! Can I buy my ticket now??
Aaron Eckhart supposedly worked with an LA chef so he'd seem 'somewhat' comfortable in a kitchen. I think Keanu should go with Keller. But reading the synopsis again ('coming back from personal problems'), Bourdain ftw.
suthungirl at 4:10PM on 12/08/08
Do. Not. Want.
omarac at 8:57AM on 12/09/08
Having read the screenplay, I laugh at most of the comments here. (It's a not-bad script...but really, I doubt that hardly anyone here would be into it...)
I won't live long enough to witness it first-hand, but it'll be interesting to see 'the Internet generation' deal with their snarkiness as Life bears down and their 'Net-courage' goes limp. As the Brits are wont to say, 'Good luck with that.'
schmadrian at 1:41PM on 12/09/08
Can anything touch "Mostly Martha" ? (the German film).........
kathall at 6:43PM on 12/09/08
This must be Kitchen Confindential , same premise. Never read the book but I really liked the tv show. Don't think Keanu can pull it off in the same way as Bradley Cooper, he doesnt have any personality .
lexa99 at 9:55PM on 12/09/08