Steven P
If "Waiting" is the quintessential satire of the restaurant industry, then "Boiling Point" is it's brutally realistic counterpart. Pair these two films together, and you have the ultimate must-watch list for anyone in the restaurant business (perhaps add "The Menu" for dessert).
Unlike many restaurant films that focus on the glamour and artistry of cuisine, Boiling Point considers the human cost of the industry...the long hours, toxic environments, abusive customers, and the emotional toll of working in a pressure cooker where one mistake can send everything into chaos—it’s all here. Lastly, be prepared for this one-take (!) film to affect you in the visceral sense. I felt so much a part of the kitchen, I actually felt my adrenaline rise as I watched the lazy but well-liked dishwasher spend 5 precious minutes taking out trash and smoking a cigarette.
Somehow, this slid under my radar when it first came out, but thank the Gods of the Google Algorithm for recommending this film to me. I plan to watch this a second time; the attention to detail is stunning in this film, and I want to focus on that during my second viewing.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/06/25
Full Review
Thomas S
I wouldn't call it a "great" movie, but it sure does a hell of a job gluing you to your seat ! My adrenaline levels got up just by watching what hell a kitchen can turn into. I didn't see the dark turn coming at all, I'll soon watch it again to catch all the foreshadowing sprinkled along.
The nut allergy was soooo predictable though, that kindof killed it a bit for me. The horrible guy at table 7 really made me think : "I'd probably quit rather than serving that kind of guy". Shows you how tough hospitality can be
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/05/25
Full Review
Kyle M
If done any other way, its current form acknowledged the disruptive alternative that doesn’t carry the brewing narrative it requires. Taut perfection across the desired aesthetics and utter professional display towards ethical empathy of further appreciation, with a hefty screenplay seamlessly executed in coordinative adjacence to its captivating capture. (A-)
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/05/25
Full Review
Samuel W
That which embodies anxiety, depression, mental health, and the duality of man in one single snippet of the first hour and a half of a brimming Christmas Day at a Chef’s Restaurant. Following Andy, a disgruntled, troubled chef as he tries to pull it together and keep his fellow cooks in-line, while trying to maintain a friendly atmosphere, fails to do so as he and the rest of his crew take every wrong step toward impending doom. Anxiety swells and the slight decline makes every single wrong move, every bad moment, and all the lines weigh so much more on the viewer. The most impressive thing they did was to have the camera roll all in one take, very 1917-esque, but rather than splicing the film to look like it was in one shot, it really all was in one shot. Without much blemish or mistake, I could not discern when they made a bad move in the script or if they were scripted to say what they said or stumble. That was the most impressive thing, that they can capture unadulterated, non-processed, raw human emotion in just one tiny snippet of a slice of these people’s lives. The subtext, the context, and everything unconsidered or otherwise came into place in the movie in some way, big or small, and made this world so much more lively. If I were to watch this ten times over, I doubt I’d be able to tell you exactly what made these details so extravagant and intricate, but the fact that they’re in the movie at all with just one camera, just one take, and only being dependent on their previous rehearsals, it is absolutely remarkable. Hats off to Boiling Point, the somber tale of Andy Jones.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
01/01/25
Full Review
RONALD J
It seems you can’t rely on Rotten Tomatoes because contrary to what Rotten Tomatoes says this is streaming on Peacock.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/01/25
Full Review
Michael Antony A
Mikey’s Film Review: Boiling Point (2021)
Directed by Philip Barantini
Starring Stephen Graham, Vinette Robinson, Ray Panthaki and Hannah Walters
Set in a busy London restaurant kitchen and filmed in a non-stop single take (chosen from 3 such takes), Boiling Point presents us with a unique filmic perspective. A fly-on-the-wall look into the personal and professional lives of an over-worked, stressed out team as they try to get through their evening shift.
Racist customers, cheeky ‘chancer’ influencers, over booking, forgotten food orders and nut allergies are only a few of the ‘minor’ challenges they face. The main protangonist Andy (brilliantly performed by Stephen Graham) has alcohol, drug and marriage problems. While some members of the team have to contend with English as a new language, the maître d' is being bullied and another of the more junior members is self harming. Almost everyone is strung out tired and on the verge of having a nervous breakdown…
The pace rarely flags and the 92 minute running time flows quickly by. Perhaps too fast to establish and create a real connection and sympathy with the viewer. It’s a fascinating and mostly successful experiment. Some ideas linger long after the abrupt, bleak ending (there is no music throughout but a haunting song from Sam Fender fits perfectly over the final credits).
I was totally engaged, but sadly for me a lasting emotional, sympathetic bond with the characters wasn’t quite there. Perhaps the follow up BBC series (2023) adds the missing gravitas and drama?
As a result, it’s merely an interesting film with potential. Worth a look, even if only to compare with the vastly superior US TV series, The Bear.
Mikey’s Film Rating: 3/5*
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
12/16/24
Full Review
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