Courtney Howard // Film Critic
TONY
Rated R, 1 hour and 46 minutes
Directed by: Matt Johnson
Starring: Dominic Sessa, Antonio Banderas, Emilia Jones, Leo Woodall, Stavros Halkias, Michael Jibrin, Monica Raymund, Rich Sommer, Dagmara Dominczyk
TONY is a biopic worthy of celebration. Not only does it sidestep the all-too-familiar tropes typically associated with hagiographic biopics, it spins those traditional elements on their head, delivering quality goods about a lost soul finding his passion and purpose. Director/ co-writer Matt Johnson, along with co-writers Todd Bartels, Lou Howe and Matthew Miller, has the right idea setting it as a coming-of-age period piece, examining one pivotal slice of its titular antihero’s life before he steps into the iconic persona known worldwide as Anthony Bourdain. Fresh, intoxicating, profound and deeply resonant, this heartfelt dramedy is a must-see.
In 1975, rebellious 19-year-old Tony (Dominic Sessa) desperately needs to get out from under the suffocating care of his parents Pierre (Rich Sommer) and Gladys (Dagmara Dominczyk) and find freedom anywhere else. He’s got his mind set on becoming a writer. But after being rejected from a prestigious college fellowship and catching eyes at a bar with his high-school crush Nancy (Emilia Jones), he lies to everyone and impulsively follows his potential paramour to the beachy vacation spot of Provincetown, Massachusetts. Trouble is, he has little money and no job prospects whatsoever. His rabblerousing antics land him in contact with the proprietor of a local seafood restaurant, Chef (Antonio Banderas), who takes pity on him and allows him to sleep in a hammock on his porch.
Tony starts working in Chef’s kitchen, first in a grueling position as a dishwasher. It’s there he bonds with the ragtag crew of misfits (who all embody splinters of Bourdain’s personality): kind waitress Mary (Monica Raymund), mouthy line cook Stavros (Stavros Halkias), smart sous chef Tyrone (Michael Jibrin) and oyster shucker Sal (Leo Woodall), a kindred spirit whose womanizing and reckless behavior calls out to Tony. Together, they’re highly functioning team, putting out basic dishes for hungry customers. As Tony gets used to his rinse-repeat daily cycle of work and late-night partying, he becomes inspired to do more. However, he’s headed for a crash-out – some of his own making and some not – where he learns the mettle of his manhood through formative experience.
Even if audiences don’t know who the real Bourdain (who died in 2018) was as a chef, author, raconteur and beloved travel documentarian, this biopic will still appeal to them as it’s just a legitimately great throwback summer romance, where the falling in love part takes place between a man and his love of cooking. This is a journey of a man learning to be honest with himself so there’s no room for any disingenuous notes. Johnson and company clearly respect the man at the core of the film, eschewing maudlin tones and any sense of saccharine schmaltz. Yet they find moments that well earn their poignancy, like when Anthony finds his groove within that tiny kitchen’s unspoken power dynamic and, later, when conceives of a new dinner menu item.
They organically capture their inspiration’s ethos that food has the power to bring communities together and create kitchen camaraderie. Sequences that soar both in their technical artistry and performances are those that take place in the restaurant’s kitchen. Editors Curt Lobb and Robert Upchurch’s montages gift the picture with a crackling energy. Cinematographer Michael Bauman’s lighting utilizes both cool and warm, golden tones to reflect narrative tonal shifts, occasionally functioning as mood juxtapositions. Nighttime parties also are assigned a nostalgic sheen through his lens, as are outdoorsy beach scenes. Jay McCarrol’s score and the 70s soundtrack selections provide a forceful, grounding soundscape.
That’s not to say the filmmakers lose track of the man’s demons, nor his cantankerous spirit. In fact, they let him gain redemption while still allowing him to be a totally rootable asshole. He snorts coke and misbehaves on the island with his dirtbaggy bestie, in addition to essentially stalking a woman and ingratiating himself to her under the guise of winning the writer’s fellowship prize (a lie he eventually has to answer for). He also struggles with complex feelings about his mom’s treatment of him in relation to his treatment of others in his private life.
Sessa is terrific, as usual. He’s got the swagger and aesthetic appeal of someone in that era. May he never cut his curly locks, nor develop “iPhone face” to maintain these 70s character-driven parts. He understands that the arrogant, narcissistic, caustic nature of this character as written is cloaking someone who’s actually rather vulnerable, shrewd and thoughtful. Banderas gives a heartfelt performance, one of his most subtle and tender. As for the supporting players, Woodall’s work feels deliciously dangerous, teetering on a razor’s edge.
With TONY, Johnson continues his winning streak after knockouts like BLACKBERRY and NIRVANA THE BAND THE SHOW THE MOVIE. The talented filmmaker is ahead of the game in simply exercising creative choices such as not distilling an entire life into a cradle-to-grave biopic. It stands as a fitting tribute to Bourdain, as well as being blessed by a cameo from one of his pals, chef Eric Ripert.
Grade: A
TONY will be in select theaters on August 7 and nationwide on August 21.
