Tony
- Ben Pivoz
- 1 minute ago
- 3 min read
Anthony Bourdain is a fascinating personality in popular culture. A respected chef turned memoirist/food writer, his blunt, entertaining opinions, as well as his candid discussions about his personal issues, made him endearing. He sadly took his own life eight years ago. The biopic Tony takes us to the beginning of Bourdain’s journey, when he was an aspiring writer looking to talk his way into a fellowship. It shows us a seriously flawed, aimless, arrogant kid, who uses big words to seem smart to everyone he comes across. He needs to be humbled in a major way before he can move forward. This is his origin story.
The screenplay doesn’t soften him or even try to make him particularly likable. He’s a jerk who will need to learn his lesson more than once. The fact that we want him to succeed is partially because we know who he becomes and partially thanks to a fantastic performance from Dominic Sessa in the title role (one that will definitely garner award buzz in a few months). He is charismatic and quick-witted, almost as a way to distract people from how hollow he is. This is how he found himself. Tony (101 minutes, minus the end credits) doesn’t hammer its audience with meaning or heavy moments. It allows us to watch as Tony slowly discovers his truth. It is well-made, honest and entertaining. It feels like other biopics, except in the way it takes on the personality of its subject. That is its strength.
Tony tells everyone he is a writer about to get a fellowship. When that doesn’t go his way, he lies, then follows his dream girl to Provincetown and starts working in a restaurant in exchange for a place to sleep. That experience opens his eyes, forcing him to confront the real him.
It is the scenes in the restaurant that set Tony apart. When he stops and allows life to come to him, rather than forcing himself on life. The man who runs the small seafood restaurant on the water that a dejected Tony wanders into is referred to only as Chef. He isn’t some all-knowing Buddha-type; he is a kind man who enjoys what he does and sees a wayward soul he can gently steer in the right direction. While he has a couple of speeches, he mostly does this by pushing Tony, getting him to work. He believes Tony just needs to wake up (literally and figuratively). That this is the kind of experience that will mature him. Gradually, Tony sees that he is right.
Chef is played by Antonio Banderas as a man who takes pride in his work, even in a fast-food shack in a tourist spot. That is his purpose. He helps this annoying kid because it is the right thing to do. His faith, something that is extremely important to him, guides him. Tony, as played by Dominic Sessa, is all put-ons to convince people he is a big deal. This mostly makes them stay away. Is he really as full of himself as he seems? Chef doesn’t think so. This summer is what proves to Tony that he will have to work hard to find his path.
Director/cowriter Matt Johnson, primarily known as a comedian, previously made the docudrama Blackberry, about the rise and fall of the men who created the Blackberry phone. That had some humor in it. Tony has very little. Certainly, Anthony Bourdain doesn’t think any of this is funny. Johnson shows here he can make straight, unpretentious, drama. He doesn’t position this as the story of a “great man.” It is the story of an immature kid and the summer that caused him to see the beauty of the world. If he later became famous and dealt with mental health struggles, that is a different story.
It is a good movie in large part because it doesn’t try to put profound meaning on a small segment of a man’s life. Fans of Anthony Bourdain will find much to like here, yet so will people who know nothing about him. It is simple, enjoyable and has a great performance at its center.
3¾ out of 5
Cast:
Dominic Sessa as Tony
Antonio Banderas as Chef
Emilia Jones as Nancy
Leo Woodall as Sal
Directed by Matt Johnson
Written by Todd Bartels, Lou Howe, Matt Johnson and Matthew Miller
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