Layal is a bartender from East London. She is hoping that writing reviews for films will help her understand them better, and hopes that someone out there wants to read them.
Layal says...
La Cocina is a kitchen drama, in that it is set almost entirely within a restaurant, but tackles everything from racism to the American Dream.
The film focuses on chef Pedro and his budding relationship with waitress Julia, who is pregnant and contemplating an abortion. Their cartoonishly evil restaurant owner finds out that money has gone missing from the tills, and he orders management to leave no pebble unturned in search of the culprit.
The Grill's kitchen is populated with undocumented immigrants, most essentially imprisoned within their jobs for want of legal documents. These are the people that capitalism – in the microcosm of a mediocre tourist trap – chew and spit out: commentary that's been done before but feels more relevant than ever.
The film is shot mostly in black and white, and occasionally transitions in and out of cool, muted colours. It's a bold choice, but one that director Alonso Ruizpalacios has pulled off. When Pedro and Julia briefly escape for a tryst in the walk-in fridge, we see them bathed in clinical blue lighting. And during the lunch hour rush, we see the ticket machine that prints off endless tickets of chicken marsala, pizzas and lobster glow green, the only colour in the kitchen.
The message the film is trying to make sometimes gets obscured in the theatricality of it all. Regardless, this is a film that will feel painfully familiar to those who have worked in hospitality and is a notable contribution to the kitchen drama genre.
Luca, 23
A self-proclaimed cinephile, Luca is constantly seeking out new films to devour, analyzing every frame for its artistic and narrative brilliance. Their love for storytelling extends beyond just watching movies – they delight in dissecting them and discussing their themes with fellow movie lovers. With an eye for detail and a knack for uncovering hidden gems, they aim to bring fresh perspective to film reviews.
Luca says...
Regardless of its monochromatic style, La Cocina is not afraid of showing the viewer that colour matters. In a high paced environment, we see the divide between 'them' and 'us', representing the experiences of immigrants and people of colour in the US at a time of elevated political turmoil. This is physically represented: the kitchen staff, largely people of colour, work behind closed doors, with shouting being the dish of the day. Front of house, we have mostly white, American women, with the backdrop of classical music and entitled customers. I could write a whole review about the cinematography itself, including beautiful camera work focusing on each character as they spoke, or shots from the characters' point of view that made me feel like I was in the room with them.
I found the whole cast to be incredible, starting from the perspective of Estela (Anna Diaz), a young Mexican woman trying to find her way in a not-so-tolerant crowd, before leading to Pedro (Raul Briones, who is nothing short of spectacular), a seemingly personable, almost arrogant guy who bleeds just like everyone else. As an immigrant myself, I found this film incredibly moving and so human. Whether you have been in their shoes or not, you cannot help but see life from these different perspectives – it is often easy to see cinema as fiction, but I believe La Cocina has the power to show a whole new audience the reality of sacrifice.
