Close Menu
  • Login
  • Support Us
  • Newsletter
  • News
  • Features
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
    • Video Games
      • Previews
      • PC
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X/S
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Xbox One
      • PS4
      • Tabletop
    • Film
    • TV
    • Anime
    • Comics
      • BOOM! Studios
      • Dark Horse Comics
      • DC Comics
      • IDW Publishing
      • Image Comics
      • Indie Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • Oni-Lion Forge
      • Valiant Comics
      • Vault Comics
  • Podcast
  • More
    • Event Coverage
    • BWT Recommends
    • RSS Feeds
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Support Us
But Why Tho?
RSS Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube
Trending:
  • Features
    Momo and Okarun share a close moment in Dandadan

    Momo And Okarun: The Gold Standard For Shonen Romance

    07/03/2025
    Ironheart Episodes 4 6 But Why Tho 1

    ‘Ironheart’ Explained: Explore MCU’s Bold New Chapter

    07/01/2025
    Buck in 9-1-1

    ‘9-1-1’ Has To Let Buck Say Bisexual

    06/29/2025
    Nintendo Welcome Tour promotional image of the maraca mini-game

    The One “Game” That Justifies The Nintendo Switch 2 Purchase

    06/25/2025
    Destiel Confession in Supernatural - Castiel (Misha Collins) and Dean (Jensen Ackles)

    The Destiel Confession: The Lasting Importance Of Supernatural’s Greatest Ship

    06/22/2025
  • Squid Game
  • K-Dramas
  • Netflix
  • Switch 2 Games
  • Summer Game Fest
But Why Tho?
Home » Film » FANTASTIC FEST 2022: ‘The Menu’ is Aggressive, Unrelenting, and Hilarious

FANTASTIC FEST 2022: ‘The Menu’ is Aggressive, Unrelenting, and Hilarious

Kate SánchezBy Kate Sánchez09/24/20223 Mins ReadUpdated:12/10/2022
The Menu - But Why Tho
Share
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email

The Menu - But Why Tho

This is going to be a short and sweet review of The Menu because even the trailer gives away too much. Instead of some deep analysis of the film, I just want to tell you to watch it because the surprises here are better than anything I can write about it.

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

Directed by Mark Mylod and written by Seth Reiss & Will Tracy, The Menu stars Ralph Fiennes, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, John Leguizamo, Hong Chau, Janet McTeer, Arturo Castro, and Judith Light. In it, Margot (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Tyler (Nicholas Hoult) are a young couple traveling to a coastal island to eat at an exclusive restaurant called Hawthorne. The culmination of Chef Slowik’s (Ralph Fiennes) work, the lavish dinner he has planned is fine dining with a lesson. 

Ralph Fiennes is the man that The Menu revolves around in more ways than one. Narratively, it’s his menu that the rich find themselves trapped in and his orders that the sous chefs follow. But also visually, Fiennes finds himself at the center of shots, and your eyes are pulled directly to him, glued in place when he speaks. Additionally, his deadpan delivery of jokes helps push the film’s humor to rights I didn’t expect. Moments of comedy delivered with gravitas allow them to get a belly laugh for the crowd, followed by an “oh.”

But Fiennes’ talent for comedy doesn’t negate the darkness that permeates every course. Retribution is served hot, cold, and deconstructed, every moment has an element of dread hiding under comedic timing that pushes The Menu to stand out from other films this year.

To be honest, I expected The Menu to begin to pull its punches, to somehow make the rich assholes in the room at least a little redeemable. It doesn’t. The Menu isn’t just a scathing critique of the rich who do nothing but consume and beckon others to serve them, it’s an unrelenting cathartic punishment of the takers by those who have been tasked to give. It’s righteous meanness that absolutely works.

In addition to fantastic acting and a tight script, the film also features beautiful shots of food, pulling out elements of The Chef’s Table, to highlight each of the seven dishes being served in the meal. This showcases the food while also allowing the audience moments to breathe and laugh as they take stock of the way the dishes have been described. By pulling the food to the forefront, we get to see the art that will lose its meaning once the rich unhinge their jaws to consume it. Chef Slowik’s menu comes from the last embers of a burned-out man who has had the joy he once felt pulled from him repeatedly by selfish and entitled diners.

While it’s easy to just think The Menu is skewering foodies, it isn’t. It’s raking an entire class of people over the coals over and over again until you realize it. It’s about those who take and those who give. It’s about the consumption of art and how it once digested becomes shit. There is no middle ground in The Menu, no pleas of ignorance, and that’s why it works.

Easily one of the best films of the year, The Menu manages to be just as hilarious as it is aggressive. The laughs help the critique go down well and show that satire doesn’t need to be subtle, but can rather blow a door open and still succeed. Sharp, cruel, and cathartic, The Menu is sublime.

The Menu screened as a part of Fantastic Fest 2022’s programming and is playing in theaters.

The Menu
  • 9.5/10
    Rating - 9.5/10
9.5/10

TL;DR

Easily one of the best films of the year, The Menu manages to be just as hilarious as it is aggressive and that’s why it works. The laughs help the critique go down well and shows that satire doesn’t need to just be subtle, but can rather blow a door open and still succeed. Sharp, cruel, and cathartic, The Menu is sublime.

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email
Previous ArticleREVIEW: ‘HUNT’ Is A Thrilling Directorial Debut
Next Article FANTASTIC FEST 2022: ‘Project Wolf Hunting’ Cranks the Violence Up to 11
Kate Sánchez
  • Website
  • X (Twitter)
  • Instagram

Kate Sánchez is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of But Why Tho? A Geek Community. There, she coordinates film, television, anime, and manga coverage. Kate is also a freelance journalist writing features on video games, anime, and film. Her focus as a critic is championing animation and international films and television series for inclusion in awards cycles. Find her on Bluesky @ohmymithrandir.bsky.social

Related Posts

The Old Guard 2
5.5

REVIEW: ‘The Old Guard 2’ Is Distracted And Half-Baked

07/02/2025
Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey in Jurassic World: Rebirth
5.5

REVIEW: ‘Jurassic World: Rebirth’ Is Best When Nobody Is Talking

06/30/2025
MEGAN 2.0 promotional image
7.0

REVIEW: ‘M3GAN 2.0’ Puts Action First

06/29/2025
F1 (2025) promotional key art
8.0

REVIEW: ‘F1’ Is A High-Octane Blockbuster

06/24/2025
KPop Demon Hunters Promotional image form Netflix
9.0

REVIEW: ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Brings Beautiful Animation And An Even Better Message

06/20/2025
Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Alfie Williams in 28 Years Later
8.5

REVIEW: ’28 Years Later’ Is How Franchises Should Return

06/18/2025

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here
TRENDING POSTS
Taecyeon and Seohyun in The First Night With The Duke Episodes 7-8
7.5
TV

REVIEW: ‘The First Night With The Duke’ Episodes 7-8

By Sarah Musnicky07/03/2025

The First Night With The Duke Episodes 7-8 spends welcome time in pre-domestic bliss before new developments stir up trouble.

Together (2025) still from Sundance
8.0
Film

REVIEW: Have A Grossly Good Time ‘Together’

By Kate Sánchez01/27/2025Updated:07/04/2025

Dave Franco and Alison Brie’s Together (2025) is disgustingly funny, genuinely ugly, and just a good time at the movies.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 and 4 Alcatraz
9.0
PS5

REVIEW: ‘Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 + 4’ Gives Old Games New Life

By Kyle Foley07/07/2025

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and 4 is another example of how to breathe new life into a classic without losing touch of what makes the originals great.

Black Women Anime — But Why Tho (9) BWT Recommends

10 Black Women in Anime That Made Me Feel Seen

By LaNeysha Campbell11/11/2023Updated:12/03/2024

Black women are some of anime’s most iconic characters, and that has a big impact on Black anime fans. Here are some of our favorites.

But Why Tho?
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest RSS YouTube Twitch
  • CONTACT US
  • ABOUT US
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
  • Review Score Guide
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small contribution.
Written Content is Copyright © 2025 But Why Tho? A Geek Community

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

But Why Tho Logo

Support Us!

We're able to keep making content thanks to readers like YOU!
Support independent media today with
Click Here