Shadows on the Wall

Tony

dir Matt Johnson
scr Todd Bartels, Lou Howe, Matt Johnson, Matthew Miller
prd Matt Johnson, Matthew Miller, Tim White, Trevor White
with Dominic Sessa, Antonio Banderas, Emilia Jones, Leo Woodall, Stavros Halkias, Michael Jibrin, Monica Raymund, Rich Sommer, Dagmara Dominczyk, Liam Fitch, Caroline Portu, Joe Burns
release US 7.Aug.26,
UK 14.Aug.26
26/US A24 1h46

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Because it's based on only a few months from the life of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, this film never feels like a biopic. Instead, it's the engaging story of an over-confident young man only beginning to discover that his careless rule-breaking and rabble-rousing aren't getting him anywhere. Director Matt Johnson grounds the story beautifully in earthy settings and realistically messy characters who are likeable even when they're awful.

In the summer of 1975, Tony (Sessa) doesn't get his anticipated writing fellowship, so he impulsively heads to Provincetown to find Nancy (Jones), whom he had a crush on in school. To be allowed to sleep in hammock on a beachfront porch, he takes a job washing dishes for a seafood shack chef (Banderas), working alongside the womanising Sal (Woodall). When he meets Nancy, Tony tells her he's here as a writer. His lies become increasingly entangled, along with various troublemaking adventures with Sal. But Tony also has some cool new ideas for the restaurant.

Intriguingly, Tony remains resolutely focussed on his trajectory to become a writer, spinning fanciful stories of his successes and planning to return to Vassar in the autumn. The culinary world seems to sneak up on him, playing to strengths he doesn't know he has. This adds subtext to terrific scenes between Tony and this veteran chef. And it captures our imagination too, pulling us into the story no matter how much we try to resist it.

Indeed, everyone on-screen has an abrasive quality that initially puts us off. Sessa is wonderful as the impulsive, delusional Tony, a bratty genius who seems intent on derailing his entire life. But we can see his intelligent charm too. So his interaction is complex and entertainingly fizzy, from his offhanded mentorship with the seriously superb Banders to his uneven courtship of Jones' way-out-of-his-league Nancy and his friendship with Woodall's cheeky loose-cannon Sal.

This is the fascinating story of a teen discovering himself through a series of challenges and opportunities. Thankfully the filmmakers avoid spending much time on soul-searching or lesson-learning, which makes everything feel much more grounded and honest. They also leave the first-rate period details in the background where they belong, finding resonance in the universality of the situations. As a result, the film is thoroughly satisfying for what it is, even as it leaves us wanting to know more about Bourdain's singular journey.

themes, language, violence, sexuality 4.Aug.26

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