When three Irish mobsters are put behind bars for three years, their wives are left in a financial trouble when the new head of the gang refuses to give them money to support themselves. The three woman, Kathy, Ruby, and Claire, decide to form their own organization where local businesses of Hell's Kitchen respect them for their commitments to the community and the protection that they receive from them. Eventually, they take over the Irish mob and start an empire that may or may not fall apart like others have done before. The film does have some neat elements in the story. Certain characters and story elements go in different directions that could either be predictable or out of the blue. To be honest, I was somewhat engaged in the film, unlike the many critics that have panned the film. I won't say that the story is perfect though. Certain motifs in mobster flicks show in the film and some things could have been more elaborated. The narrative is also at a slow pace, which would be fine if the film allows it breath, but the runtime forces the narrative to fasten the pace despite the story itself is designed to be slow in the first place. Imagine "Goodfellas" for example, but instead of a two and a half hour runtime, try an hour and a half to deliver the story. I feel that if the film was more than 2 hours, the script could have been a bit more fleshed out and wouldn't have been a tad messy in areas.
If there is one thing that even the critics have to agree on, it's that the leading stars are acting their hearts out. Melissa McCarthy as Kathy is the central protagonist and is the most relatable, since she has a family to take care of, and tries to be on good terms with her father and husband. McCarthy is putting on a much more subdued performance compared to her type-casted roles. She's not a goofball, but she isn't a bossy hardass. She plays Kathy like a real person. Tiffany Haddish plays Ruby, who isn't popular in the community, since she is a black woman that is looked down upon from the crime family, particularly her mother-in-law. Haddish sells off this underdog that has a bitterness and sort of becomes this aggressive negotiator due to her status as the only non-Irish, black woman in the gang. Elizabeth Moss plays Claire, who is a women who has always been weak and unable to defend herself from her abusers, eventually growing to become an enforcer and a hard-earned criminal with her new lover. Outside of the main cast, there is really not much to talk about for side characters. I will say that outside of Kathy's husband, most of the characters are unlikeable, which to be fair is not a huge issue, since they are criminals to begin with. A problem that many critics are having with the film is whether or not the main characters are likeable and worth following through their journey. I would say that for the case of Kathy, yes. Claire as well since you do want her to evolve into more than a victim and find someone that loves her truly, despite her violent and bitter evolution. Ruby on the other hand can be seen as the most unlikeable central character in the film, since she does some questionable things in the film in order to achieve her power and finances. True, she did earn it to an extent, but she does become more unlikeable as the film goes on. So as far as characters go, Kathy is the most likeable and more fleshed out, which is helped by McCarthy's performance.
The film was the directorial debut of Andrea Berloff, an acclaimed screenwriter, who I have to say that there are some things that I feel that she did well and did terribly in the director's chair. The lighting, cinematography, and production design really sells you into being transported in 1970's New York. It's not the most visually pleasing film as there's not a lot of colour being shown, but that's just the visual style for the setting. The film is a gritty tale in New York, hence the washed-out dirty visual eye. So, Berloff did a great job nailing the atmosphere and visual feel. I also like the songs that were included in the film, which were appropriate in the time period. However, the editing is very poor. Scenes end out of nowhere and feel that there were a cut a bit too soon, which conflicts with the slow pace of the film. The editing can work in some sequences, but most of the time when the film is focused on the characters, the editing has no direction at all. Another thing that I feel hurt the film was the ending. I won't spoil it, but it basically comes out of nowhere. Mostly because the scene that the movie ends on feels nothing like the ending at all. It felt like the climax rather than an ending, as if the movie just wanted to be over as soon as it could have once the actions were in place. I will just say that showing the scene out of context and removing the end credits would convince you that the scene is not the ending of the film at all, but it strangely is. I can't tell you the specifics of the ending, since the film just came out and you could still be interested in watching the film, but I will say that it caught me off guard in the theatre.
Overall, "The Kitchen" isn't a terrible film or nearly as bad as critics make it out to be. Does that make it a great movie? Not really. It's decent at best in my opinion. The film has an extremely strong cast of actors and an engaging story, but most of the characters are not really likeable (though it is by design), the editing, the pacing of the narrative, and the ending are pretty big issues. I should also point out if this is a good woman-empowerment film, which many disagree with, since the females are doing criminal acts. I would still say yes to a certain degree, since you understand the dilemmas and choices the characters make in the film. Now, does that mean Claire and Ruby are good role models? Of course not. But, you still see the injustice the women go through that you do want them to become in charge of things, which makes the film work as a female empowerment film in my opinion. At the end of the day, I'm not pushing you out to see the movie, but if you are interested in it at least, I would still say it's worth at least a viewing to appreciate the qualities it has.
Verdict: 6/10. Not the worst film you can watch this summer, but only watch for the actors, visual flair, and the few unique story elements if you don't have plans to watch anything else.
Needs more time in the oven. Awesome.
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