A new deleted scene from The Menu has been released, diving deeper into the mysterious Chef Slowik’s backstory. The satirical horror-thriller sees a food lover Tyler (Nicholas Hoult) and his unexpected guest Margot (Anya Taylor-Joy) take a trip to a private island for a world-class fancy meal prepared by the high-class culinary master, Chef Slowik (Ralph Fiennes). Directed by Mark Mylod, the film quickly created buzz for its combination of hilarity, horror, and social commentary. Despite a generally weak season for indie films at the box office, The Menu scored a strong $71.4 million during its theatrical run.
A new deleted scene from The Menu shared by ComingSoon.net reveals more of Chef Slowik’s backstory. The scene shows food critic Lillian (Janet McTeer) telling the other dinner guests in The Menu a story about Slowik. She tells them that when Slowik was at the top of his game, he vanished from his restaurant and the public eye. Being a fan of the chef, Lillian tried to hunt him down but found no success. Three years later, Lillian says, she found Slowik in a Korean Taco food truck in Portland and wrote an article about him. The profile led to a foodie investor offering him a private island for his restaurant. Check out the full deleted scene below:
The dinner get-together appears at first to be a harmless party among pompous foodies, but throughout The Menu, the sinister nature of Chef Slowik and many of the guests comes to the forefront. Julian Slowik is a famous chef who packages his cuisine as a full-on experience for the wealthy who can afford it. The Menu has commentary on foodie culture, and much of that is through Slowik’s hatred for those involved with overcomplicating simple foods. Slowik has grown weary of vapid socialites and elites, who he says in the film have ruined his love and passion for food.
Slowik’s disdain grows to the point that he invites some of the worst offenders to his island restaurant with plans of killing them all. His cruel yet admittedly satisfying statement against the bourgeoisie is coated in theatrics and trickery. It’s yet another stellar performance from Ralph Fiennes in a dark and twisted role. His retribution against his dinner guests is seeded in deep hatred, and the only customer allowed to leave the island at the end of the meal is Taylor-Joy’s most recent horror character, Margot. Margot wasn’t supposed to be there, as she isn’t a rich member of the upper class who engages in the same pretentious food practices. Her grounded personality earns Slowik’s respect.
As entertaining as it is to see even more pretentious rambling from Slowik’s dinner guests alongside Nicholas Hoult’s comedic timing, it was the right decision to cut the scene from the film. This scene occurs in an early act, well before the many twists and turns of the island take place. Lillian’s story is subtle, but it suggests Slowik is intentionally removing himself from the spotlight cast upon him by critics and journalists like her. With the scene removed from The Menu, the reveal of Slowik’s true intentions is more impactful and his character remains shrouded in mystery for a little longer.
Source: ComingSoon.net