I sit in with NewsTalk 1010 host Jim Richards on the coast-to-coast-to-coast late night “NewsTalk Tonight” to play the game “Did Richard Crouse Like This?” This week we talk about the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
I join “CTV News Toronto at Five” with host Natalie Johnson, to talk about the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Watch the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 14:34)
I join CP24 anchor Andrew Brennan to have a look at the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I join CTV NewsChannel anchor Roger Peterson to talk about the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I joined CP24 Breakfast to have a look at new movies and television shows coming to theatres and streaming services. Today we talk about the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the British police procedural “Criminal Record.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I sit in with CKTB morning show host Tim Denis to have a look at the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
I sit in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with host Bill Carroll to talk the new movies coming to theatres and streaming including the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to cash a cheque! Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the dystopian “The Kitchen,” the 80’s homage “Going In” and the introspective “The Integrity of Joseph Chambers.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
A vivid portrait of an urban dystopia, “The Kitchen,” now streaming on Netflix, is sci fi that sets up a troubling vision of the future, while finding room to emphasize the humanity at the core of the story.
Set in the near future, the story takes place in a dystopian, “Blade Runner-esque” London. The divide between the 1% and everybody else has widened, with the effects of rising home prices, an AI workforce and a dismantled Welfare State turning the city into a playground for the rich, with no regard for people living in poverty.
The last remaining block of social housing, The Kitchen, is a dilapidated set of North London towers and home to hundreds of Black and brown residents. Scheduled to be demolished by the authoritarian government, its inhabitants live in constant fear of their power and water being shut off, or worse, being evicted in a violent police raid.
Izi (Kane Robinson), a funeral home worker whose company, Life After Life, composts the bodies of those who cannot afford a traditional burial, lives in The Kitchen, but has no plans of waiting around to be forced out of his home. Tired of lining up at the communal shower, and uncertainty of life at the crumbling estate, he has an eye on getting out. Saving his cash, he hopes to move into Buena Vida, a glitzy new development far away from The Kitchen.
His life is changed when he meets Benji (Jedaiah Bannerman), a youngster left to his own devices in the wake of his mother’s death. Izi knew the mother, and may, or may not, be the boy’s father. After a rough start, the two bond as Izi offers him a place to stay and steers him away from bad influences that live with the housing project.
As the two become close, Izi asks Benji to move in with him at Buena Vida, but doing so means he will have to reapply for a double occupancy apartment. That means waiting, and spending even more time wrapped in the uncertain embrace of The Kitchen.
“The Kitchen,” written by Daniel Kaluuya (the actor best known for “Get Out,” “Black Panther” and “Judas & The Black Messiah”) and Joe Murtagh, and directed by Kaluuya and Kibwe Tavares, is set in 2040, but feels vital and timely. In an increasingly besieged world, the gap between rich and poor, the breakdown of community and the pressure marginalized communities feel under the thumb of an authoritarian state, as presented in the film, doesn’t feel like sci fiction. It feels more like a humanistic portrait of a community under fire.
It’s not all doom and gloom. The co-directors inject moments of joy with scenes set in a roller disco and a pirate radio voice named Lord Kitchener, played by former Arsenal-and-England footballer Ian Wright, who maintains morale in The Kitchen with music and spiritual advice.
Ultimately, for all its elaborate world building, “The Kitchen” is a personal story. Like most speculative fiction, the background sets the scene, but the meat of the story is anything but speculative. In this case, it is a father and son story that details the pressure and responsibility Izi feels to do the right thing for himself and Benji.
Robinson is effective in portraying Izi’s worldview. The character is aspirational but tethered to his reality, made more complicated by his relationship with Benji. It’s the storyline that grounds the film, and provides the most interesting moments.
“The Kitchen” brims with ideas, but they are sometimes muted by an episodic presentation. Kaluuya and company juggle a great many storylines, but the film works best when it gets up-close-and-personal with Izi and Benji.
