The Kitchen Brigade Review – Heartfelt French Cooking Comedy Shows Migrants The Ropes

Sticky, ace saccharine and messy arsenic nan remains of a smashed vessel of Cointreau, this drama play came retired successful its autochthonal France successful 2022 and is only now making its measurement to nan UK. But moreover those fewer years connected nan support person near it emotion uncomfortably retired of touch pinch nan urgency of nan times erstwhile it comes to nan measurement it handles nan plight of young immigrants who facing expanding levels of hostility some successful France itself and crossed nan world pinch nan emergence of far-right activists.

In Kitchen Brigade’s universe, almost each a bunch of undocumented teenagers request to thief them get time off to stay is simply a white-saviour lady; successful this lawsuit it is cook Cathy (Audrey Lamy), who comes to activity astatine a exile centre aft she abruptly quits her occupation astatine a salient high-end restaurant. In attraction herself arsenic a child, Cathy doesn’t for illustration authority overmuch it seems (unless she’s nan 1 successful charge), but she needs nan work. The centre’s different 2 saintly achromatic people, head Lorenzo (François Cluzet) and coach Sabine (Chantal Neuwirth), guideline Cathy to beryllium much knowing of nan hardship nan (mostly) achromatic kids person been done to make it to France. Soon, she’s school them really to chop shallots and man their stations successful nan French brigade system, which it’s worthy pointing retired is derived from subject guidance systems and contains a benignant of systematised building of abuse.

The young actors who play Cathy’s charges (who are mostly from Africa) are charismatic performers, particularly Yannick Kalombo arsenic GusGus and Mamadou Koita arsenic aspiring footballer Djibril, but they hardly get much than a fewer lines and speedy scenes to capable retired their personalities, compared pinch nan French characters. Then abruptly nan movie transitions into a meta commentary connected TV reality shows arsenic Cathy enters a competition, involving nan leader she insulted erstwhile she discontinue her occupation astatine nan start, to triumph a prize and get thief mounting up a certificate for school nan kids. The full point is conscionable a spot off, moreover though it’s difficult to quarrel excessively overmuch pinch nan pro-immigrant message.