Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Burnt Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 26, 2016

Not every great work of art hangs in a museum, projects on a screen, or flows from speakers. Every day, around the world, great works of art -- delicately, assuredly assembled by masters -- literally go in one and, a bit later on, out the other. Top-end food is the most fleeting and in some ways fungible of the world's masterpieces, yet the dedication to the craft, the artistry behind the construction, and the skill required to get it all just right -- from the presentation on the plate to its power on the palate -- is the result of not only years of training and, obviously, a love for the art form but also the trust in others to harvest the best ingredients, mold the finest cookware, and create the perfect environment in which to consume the end product. That's no easy task, but add in a chef's innate drive and the demands of the job and the recipe is set for greatness with a sprinkling chance of disaster, which, in that regard, doesn't really set him or her apart from any of the world's other great artists. Director John Wells' (August: Osage County) Burnt tells the story of a master chef on the road to redemption and hungry to prove his worth to his critics, both those who critique for a living and those who said he had no chance to ever return, successfully, to what he loves most: the kitchen.

The chef.

Adam Jones (Bradley Cooper) has always loved the art of food. He spent ten years learning under one of Paris' top chefs and himself became a renowned man of fine cuisine. But he didn't always make the right choices in life and threw it all away. He chose to shuck oysters -- one million, precisely -- in New Orleans as self-inflicted punishment and has deemed himself ready to return to the art of cooking. But rather than return to Paris, he settles in London where he finagles his way to top chef status at the prestigious Langhams where he works with former colleague Tony (Daniel Brühl), the restaurant's manager. Adam assembles a crew of old acquaintances and co-workers (Omar Sy, Riccardo Scamarcio) and new hires (Sienna Miller) in hopes of elevating the restaurant's prestige and earning himself the coveted three-star review from the famed Michelin food critics.

Burnt strives to tell a story that creates a parallel between the working philosophy in the high-end kitchen and the philosophy of life. Throughout the film, Adam Jones learns to appreciate more than the vulgar hustle-and-bustle quest for perfection in the kitchen as he strives to rearrange his life, though it will take more than a few bad dishes to really sell him on the idea that he's had it wrong all along. But the movie runs into trouble when it becomes clear, beyond the fascinating din and haze of the hectic master at work and the kitchen operating at warp speed, that Burnt never really has anything new to say. The movie paints a fascinatingly intimate portrait of how things work behind the scenes in a top restaurant, but it's supported by fairly empty drama and predictable character arcs, minus a fairly shocking surprise in the final act that's regrettably cancelled out soon thereafter and, handled differently, could have offered a more honest look at the relative meaning of personal success and failure set against the professional backdrop. Indeed, the movie leaves a bitter taste when it takes the easy way out for Jones and Langham's, a disappointing audience friendly finale that betrays all the hard work the movie committed to building towards a greater character epiphany.

Even before that time, however, Burnt never truly sets its character up for a serious bit of life reversal. Jones' past is more an idea than it is a tangible concept the audience can deeply appreciate and understand, and his path to redemption is never given any serious thought beyond the moment and the broadest of story directions. Make no mistake, Bradley Cooper is brilliant in the part and delivers a performance worthy of a more deeply singed character. His ability to transmit his ferocious approach in the kitchen, to feel completely natural within its operations, and demonstrate an encyclopedic yet nuanced and personal approach to food, its preparation, and its presentation is beyond reproach. Yet he cannot adequately construct that deeper personal depth beyond the inner workings of the kitchen because it's all made of cheaper ingredients that lack the palatable texture and fail to provide a deeply filling satisfaction. The movie gets by, and proves fairly enjoyable, on its surface, but it cannot compliment its delights with a delicacy worthy of the amazing appetizers it has on menu.

Burnt Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Burnt's digitally sourced 1080p transfer satisfies across the board. The image is clean and comes effortlessly detailed. It finds a nice balance between digital flat and film deep. Facial detail is robust and complex features come through easily. Pores, hair, textured foods, clean lines around the kitchen and dining areas, and some of the rougher brick, stone, and concrete details around London exteriors present with attractive sharpness. Colors are extravagant. Bradley Cooper's blue eyes pierce every scene and raw food ingredients -- all sorts of reds, oranges, yellows, and greens -- distinctly contrast with the kitchen's smoother silver and white areas and accents and darker cookware. Black levels raise no alarms and flesh tones are full and healthy. Light banding appears in spots and moderate noise lingers throughout but other maladies range from nonexistent to hardly a problem. This is an attractive transfer from Anchor Bay.

Burnt Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Burnt may not scorch sound systems, but the track offers some unique sonic flavors to satisfy the ears. This is a dialogue-driven film that presents the spoken word with clean definition and precise center placement, but there are more than a few sonic treats to enjoy. General restaurant atmospherics are nicely filling. The dining room's more reserved ambience sets a delicate scene that nicely, yet sharply, contrasts with the much more aggressively hectic kitchen area where clanking pans, bustling cooks, sizzling entrees, and other bits of kitchen wonder flood the listening area and offer a more pronounced and fuller stage envelopment. Other effects like light city exterior details, driving rain in chapter five, a throaty motorcycle rev, or a bustling Burger King restaurant will win over listeners with well rounded and exacting details. A few discrete and directional details are to be enjoyed when tempers flare and objects are tossed about the stage.

Burnt Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Burnt contains a standard foursome of extras: commentary, deleted scenes, featurette, and Q&A. A voucher for a UV digital copy is included with purchase.

• Audio Commentary: Director John Wells and Executive Chef Consultant Marcus Wareing offer a nice mix of technical filmmaking details, researching the kitchen, cast and performances, shooting locations, and culinary insights both in the real world and as they pertain to making the film as authentic as possible.
• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Breakfast of Champs (2:56), Drugging the Food Critic (1:18), Thanks for Dining at the Langham (1:34), Helene's Ex (2:30), and Cooking at Helene's (1:43). With optional John Wells commentary.
• Burnt: In the Kitchen with Bradley Cooper (1080p, 23:51): A look at the lead and supportive characters, story details, operating in a real kitchen, Chef Marcus Wareing's contributions to the film, actor performances, cast humorously discussing how to boil an egg, and more.
• Q&A Highlights with Director & Cast (1080p, 23:45): Highlights from the Screen Actors Guild Q&A from Los Angeles on October 11, 2015 featuring Fandango's Dave Karger and Burnt's Bradley Cooper, the NYC Wine & Food Festival on October 18, 2015 with the New York Times' Frank Bruni and Burnt's John Wells and key cast, and the SAG Foundation Q&A on October 18, 2015 with Moderator Jessica Shaw and key cast from Burnt.

Burnt Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Burnt is an enjoyable movie that's extraordinarily well done on the surface but still a little too raw on the inside. It offers an absolutely delightful look inside one of the world's top kitchens but a fairly hollow examination of the man in the middle of the culinary mayhem. Most of the movie's hard work is betrayed by an easy way out following a transformative moment, killing the momentum of the scene and most of the film. Otherwise, Cooper and his co-stars -- particularly Daniel Brühl and Omar Sy -- are terrific and believable, at least around the kitchen. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of Burnt does feature fine video and audio. Supplements are average in both quality and quantity. Worth a look.