By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4.75 cats
Director: Morgan Neville
Country: united_states
Year: 2021
Running time: 118
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14513892/reference
Vicki says: “ROADRUNNER is Morgan Neville’s slightly long, but otherwise raw and superb documentary about the late chef/writer, Anthony Bourdain. Bourdain tragically committed suicide in 2018 at age 61. Luckily, the film does not dwell on this at all, except to give his friends and family a voice to tell how difficult and moody Bourdain could be and to say how much they missed him.
“Bourdain lived on the edge. He was always pushing the envelope such as when he published Kitchen Confidential in 2000. This was a turning point in his career. He was no longer the executive chef at Les Halles and became a larger than life media persona. The footage from his travels and television programs is extensive, but well edited and it definitely paints a portrait of the man who was Anthony Bourdain, a magnificent personality who refused to censor himself or to reign himself in. ROADRUNNER does him justice and is well worth seeing even if you were no a fan. 4.5 cats
“Screened at Tribeca Festival 2021”
Diane says: “5 cats from me for this doc about chef and writer Anthony Bourdain. Bourdain felt a lot of pressure to establish a persona, and to figure out what happiness would mean for him. Shot over a year a couple years after his suicide, film provides a great arc, with footage from his long-running TV show and well-edited clips of interviews with close friends and TV colleagues. Little hesitation to psychoanalyze Bourdain after the fact, which made me squirm a bit, but the result is worth it. His final girlfriend is notably absent from interviews.