Customer Reviews

Restaurant

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I would have given it five stars, but in some spots the movie went off base. It is generally an excellent film. The entire cast fit their roles perfectly. Elise Neal and Adrien Brody were the perfect couple. Malcolm Jamal Warner was pretty impressive himself. This film was humorous, charming and sensuous. The director did an excellent job. At times I felt like I was actually in the restaurant with the cast. Rarely do you see a film that incoporates real life situations with a flawless script. One of the most believable films I've ever seen. A great cast, excellent script, and pleasing acting. You can't get better than Restaurant these days.

This heart-wrenching drama focuses on aspiring writer Chris Calloway, played soulfully by Adrien Brody. His past love with an African-American women, played by the exquisitely beautiful Lauryn Hill, haunts his present life, interfering with his artistic creativity, friendships, and current lover. Shadows of racism hinder his ability to truthfully love, truthfully write, and truthfully live.

As we watch Chris and his friends pinball between the things they want to do, and the things they need to do, we begin to relive our own painful experiences in the field of love.

Tensions rise as Chris grasps to make decisions that will forever affect his happiness, for better, and for worse.

Adrien Brody, Elise Neal, Simon Baker, & Lauryn Hill give memorable performances.

I'm not big on indie film but for some reason i notice this one when it was avalaible to rent through pay-per-view. it is a movie i really took time to understand the characters i thought the story was engaging..and of course the racial issIt was one ues was handle i guess the best way they could considering that it was shot back in 1998. The movie is full with fresh talent. I got to give it up to Adrian Brody an excellent actor i've seen him briefly in a movie called Liberty Heights but didn't think much about it until i saw his face. Elise Neal was pretty good along with Simon Baker. My only regret about this film is i wished they had elaborate the relationship with Brody character(Chris) and Lauryn Hill(Leslie) more in depth i felt there was so much to this story and can i say even though Hill wasn't there as much as i wish her charisma was bursting out all over the screen for the moments she shared with Brody character. Not too mention she was absoulutely glowing... Overal it is a great film one that i don't mine adding in my DVD collection.

Bought for only $1.00 at Wal-Mart. Was expecting a poorly made independent film, but was pleasantly surprised by this film. Part romance, mix in a little comedy, a little racial tension and a stellar cast, and you get a good story that is completely watchable and believable. I especially like that the movie ended with the romantic leads going their separate ways, possibly to reunite later. Added a realistic touch.

This was probably the movie before some of these actors hit the big time. Nicely done.

I am a great fan of Simon Baker. He is so good at seemingly actually becoming the person he portrays. So many actors just portray themselves, although they can be quite good at that. This is one of Baker's earlier films when he was still calling himself Simon Baker-Denny. It's a small part but he carries it off so well! Beyond that, the story is really interesting, with excellent performances throughout. It is kind of a shock to see the views of the New York skyline with the World Trade Center towers still intact. A sad reminder of the destruction to come. I rated this at 4 stars only because there wasn't enough of Simon Baker's character for me, although it was enough for the story. I could spend the entire time just watching Baker watch paint dry. Sheesh! he's good!

This movie was editted, but I got the jest of the director's point of view. The movie centers around Adrien Body's character who has just been dumped. He is a beginning screenplay writer who works at a restaurant to pay the bills until he is successful. All the character's work at the restaurant. They vary in races and the premise is how they get along with each other.

They movie is okay. I love Adrien Brody, so it was no big deal to watch him. He is a great actor and this role fit him. Elise Neal did a great job as a aspiring singer and his love interest. They movie was good, but not great. It lacked something, that I can' quite put my finger on. It had enough stars with Simon Baker, Lauryn Hill, Brody, and Neal, but something was missing. It is a movie I will watch again.

Don't they just seem to have more flava :~). Well in my opinion, this no different. This well rounded cast makes for a nice ensemble in a resteraunt setting. It is really neat to see how each of the primary characters deal with their aspirations, hidden demons and lost loves.

Adrian Brody is really good in this movie. He plays his characters complexities very well. I would really like to see him in more upcoming movies. Malcolm Jamal-Warner is great as well as Elise Freeman. It is definitely worth a look-see. Again, I am a sucker for a good independent film, so you may say I am biased ;~). See it for yourself and you be the judge.

I love Indy films and try to support them whenever I can. I heard about this film after it showed at an Indy fest in New York. The reviews I read were good, so when it was released on DVD I bought it. Now, I am selling it. This film was very disappointing as it raised provocative issues, but basically glossed over them. The racial issues in the restaurant weren't thoroughly explored. Also, the character development of the workers was lacking. Interesting characters were introduced but never fully developed. The director and writer seemed to be going for the sappy, PC slant and that ruined what could have been a thought provoking, honest view of the complexity of racial issues in modern society. Another thing worth noting is that several scenes and lines of dialogue were edited out [deleted] from the DVD version of this film. The extras include deleted scenes but not the specific scenes of which I am speaking. One of the main reasons I purchased the DVD was because of the scene between Chris [Brody] and Leslie [Hill], but several lines of that scene were deleted. The director's commentary even states that they wanted to make the theme more human and less black and white or racial. It is obvious that this was their intent and it ruined the film. The final scene is just plain lame. The director stated that ending a film is the hardest thing to do and he proved it! There were some scenes/lines, but too few to recommend this film.

A terrific inner city tale with a diverse group of young adults trying to make it in the "industry". With their "Restaurant" job as the setting. Love, friendship, betrayl and racism, are all seen here with painful reality.Adrien Brody and Malcolm Jamal-Warner are great in the lead roles. One flaw, too may characters, not enough time. Overall good movie.

this film dealt with alot of Social Issues&while it has some solid Acting it leaves some spots in between.still it's a interesting film when all things are clicking.