Simmer

I am SOOO incredibly biased here. I only started and finished this movie because the lead (Marsuvio Sánchez as "Chef") was so flipping hot. And it didn't help that he's in practically, if not ALL, scenes.

But...the negatives were a little overwhelming. The plot is so incredibly simplistic and predictable and at one point, I thought this was a Christian-based movie due to actual prayer/prayer time in the movie. Which, to be fair, most Christian-based movies use extremely toned-down scripts and have enormously predictable and stereotypical plots. But, that said, I wouldn't have been opposed to this being a Christian-based film and it would make sense due to the very obvious premise:

A very good-hearted chef named Chef needs work and is given his dream-job despite his boss being so shady, he could be an albino. On his first day, the government magically allows illegal immigrants to stay in the country for a $20,000 fee and Chef's Mom and Grandparents who stay with him may be deported unless Chef can cough up sixty grand. Luckily, Chef's boss has the loot and a side "could it possibly be illegal?" car transporting gig. Chef has to decide if he should do the right thing or...

I really should've hated this movie and I almost turned it off about half-way through. The acting is so wooden, the cooks barely cook, the dialogue and actions are very foretold, you can usually guess what the characters are about to say. BUUUUT...Damn you, Simmer, for making the lead so irresistible. LOL.

Okay, I didn't just award this 5/10 stars for the lead. The movie's heart is in the right place and it's a nice story of people conflicted with their own morals. Plus, I LOVED the ending twist. It was probably a bit predictable as well, but I think I just gave up at that point guessing three scenes ahead.

Honestly, because of the message, the actors giving their all and obvious amateur filmmakers' real, and successful, attempt at making the movie look like a big budget, Hollywood film, I would recommend it. I admire movies and filmmakers like these EVEN when the movie was written so substandardly.

***

Final Thoughts: My alternative headline was "Simmer Down, Steve." And no, I didn't throughout this whole movie.

Saw this film during it's 2-week release stream. Engaging plot, well written script, fresh film. Definitely worth seeing.