Toast

I saw this movie without knowing who Nigel Slater is. The trailer made it out to be a humorous coming-of-age story about a boy with a passion for cooking.

The young Nigel never gives Mrs. Potter a chance - because she works as a house cleaner, is a bit vulgar and lives in public housing, he looks down on her and puts her down in front of his father whenever he can. He wins sympathy points for the emotionally abusive father and the dying mother, but ultimately he himself is not a likable character. And that is the main drawback of the movie. It seems to have been created mainly to vilify the stepmother that Nigel never liked.

Otherwise there is nothing wrong with it. In fact I think Helena Bonham-Carter delivers a great performance as Mrs. Potter.

The casting choices were very good in my opinion; very individual characters who you really feel as if you get to know. Freddie Highmore came in too late unfortunately. The sudden switch lost my sense of attachment to Nigel, and it was too near to the end to have it rebuild. I loved Oscar Kennedy. I thought he was amazing.

The ending was such a letdown, I was still waiting for the 'real ending' when it happened. Nigel's sexuality wasn't really emphasized, nor was it not mentioned. It was just 'there'. It wasn't played into the plot line or Nigel's character development. Probably the most anticlimactic bit after the ending.

Good. But could have been a lot better.

I LOVE Helena Bonham Carter, so I thought 'how boring could it be?' even though I found the description less than compelling. I had never heard of Freddy Highmore at this point tbh. Long story short... I was captivated by the personalities, and thoroughly entertained.

A very fine little movie. And a good exhibition for the actors, who have plenty to work with here. Helena Bonham Carter has a lot of fun and she is cast perfectly. The young actor is really good too. And while I am not always fond of the "based on ...", this feels rather like a movie then say a biopic.

It is light and has a lot of comedy to it, so it is not heavy drama. On the other hand, I don't think it is good for any recipes. I certainly don't remember anything much from that part of the movie. But you know it is called Toast for a reason, of course. A very nice and decent little movie, that is worth your time :o)

This film is about the eventful childhood of Nigel Slater, and how he developed love for the culinary art.

The tag line of "Toast" suggests that it is a film about food, but it really is about Nigel Slater's sad childhood. The child is unloved by his father. His mother was more loving, but could not cook at all. After his mother's untimely death, his life is thrown into emotional turmoil. I find the portrayal of Nigel's state of mind to be heartfelt and profound. It makes me connect with him an his feelings. The rivalry between Nigel and Joan is well depicted too. The tension between them is so palpable. Given such tension between them, the events near the ending are particularly sad. I think "Toast" is a fine film, it is to be savoured.