A 'Chef' sibling, 'Nonnas' is cinema comfort food at its finest
The Netflix Original hits all the right notes, especially with the casting.
Good movies make you hungry. Good movies with food as a supporting player should make you very hungry. That is true of the Netflix movie that hit the streaming platform on Friday morning, Nonnas. Based on a true story, the Staten Island-set drama depicts the work of one Italian American to honor his late mother by opening a restaurant where the chefs are grandmothers instead of professional chefs.
How many times have you heard someone say, “Man, I miss grandma’s cooking. I wish I could eat that one dish again?” It’s a paramount phrase in real life, and it’s the heart and soul of Stephen Chbosky’s feature. Vince Vaughn is the title character, Joe Scaravella, the kind of young kid who stuck around the kitchen long enough to become a momma’s boy and smell all the delicious family meals that breathed life into a childhood that hasn’t lost any of its effect.
When she passes away, grown-up Joe decides to buy an empty lot and turn it into something special. While family and friends (Joe Manganiello, Drea de Matteo) repeatedly tell him he’s nuts and should use the inheritance money to pay down his debt, Joe aims for the heart and adds more debt to his ledger.
Vaughn is a highly capable actor who can perform in both drama and comedy categories, and he leans on each of them in an understated lead performance. The Chicago native brings energy and a zippy line-reading wit to each part, but certain roles allow him to expand his repertoire without overdoing it.
It’s the ladies, though, in the cast who steal the show. It’s been decades since Talia Shire had a role like this, where she plays a former nun who walks into Joe’s kitchen to bake the best pizzas a human could ever taste. Lorraine Bracco’s voice should get its own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, because it contains all the power of Sicilian women in a single output. She’s the reluctant participant at first, but Joe makes it come around.
Brenda Vaccaro’s Bologna native clashes with Bracco’s cook, which results in a hilarious tomato-smashed kitchen fight that still leaves viewers wanting to lick the ingredients off the floor. Susan Sarandon, the one person who ages better than Paul Rudd, has a nice turn as a pastry chef who balances out the outspoken kitchen with a fresh take on living life the right way.
Nonnas’ (not so) secret weapon is the food. The actors are great, but you shouldn’t start this movie on an empty stomach. The first scene is a montage of classic Italian desserts such as cannoli and those tiny cookies that contain the cherry in the middle or those signature sprinkles. If you’ve ever walked into Vitale’s Bakery on The Hill in St. Louis, you’ll understand the sweet and bitter aspects of seeing so many things that you want to shove into your mouth.
Chbosky’s method here, working off a script by Liz Maccie and Jody Scaravella (Vaughn’s character in real life), isn’t complicated. Like the main character, it leads with the heart and doesn’t care what blows or unoriginal paths it takes. Sitting at just under two hours that fly by, Nonnas doesn’t mess around with complications or plot twists that turn the original recipe into something entirely different. It’s about one guy keeping the legacy and memory of his beloved mom alive by letting her methods live an endless live through the unconventional restaurant practice of letting grandmothers return adults to their childhood with a single meal.
When movies have an understanding of their intention and are made with the right amount of care with talented performers, there’s a comfort in watching them unfold. Nonnas will be watched again and again, except when I’m hungry.
Find it on Netflix now. Enoteca Maria is still open and thriving in Staten Island.
