Overview
In this new film, ‘The Kitchen’ which came out in 2019, Berloff marks her directorial debut after co-writing the infamous ‘Straight Outta Compton.’ The film features a wonderful cast including Melissa McCarthy. The story intricately tells of ‘The Kitchen’ which aims to change the perception of mob stories by showing organized crime in hell’s kitchen where only woman reign in the 1970s NYC.
While The Kitchen tries to merge the conventional tropes of a gangster film with elements of survival, feminism, and shifting power, it seems to walk off the path. The reception of this film seems to be split right down the middle but one must admit ‘The Kitchen’ did have some effort put into reversing a genre meant for men.
Plot Summary
This particular film takes place in 1978 and follows a story of three women known as the Irish mob’s Kathy Brennan, Ruby O’Carroll, and Claire Walsh. The FBI decides to capture all of their husbands during one of their planned robberies and their husbands get sent off to prison.
Kathy (Melissa McCarthy), a devoted mother, finds it increasingly difficult to make ends meet with the paltry salary provided by the remaining mob crew reservicing sycamore hotel. Ruby (Tiffany Haddish), the only Black woman in a deeply patriarchal and racist firm, faces being ignored by her husband’s family, particularly domineering matriarch, Helen O’Carroll. Claire (Elisabeth Moss), a meek and frequently abused wife, embraces her newfound independence following her husband’s imprisonment and begins carving an identity for herself.
While the male gangsters continue their neglectful attitude towards the borderlines 女人 and fail to sustain the bottomless pit of women, the trio takes the initiative. They set out to collect business protection payments from local restaurants, in exchange for real support and defense. With time, they start earning the community’s respect and gradually, broaden their reach.
Their progress does not go unchecked. Things heat up as they venture into Italian mob territory of Alfonso Coretti, who sees their ingenuity and proposes an alliance but, does not pursue power harder than adults. However, their success turns into a liability with enemies from within and outside the group, facing betrayal, violence, and shifting allegiances. In the end, the women come to the realization that power is just as dangerous as it is intoxicating.
By the film’s conclusion, the women have transformed into powerful leaders, though each follows a unique moral compass along with personal choices. The ending encapsulates both the costs of ambition, as losing one’s self in the search for power changes fundamental relationships and identity.
Leading Roles with their Portrayals
Melissa McCarthy as Kathy Brennan
McCarthy draws primarily from her extensive repertoire of comedic roles, but Kathy Brennan required a more stoic, dramatic approach in The Kitchen. Kathy is the heart of the theater—composed, emotionally pragmatic, deeply mothers, and protective of her children—and actively strategizes to secure their well-being. In the McCarthy captures a character suspended between raw maternal instincts and soaring ambition encapsulating the modern woman.
Tiffany Haddish as Ruby O’Carroll
Haddish delivers a sharp break from her comedic roles. Ruby faces the intersectionality of race and gender discrimination which she intelligently carves with sheer force of will into the space of authority. Haddish plays this character with an intense gaze, though mildly jarring emotional shifts in the character may feel out of place.
Elisabeth Moss as Claire Walsh
Moss is equally beloved as Claire who is the most dynamic character of the film. Claire begins her journey as a submissive, faint-hearted, tortured wife and later becomes one of the most ruthless violent enforcers for the group. This remarkably shocking yet oddly empowering journey forms the plot of the film, which is delivered with Moss’s emotive mastery.
Gleeson portrays the role of Gabriel O’Malley
Gabriel, a former hitman in hiding, assumes the role of Claire’s partner, guiding her down the dark path of violence while becoming her lover. O’Malley as portrayed by Gleeson injects a sense of quiet menace into the film and is pivotal in Claire’s development arc.
Margo Martindale takes on the role of Helen O’Carroll
Martindale is ruthless as the mob matriarch, presenting an ice-cold performance when attempting to keep Ruby in check, so she does not run counter to the old order of the mob. She turns into a formidable counterpart when the women ascend to power.
Other supporting roles have been filled by Bill Camp, James Badge Dale, and Brian d’Arcy James who portray assorted gangsters and lawmen who, through crossing lines, become intertwined in the lives of the main trio.
Direction and cinematography
In The Kitchen, Andrea Berloff, the director, equipped the movie with a 70s aesthetic in both style and substance. The film oozes with 70’s vibe owing to drab, earthy colors symbolic of the rundown parts of Hell’s Kitchen. Alongside costume, music and set design, the period is accurately represented, and the use of close, poorly lit spaces highlights the feeling of freedom-less tension synonymous with mob lifestyle.
Maryse Alberti’s filmography works in synergy with the film’s noir elements by depicting the characters in shadowy light and capturing them from constricting angles, suggesting emotional shattering and imminent peril. The analysis of the directing style suggests an attempt at balancing action with character-driven drama and the social critique, although criticism surrounds the cohesiveness of these elements.
Thematic Focus
Empowerment of Women in a Patriarchal Society
The Kitchen presents women grasping the reins in a world that has sidelined them for far too long. Each of the three main characters deals with their circumstances by displaying varying levels of strength, savagery, and calculation. The film also displays the moral sacrifices that are a prerequisite to acquiring and maintaining control.
Race and Class
Considering Ruby’s character arc, one has to analyze racism in conjunction with patriarchy. Ruby is a black woman married into an Irish mob family, and her status as an alien persists even within the precincts of the nominal ‘home.’ The balancing act of her quest for acceptance and supremacy adds an interesting nuance to the plot, although some critics argued that the narrative could have explored this conflict more deeply, in which case it might have been more engaging.
Violence and Liberation
For Claire, the story gets particularly intense. She doesn’t just run from her abuse; she takes on violence actively, as an expression of self-empowerment. Within her journeys, it is indeed quite controversial, but much like other things, it also attempts to subvert perceptions of domestic violence. Survivors often engulf trauma, and cope in ways that become profoundly different from what they started out as.
Power and Corruption
The film also chronicles the ways in which power corrupts as the women ascend the crime strata. While still fighting to stay alive, the scope of their undertakings becomes increasingly bold and ruthless. Does the idea of gaining power mean that one is bound to become the very thing that they once set out to fight? That question the movie poses.
Reception
Critics were split to largely negative over The Kitchen, with its box office performance not doing the movie any favors. Reviews praised the performances, especially from Moss and McCarthy, but criticized the movie’s pacing, tone consistency and lack of coherent narrative structure. There were also too many conflicting themes being tackled, which made some feel it was trying too hard.
While critically overlooked, there was still a level of appreciation aimed at The Kitchen for attempting to subvert the feminist argument in a genre dominated by men. It sought to offer an alternative view to mob stories and shine a light on unheard voices, albeit through poor execution that frustrated audiences and critics alike.
Conclusion
The Kitchen attempts to reposition the focus of gangster cinema by putting women in the foreground of a crime-ridden patriarchal society. While the film is marked by uneven writing, strong performances offer a refreshing perspective on woman’s mob life. As a drama, it does lack polish, but captures the essence of women protagonists embroiled in ruthless struggles for dominance driven by society’s gendered expectations. Viewed from that angle, The Kitchen has cultural merit and is definitely worth watching regardless of its flaws.
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