The Bear

“Dude, it would be weird to work in a restaurant and not completely lose your mind.” A pressure cooker of emotions, insecurities, ambitions, characters, depression, food, joys, self-destructive behaviour patterns, anxieties and the enslaving daily routine in the "kitchen behind the scenes". All this in a frenetic, adrenaline-fuelled guise (it's constantly in motion, everything and everyone is spinning, five dialogues running over each other, etc.), but it's always first and foremost about the characters. The way they are handled, and how Storer wasn't afraid to do a 180 degree turn for the second series and still stay true to the concept – respect! It feels like an indie film from the 1990s, with Sorkin on steroids writing the dialogue. Despite all the cinephile allusions (Storer isn't afraid to repeatedly make it known how big a fan of Michael Mann and Ridley Scott he is), it's idiosyncratic, haunting, captivating. And despite (or because of) all the adrenaline, chaos and emotions, it can take you by the heart and devastate you as well as make you smile. | S1: 5/5 | S2: 5/5 | (21.07.2023)

A broth of stress and emotions. Surprising revelation? Owning a restaurant is suicidal, and trying to turn a buffet into a fancy restaurant is tantamount to purgatory. Acting-wise, it’s amazing. The pace is frantic and there’s always something happening. Some liken it to Boiling Point, but Bear is a little more optimistic, though the falls are all the more painful. Really strong. (14.02.2023)