3.5 Portraits-of-Disaster out of 4
*Trigger warning – some language later in article*
Secondo is trying his hardest to keep his restaurant afloat. Between a classical Italian menu that is staunchly unpopular compared to the more “Americanized” offerings of his competitors, and his older brother’s insistence on maintaining their roots and heritage, his American Dream is falling apart at the seams. Primo, Secondo’s older brother and chef de cuisine at “Paradise,” seems to be making an active effort to sabotage everything the Italian siblings have tried to build.
Thanks to the apparent benevolence of their older, and more successful, competitor, Pascal, they have one last chance to succeed before they’ll be forced to sell the restaurant to pay off their growing debts.
Co-directed by Stanley Tucci and Campbell Scott, Big Night is a small, independent film with a strong focus on characterization, acting, and story. Readers will notice that I’ve reviewed quite a few food-driven films, all with character, acting, and writing at their core. This film will mark a brief end to that pattern, if only to temporarily conclude my critical thesis on films about food.
Played by Stanley Tucci and Tony Shalhoub, Secondo and Primo are brilliantly fascinating portraits of disaster. The ways in which they strain their relationship – always reconciling for the benefit of their joint love of food – is sadistic.
In a scene between Secondo and a Cadillac salesman, played by Campbell Scott, who attacks his own brother for a series of preconceived faults, Secondo quickly defends the fraternal relationship by arguing, “But he’s your brother.” It’s through genuine proclamations like these that a script by Joseph Tropiano and Tucci is able to shine.
Joining Tucci and Shalhoub are a cast of incredibly talented actors; Minnie Driver, Ian Holm, and Isabella Rossellini all star in the film, and their performances are spectacular. The English Holm, whose stage work is legendary, deserves praise for his remarkably sleazy performance as Pascal. To say that Holm steals every scene he flies through is an understatement; thanks to his performance, what could have been a cheesy character in less-talented hands becomes a complex analysis of the nature of success and sacrifice.
Pascal runs the eponymous, and infinitely more popular, Pascal’s Restaurant. Though his restaurant offers patrons watered-down versions of Italian cuisine, Pascal understands what the people want. He succeeds because of his dedication to popular drivel. Brilliant is the way Big Night‘s script, direction, and cinematography work together to convince the audience of Pascal’s corruption and immorality.
Brilliant is the way Big Night’s script, direction, and cinematography work together…
In one powerful scene, Primo cries out “Rape! The rape of cuisine is what happens at that [Pascal’s] restaurant.” In another, Secondo enters Pascal’s restaurant, and the audience is quickly captivated by the hive of scum and villainy – between the dizzying tracking shot, outlandish reds and purples that colour the sequence, and the corny, Americanized version of ‘O sole mio, Pascal’s is everything the Paradise brothers stand against.
Important is that the American Dream – a common, and oft-wasted theme in such films – is always at the back of the characters’ minds. Yes, Secondo insists on salivating over every Cadillac he sees, but what he truly craves is respect and admiration for his hard-work. Big Night doesn’t waste its license to challenge the American Dream; instead, the ideal is incorporated into defining pieces of characterization.
To Secondo, America is more than a land of opportunity – it’s a land of equivocation where all it takes to do well is the right combination of talent and tenacity. That Primo insists on refusing America by clinging to tradition is more than a slight against Secondo’s position in the restaurant – it’s a stance against everything Secondo believes in.
Finally, praise must be handed to Big Night‘s camera work. Small, independent dramas often feature simple camera movements that serve to accentuate the humanity and realness of a film’s characters, plots, and themes. While featuring nothing incredibly “big-budget,” Big Night is filmed by a camera that knows how to convey a scene’s emotion. The film’s tracking shots make some scenes play out like a Scorsese gangster-flick; however, the film’s dolly usage is especially superb.
A tense scene near the film’s second act summarizes everything great about Big Night. Secondo enters the kitchen first and the camera focuses at eye level; as Primo enters, and the tension fills the room, the camera slowly backs up and away (much like a real person would), leaving the audience as literal flies on the wall, observing the two characters tensely interact. Much like the rest of the film, it’s a small, simple, and incredibly commonplace technique employed in a remarkably effective way.