Believe it or not, the Food Network wasn’t always a thing–food television in general wasn’t as relevant as it is today. In that time, celebrity chefs like Charlie Trotter had to show the world how good they were through their restaurants and cookbooks–however, Charlie was a little different than the other celebrity chefs that existed around the globe. Charlie is one of the most unique personalities to exist in the world of food–and Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter tells his story.
I’m a self-proclaimed foodie. I love the Food Network, I enjoy cooking, and when my beautiful wife and I travel, the entire vacation hinges on when and where we can get restaurant reservations. With that being said, I love documentaries about food. Two of my favorite things in the world–film and food–are wrapped into one brilliant package here in Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter. I salivated throughout as Charlie and his cohorts constructed some of the most unique looking dishes that I’ve ever seen–and I could feel the emotion present throughout the course of the film. Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter is a blend of genres, and it blends them nicely.
Chefs, much like teachers and police officers, are typically seen as their profession. Outsiders are often only able to see people in these roles as those things–not as parents, siblings, or anything else. That can weigh heavily on a person, but Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter aims to humanize Charlie–and I believe that it’s successful in its attempt. Based on what can be seen throughout the course of Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter, it seems that Charlie would have wanted to be known for his culinary passion more than anything else in the world–and that everything else would have come second to him. Regardless of that, however, while viewers certainly understand this aspect of Charlie’s being, they now understand him beyond that. They can understand and appreciate his passion, his resilience, his refusal to fail; and to be able to showcase that as elegantly and effectively as it is means that Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter is successful.
Charlie Trotter is gone, no longer the force that he once was in the kitchen–and while that’s important, the most important thing to note is that he’s not here to tell his story; that’s left in the hands of dozens of others that knew him. Balance in this situation is key. The world wants to know the intricacies of his life, they want to know the negative things that occurred while Charlie still walked the earth, and it’s important to shed light on those things. However, it’s also important not to tarnish the man’s reputation, not to paint him in a way that makes him look horrible. I would imagine that this delicate balance is the most difficult aspect of creating a film like this. Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter finds that balance, however, and it feels that every second of this film is constructed with this idea in mind.
Viewers are able to understand the truth about the celebrity chef, both the good and the bad–but Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter never goes too far, it never destroys the man’s legacy–it remains even keeled and honest throughout, capturing, again, that perfect balance of all that Charlie Trotter was both in and out of the kitchen.
Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter is a fun film that showcases the brilliance of Charlie’s career, including his beautiful, artistic culinary masterpieces. The impeccable balance that Writer-Director Rebecca Halpern brings to the table throughout is wonderful, honest, and captivating–and her ability to do this only allows her documentary to rocket toward success. Charlie Trotter has an incredible story, one that is presented brilliantly in Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter.
Written & Directed by Rebecca Halpern.
Starring Dona-Lee Trotter, Anne Trotter Hinkamp, Lisa Ehrlich, Chef Wolfgang Puck, Gordon Sinclair, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
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