Toast, based on a memoir by Nigel Slater, tells the story of a young boy’s interest in food as it leads him through childhood and into adult life.
Set in Britain in the 60′s, the story starts with young Nigel (Oscar Kennedy), a seemingly unobtrusive boy, who wants lots of fancy food, but his Mum (Victoria Hamilton) can’t cook anything that isn’t in a can, except of course for toast. When his mother dies of a lung disease, Nigel is left alone with his curmudgeonly father (Ken Stott). They try to struggle on, but aren’t doing very well on their own. Enter Mrs. Potter (Helena Bonham Carter), the new cleaning lady, whom Nigel suspects of having eyes for his father. Not helping matters is the fact that Mrs. Potter is a glorious cook, causing more ruffled feathers with Nigel. The third act of the film jumps ahead to when Nigel is 17, and now played by Freddie Highmore. He’s taking home economics, and learning to cook, challenging Mrs. Potter for the role of meal preparer, leading to a tense tug of war for his father’s affections.
Don’t be fooled into thinking this is a Benny Hill sketch, Toast has a lot of serious drama. Oscar Kennedy, who can go from sullen to surly in nothing flat, makes you feel the loss of his Mum in a way I wasn’t expecting. Ken Stott’s distant and disapproving father was so real, I would never want to meet the man for fear that he would be mad at me. Helena Bonham Carter is good as usual, and it’s nice to see her not playing a witch, or a monkey, or a bobble-headed queen. The only thing that really disappointed me was the under-use of Freddie Highmore. He really is only in the last third of the film, and his section makes me want this to be a 4 hour epic.
Toast is a well acted, well executed drama. Highly recommended for fans of the British section, and anyone who likes a good story. – [DVD] [Blu-Ray]
[...] Toast (2010) – Nigel’s mother appears to have been the world’s worst cook, but Nigel loves her dearly, and is devastated by her early death, leaving him and his lonely dad (Ken Stott) to look after each other. When new cleaner Mrs. Potter (Helena Bonham Carter) arrives, her curves, charms and fabulous lemon meringue pies quickly bewitch Nigel’s father, and, much to his son’s horror, the three move to the country to live together. Soon Nigel and Mrs. P. have embarked on a highly competitive cooking duel, vying for Dad’s affections. (UK) – [imdb] – click here to read our review! [...]