Original caricature by Jeff York of Antonio Banderas and Dominic Sessa in TONY (copyright 2026)
The best biopics focus on a short and specific time period in a famous person’s life, setting up a lesson or incident that will help shape the personality or the work they are known for. Such is the case with TONY, the new film about Anthony “Tony” Bourdain’s earliest brush with the restaurant business. In this film, he’s 19, right out of high school, and full of piss and vinegar. He wants to be a writer and yet shows almost no discipline to be one.
The elements of Bourdain’s arrogance and dismissive attitude that he was known the world over for as an adult are vividly on display here, made all the more unpalatable by youth. But the young whippersnapper will grow as this modest film goes on, learning to see a bigger picture outside of his narrow lens.
Tony’s acerbic wit is very much a part of his identity – he uses it as a shield for his lack of experience and knowledge – and it also explains the droll sarcasm that the adult Bourdain brought to his blunt memoir Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly. And yet, this small but significant chapter, taking place over a few short summer months in the Cape, steered the young man’s life not only into an appreciation of the finer things in life, but also toward the discipline it takes to become a master chef.
If anything, this film made me want more of Bourdain’s vaulted story. Indeed, perhaps there could be a trilogy showcasing his growth and fame twenty years apart in subsequent sequels. Still, this is a good start for getting a handle on the man that Bourdain would become. It’s a coming-of-age saga that does the trick, but it also makes one hunger for more.
Dominic Sessa (THE HOLDOVERS) stars, and it’s a credit to the actor that he’s willing to portray Tony as such a prick. It’s a performance that never tries to be cute or ask for sympathy. There are demons haunting Tony, but Sessa’s shrewdly calculated turn here never lets us excuse the teenager’s channeling of his angst into antagonism toward others. One of those he is less than charming with is Nancy (Emilia Jones), a high schooler he pines for and follows to Provincetown, MA, after graduation to be close to her. He doesn’t really know how to talk to her, and because of it, she gives him plenty of guff. But she sees something soulful in Tony, as do we, and it all makes for a smart, yet quirky love story here where courting definitely takes its sweet time.
To make ends meet and find shelter in the vacation town, Tony ends up working as a dishwasher at a local eatery called The Flagship. The restaurant’s menu is a limited one, mostly seafood, but every dish is made with love and care by the kind but gruff proprietor known simply as “Chef.” This composite character, based on Howard Mitchum, Bourdain’s mentor in New England, as well as a few other influences, is played with a quiet machismo and zen-like dignity by the invaluable Antonio Banderas. The actor has only gotten more compelling with age, and his performance here warrants serious consideration for best supporting actor prizes.
The other major influence on Tony is one of the cooks at The Flagship named Sal (Leo Woodall). He’s as much a ne’er-do-well as Tony, openly snorting cocaine during shifts and causing trouble in town via his brash penchant for fisticuffs. The main thing Tony learns from Sal, however, is an appreciation for food, specifically cultivating a more seasoned palate. Soon, Tony is helping out in the kitchen, learning under the watchful eyes of both Chef and Sal, and obsessing over some of Chef’s cookbook recipes as much as he does over Nancy.
Jones steals scenes with withering looks alone. (Tony deserves them!) In fact, one of the better things about this biopic is that Nancy isn’t just the love interest but another teacher of Tony’s. She teaches him valuable lessons about seeing a whole person and putting lusty yearnings on the back burner. The brisk one-hour and 46-minute dramedy is not only slyly entertaining, but it’s a clever rumination on growing up, learning a work ethic, and discovering how to bond with all kinds of different individuals. Tony not only comes to respect those he works with, but he gains a love for food service and the Cape locals.
Directed without fuss by Matt Johnson, from a smart yet easygoing script he wrote with Matthew Miller, Todd Bartels, and Lou Howe, the film goes down easy, even with a protagonist who often acts more like the antagonist. Tony grows up in the summer, getting a better education than he did in school. He learns to see the value in truth, vocation, and friendships, and we, in turn, learn that even the unsavory can learn to acquire a taste for the finer things in life.
