Dinner
and a Movie
By
Steve Herte
Keeping
Up With The Joneses (20th
Century Fox, 2016) – Director: Greg Mottle. Writer: Michael
LeSieur. Stars: Zach Galifianakis, Isla Fisher, Jon Hamm, Gal Gadot,
Patton Oswald, Ming Zhao, Matt Walsh, Maribeth Monroe, Michael Liu,
Kevin Dunn, Dayo Abanikanda, Henry Boston, Jack McQuaid, Ying He, &
Yi Dong Hian. Color, Rated PG-13, 105 minutes.
Jeff Gaffney
(Galifianakis) lives in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia, and works as a
personnel relations manager for MBI Company. He and his wife Karen
(Fisher), a home decorator, live in a charming house on a cul-de-sac.
The day-to-day life includes cleaning up after Dan Craverston’s
(Walsh) twin bulldogs. Dan is a rocket scientist who also works at
MBI. The Gaffneys have just waved goodbye to their two sons as
they're bussed away to summer camp. Coming home, they meet Dan’s
wife, Meg (Monroe), a real estate agent, who has just sold the last
property in the neighborhood for all cash. Karen wonders who would
buy a house without using credit or putting a down payment on it. Her
curiosity keeps her by the window until the new occupants arrive.
Tim (Hamm) and
Natalie Jones (Gadot) are not only the most attractive couple to move
in, they’re absolutely perfect. They’re worldly, he speaks fluent
Chinese, he can blow glass, she raises funds for orphaned children in
Sri Lanka, speaks Israeli and cooks like a professional chef.
Inviting them over for coffee, the Gaffneys receive an elaborate
glass sculpture from the Joneses, which proves to have a bugging
device inside – Jeff’s boss, Carl Pronger (Dunn) authenticates
it. Karen is sure there’s something strange about the Joneses.
Knowing the Joneses
would be out for the evening, Karen drags Jeff to their house, using
the spare garage door opener to get in. All seems too perfect until
they go upstairs and find the computer room with MBI company ID
badges displayed on the monitors for all the technical employees and
Jeff. Now she’s sure. But Jeff picks up a silver retractable pen
and unwittingly shoots his wife with a sedative dart. Switching
between carrying and dragging her, Jeff manages to get her out of the
house just as the Joneses arrive home.
The fun continues
when Karen’s suspicious sleuthing involves her and Jeff in a gun
battle between Tim and Natalie and the henchmen of Scorpion (Oswalt),
the real bad guys. Jeff’s and Karen’s ordinary, safe life changes
forever. In the process, Jeff dines at a snake restaurant run by Yang
(Liu), a good friend of Tim’s and Karen, and learns the meaning of
provocative lingerie from Natalie.
The comedy
in Keeping Up with the Joneses is sophisticated and
subtle with a little slapstick thrown in for good measure. There are
no laughfests, which is good. The sound effects crew supply
exaggerated sounds that make the audience wince when Jeff hits
Karen’s head on a door-jamb while trying to hurry her out of their
neighbors’ house. Then there’s the ridiculous situation of Jeff’s
well-dressed boss living out of his van after a divorce. Absurdity,
and funny. Add to that, Scorpion’s girlfriend’s (Zhao) reaction
when Jeff recognizes him and reveals his true name. Very smooth
humor.
Zach Galifianakis
plays the role of the insouciant believer in talking things out
almost to the point of being annoying but it works. Isla Fisher is
great as the nosy neighbor who never realizes that a professional spy
would instantly catch her following wearing a lame disguise. I would
be shocked if Jon Hamm was not or is not tapped to be the next James
Bond. He would fit the role elegantly. And Gal Gadot is drop-dead
gorgeous in everything she wears, no matter how little. I can’t
wait for her sequel to Batman v Superman: Dawn of
Justice as Wonder Woman, now in post-production.
Keeping Up with
the Joneses is a unique comedy with a great concept. I
enjoyed it. It entertained me without using vulgarity, nudity or sex,
just sly, clever, and sometimes subtle humor. My favorite quote (from
Tim to Jeff), “You tried to jump through a triple-paned window
without breaking it first?”
Rating:
3½
out of 5 Martini glasses.
Chimichurri Grill
609 9thAve., New
York
I have learned over
the years that whenever I think I’ve seen or heard the strangest
things, there’s always something stranger waiting around the
corner. When I received my confirmation call (I thought) from
Chimichurri Grill, imagine my surprise at being told that they do not
accept reservations for solo diners! Gee, I just made one. This is
the first time I’ve ever been instructed that I would have to sit
at the bar for dinner. Then, if a table opened up (maybe), I could
have it. I was ready to change reservations as the bar stools at this
place are back-breaking, flat-seated, backless stools. The excuse I
was given was that there is usually a Broadway show crowd occupying
all the tables for two. Still having misgivings, I accepted the
bar-to-table possibility even though I knew that logically anyone who
had tickets would not be dining at 7:15 pm when I would be arriving.
Chimichurri Grill is
not as brightly lit as several other restaurants in their
neighborhood. In fact, one could miss it entirely. Its humble black
awning with the name in white make it seem to take a step back from
the sidewalk as compared to the garish lights of nearby, larger
establishments.
One look inside and I could see unoccupied tables
with two chairs among the total of 14. The small bar in front limits
the number of tables near the window, but confirmed the uncomfortable
stools. I met the man I spoke with on the phone when I announced my
reservation. As he seated me at a table in the center of the one-room
restaurant he repeated the “no solo diners” reservation policy. I
advised him to inform Opentable.com soon to avoid future
embarrassments.
Arthur Schwartz
advised me long ago to do everything at a restaurant with a smile,
especially when entering and it took some effort, but I accomplished
that. I told Wilmer, my server, that I would like to start with “El
Gibson” – Nolet’s Silver dry gin, Noily Prat dry vermouth and
house-made pickled pearl onions. Served in an elegant martini glass,
it was a good drink, but not as dry as the two ingredients promised.
I would like to own pearls as big as the two onions skewered on the
swizzle stick. They were almost golf ball size and delicious.
The wine list was
also quite impressive, with at least 20 Malbecs listed on the first
page. But I pressed on to see what else I could find, eventually
choosing a 2013 Almancaya Gran Reserva “Lafite Rothschild”
Malbec/Cabernet Sauvignon varietal. The two grapes worked well
together (in equal parts) to create a rich, intense red wine, without
being over-bearing or too dry.
The first dish to
arrive was the Sopa Pescado “Patagonian”
(seafood soup), made with clams, mussels onions, tomatoes and other
vegetables. It was like eating an excellent gazpacho, but hot with
just the right hints of spices. Though I don’t like clams in
general, I had to rave about the ones in this soup. They were not
rubbery or even excessively chewy with a pleasant flavor, not
metallic. The mussels almost melted in the mouth.
Next came the
appetizer, a “Trio of Chorizo” – Argentine pork, blood sausage
and red Spanish spicy – served with red and green dipping sauces.
All were excellent, especially the blood sausage: delicate, rich,
earthy and savory.
My main course was
the Ancho boneless ribeye steak topped with caramelized Vidalia
onions. Served on a dark wood plate it was easily as good a steak as
I’ve ever had. The side dish – Col Risada (sautéed kale in
garlic and oil) was the best kale I’ve ever tasted, better than the
best steakhouse spinach sides. Cooked to a little less than crispy
and drenched in garlic, it still had that exciting “green” flavor
of kale.
In my dining
experiences, the dessert with the longest name is usually the
simplest and best after a very filling meal. This proved true again.
The Queso de Oveja Manchego y Membrillo, wedges of
Manchego cheese with quince preserve and raspberry sauce, was as much
a delight to the eyes as to the taste buds. I prefer guava paste to
quince but this was really very good.
I saw the national drink of
Argentina and ordered the Mate “Gaucho Macho.” I was a
bit disappointed when it tasted like nothing but hot water –
nothing “Macho” about it. I told Wilmer and he treated me to a
glass of port wine, mumbling something about the mate not being the
same as in Argentina. Mate is a tea drink, but no tea should be
that wimpy.
I
would really like to return to Chimichurri Grill, but will have to
bring a dining companion the next time. I know just whom I would
bring. I was surprised to learn later on that Chimichurri Grill has
been in business for over 18 years and has a sister restaurant on the
East Side. Except for the food and the wine, it seemed like their
first year.
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