Review: Unlikeable main character makes 'Burnt' a bad dish
Jones is so unlikeable that spending 100 minutes with him on screen is as unpleasant as languishing over a bad meal — you just want to kind of walk away and find something better.
"Burnt" is further hampered by narrative loose ends, clunky, explanatory dialogue, and a love interest (Siena Miller) who behaves as no real woman would.
Osage County, Burnt follows Jones' efforts to restore his cooking career after a bout of bad behavior and return to Michelin Star status.
Introduced as a talented up-and-coming chef and devoted single mother who works at a competing restaurant, Helene can tell Jones is a jerk as soon as she meets him, yet she's lured to his kitchen by a much bigger salary.
[...] despite Jones yelling at her, belittling her skills, grabbing her by her (alluringly loose) tank top and ditching her for another woman at a party he invited her to, Helene suddenly forgets her parental responsibilities and falls for him.
The precision and beauty of a five-star meal is an art whose creation clearly has its own rhythm and drama.
"Burnt," a Weinstein Company release, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for language.