Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain
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An intimate, behind-the-scenes look at how an anonymous chef became a world-renowned cultural icon. This unflinching look at Anthony Bourdain reverberates with his presence, in his own voice and in the way he indelibly impacted the world around him.
- Released:
- Runtime: 120 minutes
- Genre: Documentaries
- Stars: Anthony Bourdain, Nancy Bourdain, Joel Rose, Karen Rinaldi, Kim Witherspoon, Philippe Lajaunie, Tracey Westmoreland, Lydia Tenaglia, Christopher Collins, Eric Ripert, Chris Bourdain, Ottavia Bourdain, David Chang, Tom Vitale, Morgan Fallon, Helen M. Cho, Diane Schutz, Zach Zamboni, Michael Steed, Doug Quint, Joshua Homme, David Choe, Alison Mosshart, Iggy Pop, Asia Argento, John Lurie, Christopher Doyle
- Director: Morgan Neville
Comments
- thalassafischer - 18 November 2023
The Hong Kong Episode Resonated So Much, Disagree with So Many People in the Documentary
This was a great documentary by the way, it's not on the same level as the Montage of Heck Kurt Cobain biography by any means, but it's a solid telling of Bourdain's life from 1999 until his death in 2018. I watched it out of sheer curiosity, because I was never Anthony Bourdain's biggest fan. I loved No Reservations for a few months back in 2010 or something and then moved on to other things. I had only started re-watching episodes along with the vastly superior follow-up of Places Unknown this year. In fact, I had a lot of misplaced anger at Bourdain's career, because I felt he exploited people. It is only through watching more episodes of his work and then this touching documentary of the last 19 years or so of his life that I understand that he wasn't that much different in his opinion of what he was doing than myself. He too was troubled by what he was doing and "who benefits from this" ...
BUT WHAT SHOOK ME was the whole bit about the Hong Kong episode. Before watching this documentary I had written a review gushing about the poignancy of the Hong Kong episode of Parts Unknown. It's revealed in this documentary that Asia Argento was the driving creative force behind that whole episode - I have a long history of loving Asia's father's films and some in which she stars - and so I was PLEASED to find out that one of the reasons that episode spoke to me so differently, so authentically compared to dozens of other episodes was because of her influence. AND you must factor in that Anthony Bourdain was in love with Asia Argento during the filming of the episode, and I'm sure that added an extra layer of magic to it. SO to listen to Bourdain's film crew talk in this doc about how much of a "mistake" or "red flag" it was honestly hit me the wrong way. Sour grapes if you will, or even a grotesquely impoverished understanding of the man they had worked so closely with for an entire decade. If you watch ANY episode of Parts Unknown, watch the Hong Kong episode.
That's all I have to say. - Mango-30793 - 18 July 2022
Good
A good documentary if still a hard watch. I didn't know much about Anthony before this. Having watched it I feel saddest for his daughter and the Mother of his child who seemed to be thd most positive 2 people in his life. I only wish the mediocrity of domesticity along with his shows and amazing friends had been enough for him. But he seemed to explain it himself when talking about his childhood. He was angry living in domestic mediocrity as a kid. He was destined for other stuff. I just feel sorry for his family that they were collateral damage in his life drama.
His ex wife wept as she said she wished she'd kept a closer eye on him before he killed himself. That she wished she'd seen the signs. She has nothing to feel guilty about. Was he feeling guilty about walking away from his daughter and her? Not likely. I liked his individuality. I just wish someone had gotten to him and slapped him into reality before he threw it all away. All of it. Some people aren't born to live a "normal" life. RIP.
