Chili Finger
A lawyer receives a cash settlement after finding a finger in her fast food – but things start to go sideways when the company investigates how it got there.
Jess (Judy Greer, Lemon, MIFF 2017), a lawyer in a nondescript Midwestern town, is struggling. With her daughter having left for college, she’s struck by how empty an empty nest feels, particularly when left alone with her nice but not overly exciting husband (Sean Astin) and no money to go anywhere. Her problems seem to be solved when, at local fast food joint Blake Junior’s, she finds a finger in her chilli con carne bowl and a damage-controlling franchise executive offers her a $100,000 settlement on the spot. But when the restaurant’s owner and namesake (John Goodman) hears of the payout, he smells something fishy, and puts his shady yet trusted friend Dave (Bryan Cranston) on the case.
Based (very loosely) on a true story that took place in California in 2005, this tar-black crime comedy evokes the early works of the Coen brothers but determinedly follows its own spicy path. Blessed with a cast of incredible character actors all having a ball, Chili Finger is headlined by an electric Greer. So often consigned to supporting parts, she goes to town on her meaty leading role, digging into Jess’s emotional complexity and giving the best performance of her career. It all adds up to a wild, hilarious ride of bad decisions and worse consequences.
“A fun and riotous ride … Helstad’s script subtly yet intelligently engages with the urgent economic anxieties of the American middle class, people who live paycheck to paycheck while barely making ends meet.” – Variety
Tickets
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