Good morning. Today, I’ll begin by auditioning for the role of Food52’s Chief Film Critic.
Martha (2024)
Twelve minutes into Netflix’s new Martha Stewart documentary, the film fulfills its sole requirement as a movie about an American-born food person: It highlights an extended trip through Europe as the origin of its subject’s boundless infatuation with food. Beyond this familiar revelation, Martha proceeds to ignore the audience’s (or maybe just mine) most pressing questions—like who stood beside her as she cracked the code on her famed one-pan pasta? Or whether she prefers Zinfandel or Cab alongside her beef stew with dijon & tomato? And does she care that her Italian-Braised pork shoulder still—somehow—remains so criminally underrated? A braver film would answer these questions—and the best film would provide complimentary bites of those recipes. (Though there might be answers in her 100th cookbook, Martha: The Cookbook, out this week.)
Let me know what food-focused film I should review next—and for our team’s 12 favorite Martha recipes click here.
