Steakhouse (2022)

Steakhouse Review

Steakhouse is a 2022 Slovenian animated short film directed by Spela Cadez. It’s an intriguing, but off-putting movie.

The steak has been marinating for a few days now. The pan is heated. Franc’s stomach is rumbling. But Liza’s co-workers surprise her with a birthday party. Eventually, this all leads to utter chaos as we witness a marriage falling apart. The movie is realistic in its depiction of crumbling marriages and passive aggressive behavior that the husband exhibits. This was all grounded in reality.

My issue is that the final twist was more repulsive than anything else. There was no need to go into horror territory in such a gruesome way and it was a metaphor that was too on the nose and not sophisticated enough for me personally. It was shocking, yes, but hardly original as we have seen similar stories in feature-length form quite a lot recently. The animation is actually the highlight here as the multiplane camera was so well used and the character designs, the house interior and the food all look splendid. I just wish its plot were better.

It is great seeing Slovenia get on board when it comes to the medium of animation, but although Steakhouse is superbly animated and quite intriguing in its premise, its finale was too repulsive and on the nose metaphorically speaking.

My Rating – 3.6