"The Cook" is an American movie from 1918, so it will have its 100th anniversary next year and at this age it is of course still a silent black-and-white film. And it includes some of the big names from that era, most of all Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, who wrote, directed and acted in here. His co-stars are Buster Keaton and Al St. John, silent film greats in their own right. The title already gives away that this is a bit of a culinary comedy. But sadly, it is never a film that is going to wet your mouth really. It's basically sketch comedy from start to finish and I think this film could have done with a better story/plot. Or if I were mean I could say with a story/plot in general. Not even the comedic talent of the protagonists can make up for that unfortunately. Intertitles could have been more frequent too, a common problem of films from that time, and when there were some, then they really included extremely little text for this film as if letters were expensive, so they tried to keep them down. I like Buster's and Fatty's physical presence usually more than I do here (not really a connection with ASJ), so I don't think this one deserves to be among their most known which it probably is. Not recommended. Thumbs-down and it's only worth checking out for the very biggest fans of the protagonists and old silent films.
Review of The Cook
