In the 1960s, the rivalry between the Kellogg’s and Post brands led to a race for innovation that led to the creation of Pop-Tarts.
Jerry Seinfeld will always be seen as the comedic genius behind the 1990s series that bears his name. After seeing his first production, Unfrostedwe are entitled to wonder if its reputation is not overrated.
The film, which he co-wrote with three collaborators from the era of Seinfeld, tells the story of how cereal giants Kellogg’s and Post, both based in Battle Creek, Michigan, waged a battle to create the first pastry that could be heated in a toaster. The progenitors of Rice Krispies gave birth to Pop-Tarts, which were a great success, while their rivals, inventors of Sugar Crisp, offered Country Squares, renamed Toast’em Pop Ups following their initial failure.
If you were hoping to learn more about this turning point in American culinary offerings, you may be disappointed, because Unfrosted is based on very little truthful information. The tone is not that of the documentary, more of a comic biographical film. The problem is that we don’t laugh often. At times, we approach the ridiculousness of hilarious satires such as Naked Gun And Hot Shots, but most of the time, the gags are mind-numbingly simple. We would have liked more scenes like that of the funeral, of profound absurdity.
The structure sometimes resembles that of cartoons, such Family Guy, as some scenes are only pretexts for jokes, painful in the majority of cases. However, let’s salute those with Kyle Dunnigan in the shoes of the famous newsreader Walter Cronkite. Jon Hamm and John Slattery also made us smile.
Dozens of brilliant actors, including several from the ranks of Saturday Night Live, support Jerry Seinfeld, still a bad actor. Melissa McCarthy, Amy Schumer, Hugh Grant and Jim Gaffigan do their best, but they have little to sink their teeth into. The scenario sometimes seems to have been left aside in favor of improvisation. The result is not more conclusive.
Visually, Frosted is a success. The sets, props and costumes are superb. Even the digital special effects are impressive – a pastry comes to life! Netflix didn’t skimp on the budget. Was this to make up for the weak storyline or because the streaming giant believes that Jerry Seinfeld is still worth his weight in gold? Let us take this opportunity to recall that he co-created his famous situation comedy with Larry David. Curb Your Enthusiasm, of the latter, has just ended after 120 harrowing episodes. Perhaps he is the true comic genius.
On Netflix
Comedy
Unfrosted
(VF: Unfrosted: the epic of the Pop-Tart)
Jerry Seinfeld
With Jerry Seinfeld, Jim Gaffigan, Melissa McCarthy
1:33 a.m.