Unfrosted

Unfrosted is a 2024 American comedy film directed by Jerry Seinfeld from a screenplay he co-wrote with his writing team of Spike Feresten, Barry Marder, and Andy Robin. Loosely based on the true story of the creation of Pop-Tarts toaster pastries, the film stars an ensemble cast that includes Seinfeld, Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Max Greenfield, Hugh Grant, and Amy Schumer.

Seinfeld's feature directorial debut, he and Feresten also serve as producers of the film alongside Beau Bauman, through their production company Columbus 81 Productions. Unfrosted was released in the United States by Netflix on May 4, 2024, and received mixed reviews from critics. It was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie, while Seinfeld won Worst Actor and Schumer won Worst Supporting Actress at the 45th Golden Raspberry Awards.

Plot

A young runaway orders Pop-Tarts in a diner, and a man named Bob Cabana offers to tell him the true origin story of the American breakfast food.

In 1963, Bob is head of development at the Kellogg's

Reception

Critical response

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film received a "sharply divided reaction from critics".[16]

The Hollywood Reporter noted that reviews such as those from the "country's top critics at publications like The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and San Francisco Chronicle gave the film modestly positive reviews," while Chicago Sun-Times, The Globe and Mail, The Daily Beast, and Collider were "downright scathing", with the Sun-Times calling Unfrosted "one of the decade's worst movies" that Seinfeld should have aborted halfway into production. Reviews such as those from The Guardian and THR itself were also "modestly positive".[16]

In her review for the New York Times, Amy Nicholson finds, "The jokes spill forth so fast that there's no time for the shtick to get soggy."[17] Variety reviewer Owen Gleiberman calls it "an agreeably flaked-out piece of surrealist vaudeville" and concludes "Unfrosted, in its way, is a quintessential comedian's movie. It thumbs its nose at everything without necessarily believing in anything. Yet it has an agreeable crunch."[18]

In her The Hollywood Reporter review, Sheri Linden deems the film "a straight-up comedy — no therapeutic underpinnings or civic lessons — that's funniest when it isn't trying too hard" and praises behind-the-camera skill and talent, stating: "Buoyed by Christophe Beck's score, a midcentury world-of-tomorrow vibe infuses the proceedings. The exuberant playfulness of Clayton Hartley's production design and Susan Matheson's vibrant costumes is balanced by the formal restraint of William Pope's lensing."[19]

The Globe and Mail found the film bereft of laughs and its runtime unendurably long, and The Daily Beast called it "as bad as you'd expect" but otherwise "superior" to Seinfeld's 2007 animated film Bee Movie. Collider compared Unfrosted poorly with Barbie as well as Tetris, Air, and Flamin' Hot—the former film the website cited for its deep social commentary and the other three for being "halfway decent biopics".[16] The San Francisco Chronicle praised Seinfeld's direction as well as the performances and 1960s production design, while The Guardian called the film "amiable and funny in a way that's much harder to achieve than it looks". The Washington Post appreciated how the film landed more gags than missed them.[16]

director	Jerry Seinfeld
screenplay	Jerry Seinfeld Spike Feresten Andy Robin Barry Marder
producer	Jerry Seinfeld Spike Feresten Beau Bauman
starring	Jerry Seinfeld Melissa McCarthy Jim Gaffigan Max Greenfield Hugh Grant Amy Schumer
cinematography	William Pope
editing	Evan Henke
music	Christophe Beck
studio	Columbus 81 Productions Skyview Entertainment Good One Productions
distributor	Netflix
runtime	95 minutes‡R1R‡
country	United States
language	English
budget	$70 million‡R2R‡

Plot

Cast

Production

Music

Release

Promotion

Reception

Critical response

Accolades

External links

References