“Flamin’ Hot” (2023) – “I’ve got a PhD. I’m poor, hungry, and determined.” – Richard Montañez (Jesse Garcia)
Audiences should feel physically hungry and emotionally satisfied after watching “Flamin’ Hot”. You see, Richard, a long-time janitor at Frito-Lay’s Rancho Cucamonga factory, convinced the company to push his spicy snack food idea, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, to market, in director Eva Longoria’s film, a biopic about Mr. Montañez and his success.
“When I first read the story, I cried four times. How do I not know this story? I’m Mexican American. This guy’s a hero from my community. I want to shout this story from the highest mountaintop,” Longoria says in an April 2023 interview with IMDb.
Longoria and writers Lewis Colick and Linda Yvette Chavez do call out Richard’s narrative, but the movie unfolds at ground level in a personal, touching account of a family’s love, support, and heritage.
The 99-minute flick moves linearly, and we see Richard’s entrepreneurial spirit at a young age. Born in Ontario, Calif., he became popular in elementary school by selling burritos at lunchtime, bringing smiles to his classmates and himself. However, the harsh realities of instilled racism of the 1970s struck down his enthusiasm. Richard drops out of high school, turns away from education, and spins to mischief and criminal pursuits.
Thankfully, Judy (Annie Gonzalez) – his loyal and steadfast girlfriend and then wife – sticks by Richard and continuously coaches him out of crooked careers and towards honest, earnest choices.
A quote from another film comes to mind when thinking about Richard’s crossroads.
“I always knew what the right path was. Without exception, I knew. But I never took it. You know why? It was too damn hard,” – Lt. Col. Frank Slade (Al Pacino) from “Scent of a Woman” (1992)
With Judy’s ever-present moral compass and wells of encouragement, Richard does choose the right path, despite emotional and economic adversity. Their road is too damn hard, but they still place one foot in front of the other.
Jesse and Annie are dynamite as an on-screen couple. Colick and Chavez’s script and the two leads dedicate several touching moments where Judy offers caring words or frank sermons about his and their family’s constructive direction.
(For the record, cheers to the hair department for offering several hairstyles for Judy over the movie’s 20-year (or so) timeline. Their thoughtful efforts have not gone unnoticed.)
It’s not entirely clear, but Judy – this critic believes – works in retail. Richard applies for work at the local Frito-Lay plant as a janitor. The couple’s partnership – in landing his job – shines on full display, like Las Vegas Blvd. on a Saturday night in two moments that will elicit empathy and playful chuckles, respectively.
Richard starts his new gig, and – straight away – he discovers the corporate caste system but forms friendships and dodges internal antagonists as best he can. Dennis Haysbert delivers a welcomed performance as Clarence C. Baker, the factory’s lead engineer, as the actor’s commanding presence offers a grounded gravitas of business sobriety but also streaks of hope for Richard. Our lead doesn’t wish to mop floors until his deathbed, and he begs and borrows but doesn’t steal for Clarence’s friendship and guidance; he even dives into his patented move from grade school!
The narrative regularly volleys between work and home as Richard pushes for advancement (that will seemingly never come) and maintains a happy household despite financial strains, and Longoria doesn’t shy away from them. She drops in mentions like “the name brand corn flakes” is a luxury. Also, the Montañez children deal with racism like their parents did as kids, and money and bigotry problems are simply part of their daily lives. Although the Montañez family copes with trying realities, the film doesn’t always wade in somber pools, as some well-placed and hilarious dream sequences land with some big-time laughs, and veteran comedic actor Tony Shalhoub sports a winning supporting role as Roger Enrico, the company’s CEO. Shalhoub plays Enrico straight, but he gladly dives into the aforementioned alternate-reality moments.
With all the talk about at-home struggles and a daunting corporate ladder laced with barbed wire and thumbtacks, “Flamin’ Hot” is also about perseverance, ingenuity, and reaching into your everyday cultural loves to discover the next big idea!
Richard, Judy, and the boys find it, and the youngest Montañez, Steven (Brice Gonzalez), sums up their breakthrough by exclaiming, “It burns good!”
So does this movie. Well, more accurately, “Flamin’ Hot” is a warm, inspirational, and stand-up-and-cheer underdog story.
⭐⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Directed by: Eva Longoria
Written by: Lewis Colick and Linda Yvette Chavez
Starring: Jesse Garcia, Annie Gonzalez, Dennis Haysbert, Tony Shalhoub, and Matt Walsh
Runtime: 99 minutes
Rated: PG-13
Image credits: Hulu, Disney+
