Flamin’ Hot movie review: Why Flamin’ Hot is the most inspirational film of the year

Flamin’ Hot from Searchlight Pictures is set to become the first movie to release on Disney+ and Hulu simultaneously. Is it worth watching? Absolutely! Below, I share why Flamin’ Hot is the most inspirational film of the year.

"When the world treats you like a criminal, you become one."

What if I told you the man who created the Flamin’ Hot Cheetos was an ex-criminal without a high school diploma? You’d probably think I was lying to you or you’d Google it the moment I told you about it. Richard Montañez was a man who had the odds stacked against him from the time he was born and came up with the revolutionary idea while struggling to make ends meet.

"I want food that tastes like home."

This isn’t your prototypical biopic, as this one is infused with love and passion for sharing this incredible journey of not just one man, but a family. You can watch this movie and learn so much about resilience, passion, and fighting, but the underlining story that I loved was how Richard’s wife stood by his side no matter what. Without her, Richard never would have made it.

Everyone in front of and behind the camera understood the story that they had, and that includes a star-making turn by Jesse Garcia as Richard Montañez. Montañez was someone with this infectious personality that when he was on, everyone else around him was as well, and Garcia delivered all of who Montañez was and more. He was charming, loveable, relatable, and easy to root for because Garcia brought that to life. The same can be said for Annie Gonzalez, his scene partner as Richard’s wife, Judy. While Garcia had the meat of the story, Gonzalez brings so much heart to Judy opposite of Richard, elevating the film tremendously.

The movie Flamin’ Hot is filled with so much heart and soul

Eva Longoria hits a home run in her directorial debut, and a lot of that has to do with being handed a brilliantly written script from the team of Linda Yvette Chávez and Lewis Colick. Longoria has been in this business long enough to understand an important project, but even more to know where the camera needs to be at the right spot at every moment. I can’t wait to see what she has in store for us in her next feature.

Overall, with an entire team working from top to bottom to make this thing with so much passion and heart, it resulted in one of the best movies of 2023. It’s such an inspirational journey that will inspire so many people. Flamin’ Hot is beautiful and will have you in tears, so have the tissues ready.

Flamin’ Hot hits Disney+ and Hulu on June 9, 2023.