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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready....
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready....
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Bottle Shock Stars: Bill Pullman, Alan Rickman, Chris Pine, Freddie Rodriguez, Rachel Taylor, Eliza Dushka, Dennis Farina and Miguel Sandoval Director: Randall Miller Scriptwriters: Randall Miller and Jody Savin Cinematography: Michael J. Ozier IPW Productions Rating: PG 13 for language, sexual content and drug use Running Length: 110 minutes It is an apt time for Bottle Shock to open. The 2008 Olympics are on and the story of the underdog that tackles the big guys is on the front page. Such is the theme of this story by director/writer Randall Miller (the wonderful Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing & Charm School) and Jody Savin. Each film had that indefinable thing called “heart.” In Bottle Shock the heart of the world’s wine is supposed to be France, however those upstart Americans have decided to make their own wine and it just might, just might, you understand, be good. This film is based on a true incident in 1976, which is when this film is set. It was the American Bicentennial and tension was over wine. As the story goes, Jim (Bill Pullman) and his son, Bo (Chris Pine with blonde hair and he will be the new Captain Kirk) own a struggling vineyard (Chateau Montelena) in the Napa Valley of California. Jim stepped away from the corporate world to start the vineyard and to take out his frustrations, he and Bo go at it in a boxing ring (better than wrestling, I guess.) Bo could be termed a “wild child” and counts surfing as a necessity. Their close friends are workers, Gustavo (Freddy Rodriguez) and his opera-loving father (Miguel Sandoval), who have a secret. Enter two people to throw cold water on everything. First, there is the British wine connoisseur, Steven Spurrier (Alan Rickman in a comedy role you won’t forget) and Sam (Rachel Taylor) a wine-making intern from a local college. Now there are two stories going on side by side. Gustavo and Bo are in competition for the affections of the free-spirited Sam, and Steven Spurrier decides to hold a blind wine-tasting contest to see if the American wine are anywhere near the quality of French wine. Along the way, you will learn things about making wine (difficult) and the color of wine (prime importance.) Tension builds as we near the actual contest and how to transport the American wine to Europe without disturbing the bottles. Talk about ingenuity. Humor is provided by the antics of the competitive Bo and Gustavo over Sam, and Alan Rickman, who steals every scene he is in. Rickman portrays a snob who gradually returns to Terra Firma when he samples guacamole with chips and a certain brand of fried chicken. The camera centers on his face and this is an acting lesson in itself. No words need be spoken. Bill Pullman seems forced in the role of Jim and the relationship between he and his son in the boxing ring doesn’t seem true. Chris Pine hides behind a mop of hair, but when you can see his face, he brings reality to Bo. Freddy Rodriguez as Gustavo shows the frustration of being a worker yet a friend to the owner. Rachel Taylor’s Sam could have been played by anyone. She doesn’t make a mark. The dialogue between Rickman and his friend in England, Dennis Farina, shows refined snobbery at its best. They play a mental game of one-gunmanship over wine. The photography in Bottle Shock is well done by Michael J. Ozier and one scene, in particular, will stay with young lovers, as it is set in a three-walled shack overlooking a field of grapes. Photography is also part of the cast, as whenever there is a point to make, the camera roams over the countryside. I found “Bottle Shock” (a wine term) to be slowly paced at times, but making its points about wine-making, competition, friendship and international relations with America being at the bottom of the list and rising to the top. Acting is competent, but Rickman and Farina shine. Copyright 2008 Marie Asner
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