I can’t deny that part of the reason I started watching Uncorked is that I knew it would be set in Paris, France, at least some of the time. I imagined this fact might just help me get over the cancellation of my Spring 2020 travel plans. It probably helped a tiny bit in the end.

The main reason I watched writer/director Prentice Penny’s drama was to see a young man’s (Mammoudou Athie) journey as he tries to balance his personal aspirations of becoming a master sommelier with his father’s (Courtney B. Vance) expectations of him.

From Vance, Athie, Matt McGorry and  Sasha Compére, everyone in Uncorked performed well. I had a good time watching Penny’s movie, especially after the slower pace near the beginning subsided. I found the story structure refreshing, specifically, how it unfolds, versus how my years of film-loving experience led me to believe it would go.

As for specific moments that will stay with me, the first is the main family dinner scene which was funny, relatable and well choreographed. The others are pretty much every scenes that features Nash, a wonderful actor whose presence onscreen has a way of putting me at ease.

Overall, I enjoyed the film’s depictions of friendship and family, all of which included a healthy injection of humour. If, like me, you like stories of people working hard to make their dreams come true, however unexpected and challenging the journey, I say give Uncorked a chance. It may just give you that extra push to keep working hard towards your own goals, whether you want to become a master sommelier or something else entirely.

Happy Film Loving,

G