Wine is inspirational. It’s not only food, it’s practically a way of life! A lot of movies have been made as a toast to its influence, the way this liquid treasure has touched our food, our culture and our lives. To give you a picture of the world’s sentiments towards wine, we’ve made a list of 7 amazing and highly regarded movies that pay homage to the humble bottle.
The Secret of Santa Vittoria
Let’s start with this 1969 film by United Artists. It has a great story from a best-selling novel by Robert Crichton. It tells the compelling tale of the citizens of the Italian winemaking town of Santa Vittoria and their efforts to hide a million bottles of delicious wine and to outwit the Nazi troops occupying their town.
The film scored 7.5/10 on IMDb, and it was nominated in the Academy Awards for Best Film Editing and Best Musical Score. It was nominated again for an Eddie award for Best Edited Feature Film.
Corked
Who doesn’t love a hilarious mockumentary? This one from Brian A. Hoffman and 28 Entertainment stars arrogant but different would-be connoisseurs from Northern California who try to win over a celebrity wine critic and to ultimately get their wine to the Golden Harvest Gala. We follow their outrageous journey as they find ways to push their wines into the lime light.
The movie has 3 stars from Rotten Tomatoes’ audience reviews and a fair 6.8/10 score from IMDb.
Mondovino
Know more about what you’re drinking.
Literally translated from Italian as ‘World of Wine’, this bottle-loving documentary by American filmmaker, Jonathan Nossiter shows the different effects of globalization on the world’s wine regions. It heavily differentiates the giant conglomerate winemakers of today and the small wineries who have made wine for generations with their traditional ways.
The documentary has a high score of 3/4 from Roger Ebert and a 70% positive rating by film critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
SOMM
Most people have no idea what a Sommelier is. They are trained professionals who specialize in wine services and food pairings. This film is a story of four sommeliers to attempt to pass one of the most difficult exams ever made, the Master Sommelier exam. Trying to beat the test with one of the lowest passing rates in the world, the four candidates do whatever it takes to get their titles.
Aside from a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 77% fresh, the film was also named Best Documentary Feature at the 2013 San Luis Obispo Film Festival.
Red Obsession
Love red wine? This Australian documentary, narrated by Russell Crowe, gives us a glimpse of the world’s obsession for reds. It’s a feature of an incredible journey from the classic Bordeaux to China, an unlikely country that’s gaining higher and higher demands for red wine, forcing traditional buyers out of the game.
The documentary has been rated with a 3.7/5 on Apple’s iTunes, a whopping 86% score in Rotten Tomatoes and two awards from the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts which are Best Feature Length Documentary and Best Direction in a Documentary.
A Tale of Autumn
Conte d’automne is a renowned French movie and the last installment of Eric Rohmer’s tetralogy, Tales of the Four Seasons (Contes des quatre saisons). It’s a witty and romantic story of a widowed winemaker and the two men she meets through her friends’ matchmaking efforts, one being a funny newspaper ad for a new husband.
The movie received two awards, the Golden Osella for Best Screenplay at the Venice Film Festival and a Best Foreign Language Film by the National Society of Film Critics. It also has enormous scores from film review websites, 94% from Rotten Tomatoes and a perfect 4/4 on Roger Ebert.
Sideways
Lastly, we have one of the best comedy-drama you’ll ever watch. From Rex Pickett’s novel, it’s a loving tale of two middle-aged men, a depressed teacher and failed writer and an old actor who is way beyond his prime with their unforgettable trip to the winemaking region of Santa Barbara County, meeting its people and falling in love.
The movie got an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and a nomination for Best Picture. It’s also marked as 96% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a perfect score of 4/4 from Roger Ebert.
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