Bottle Shock

Who: Bill & Melanie
What: Bottle Shock
Where: Borrowed the DVD from our neighbor
Why: It takes place in the Napa Valley

In 1976 the Napa Valley had an emerging reputation of growing high quality grapes, which resulted in some outstanding wines. But outside of a handful of wine connoisseurs, few people were aware of this. Bottle Shock tells the story of a small family-owned winery called Chateau Montelena, and how its wines and other California-based wines (many produced in the Napa Valley) "shocked" the world when they bested the more-established French wines at a blind taste testing known as The Judgement of Paris.

Filmed primarily in the Napa Valley (with nearby Sonoma being used for scenes taking place in Paris), Bottle Shock is an entertaining and enjoyable story with a unique blend of actors of past and present "vintage": Bill Pullman as Jim Barret (owner of Chateau Montelena), Chris Pine as son Bo Barret, Alan Rickman as Steven Spurrier (the man who organized the blind taste test), Rachael Taylor as Samantha, Freddy Rodriguez as Gustavo, Eliza Dushku as a street-smart local bartender named Jo, and Dennis Farina as Maurice.

I was raised in Napa, so anytime I hear of a movie that takes place or was filmed there, it immediately gets my interest. Bottle Shock was one such film. It premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and had a limited run in theaters. Most people probably still have not heard of the movie. It is worth seeking out, not only for its compelling story, but for its incredible cast. In particular, Chris Pine wasn't well known when Bottle Shock was being filmed. That has since changed with his acclaimed performance as the young James T. Kirk in the recent re-launch of the Star Trek franchise. His comes from an acting family: mother Gwynne Gilford has had small roles in TV shows and movies over the years and father Robert Pine is best-known from co-starring in the long-running series "CHiPs". Eliza Dushku has appeared in many popular movies such as True Lies, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, and a recurring role in Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. She is currently starring and co-producing in Joss Whedon's latest television series Dollhouse. Rachael Taylor has appeared in a number of recent movies including the 2007 blockbuster Transformers.

Because Bottle Shock is about wines and wine-making, one enhancement to your enjoyment would be to watch the movie with a glass of Chardonnay or Pinot Noir-- preferably from the Napa Valley of course. Salud!

Waitress

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Waitress
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  Jonathan picked it

I was surpised when Jonathan picked this movie.  I think he thought it was a comedy.  It was kind-of funny, but it was way more drama than comedy.

Jenna is a waitress at Joe's Pie Diner.  She is a pie making genius (makes crazy named pies called "Earl's a Jerk Apple" and "Mermaid Marshmellow"), but she's stuck in a loveless marriage.  Her husband Earl is a total jerk, but he does show flashes of niceness.  It's an odd character, he's controlling (Jenna isn't allowed to have a car and she has to bake for him 24/7), but he does love her.  You have to hate him, but you're torn at the same time.

The opening scene shows Jenna and her 2 work friends in a bathroom.  Jenna is holding a pregnancy test ... it's positive!  She is upset.  She's trying to save money to run away from Earl.

I don't want to give a lot away, b/c it's a really cute movie.  Jenna deals with the pregnancy the smart way, she eats properly, goes to the doctor all the time, but she's not excited about it at all.  Don't tell her "congratulations", that's for sure.

Did I mention she does to the doctor all the time?  That's because her doctor is really cute.  Dr. Palmater thinks Jenna is cute too.  Too bad he's married.

Will Jenna run away from Earl?  Is the doctor really married?  Will Jenna win the pie contest, and win a bunch of money?

One sad note, one of her pie co-workers is the writer of the movie.  Unfortunately she was murdered before this movie aired at the Sundance Festival.  She was a great actress and obviously a great writer.

Be Kind Rewind

Who: Jaclyn
What: Be Kind Rewind
Where: @ Home
Why: I don't know why anymore...

Be Kind Rewind is about a couple of buddies (Jack Black and Mos Def). One of them works in a junkyard (Jack Black) and the other works at the local video store...that only carries VHS (Mos Def).

When the video store owner goes away, he leaves Mos Def in charge. Well something happens to JB's character which magnetizes him. Of course, when he visits his friend in the store, he ends up erasing all of the VHS movies.

When the two of them realized what happened, they have to act quickly to fix the problem since the store owner checks in with one of the regulars there and she's coming to rent a movie.

Believing that she won't know the difference, they quickly shoot a home movie of Ghostbusters (the movie she wanted) and stuff it in the case, ready for her arrival. Once more of the customers come for rentals, they have to start making other movies.

45 minutes into this movie, I wondered why I was still watching it. It sounds like a funny concept but it's SO slow and the acting is SO horrible that when it finally hit the hour mark, I stopped it and returned it...no rewinding necessary.

Be Kind (to yourself) and don't bother.

Outsourced

Who: Jaclyn
What: Outsourced
Where: At Home
Why: Random Curiosity

For anyone who has worked in a call-center or for anyone who has called a call-center, this movie will make you laugh.

After his department gets outsourced to India, American novelties sales supervisor Todd Anderson (Josh Hamilton) has to travel to India to train his replacement and get their center up and running.

Upon arrival in India, nothing seems to go right for him. He has a big case of culture shock and everyone keeps calling him Mr. Toad (picture the accent saying "Todd").

Todd has a deadline to get the call times down before he can leave so he's in a hurry to make this happen since he is not enjoying his stay until he gets to know one employee who he ends up liking.

Complete with Bollywood music (it's fun to dance around the house to) this movie has a good message with humor throughout.

The Darjeeling Limited

Who: John & Tammy
What: The Darjeeling Limited
Where: @ home
Why: We had been trying to watch it all weekend (roommate's Netflix)

I'm generally a sucker for a good indie flick and I had seen the trailer for this one awhile back. It gets off to an awkward start with a short film "Hotel Chevalier" in which Natalie Portman and Jason Schwartzman have about the most ungraceful love scene ever imagined.

The film itself opens with a seemingly strange cameo of Bill Murray unsuccessfully chasing down a train named "The Darjeeling Limited." I will say Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and Adrien Brody make for a hilarious trio. They travel through India (mostly on the before mentioned train) on a quest to reunite and solidify their bond as brothers and more importantly as friends.

If I had to rate the film, I would give it a slightly above average 3 1/2 out of 5 stars. It doesn't leave you with some grand ideal or lesson learned, but still somehow feels complete by the time the last frame flickers out. All in all if you enjoy indie flicks, I would recommend catching this movie over a weekend matinee at home.

And if indie flicks aren't your cup of tea, I would say move along there's nothing for you to see here. Besides, you can always catch the next blockbuster at your local AMC this coming weekend.