Movies
Weekend Box Office
Film Awards & Top 10s By Year
All-Time High Scores
All-Time Low Scores
Wide Releases
Now In Theaters
76
(500) Days of Summer
49
2012
60
9
17
All About Steve
37
Amelia
53
Astro Boy
70
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
52
Blind Side
47
Box, The
61
Capitalism: A Love Story
55
Christmas Carol, A
43
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant
66
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
23
Couples Retreat
39
Fame
30
Final Destination, The
34
Fourth Kind, The
41
G-Force
46
Halloween II
73
Hangover, The
78
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
66
Informant!, The
69
Inglourious Basterds
58
Invention of Lying, The
47
Jennifer's Body
66
Julie & Julia
34
Law Abiding Citizen
54
Men Who Stare At Goats, The
67
Michael Jackson's This Is It
28
Pandorum
58
Pirate Radio
39
Planet 51
30
Saw VI
53
Shorts
33
Stepfather, The
45
Surrogates
46
Twilight Saga: New Moon, The
71
Where the Wild Things Are
67
Whip It
28
Whiteout
73
Zombieland
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
Limited Releases
Now In Theaters
58
(Untitled)
96
35 Shots of Rum
56
Adam
39
Adventures of Power
66
Afterschool
73
Amreeka
49
Antichrist
76
Baader Meinhof Complex, The
86
Beaches of Agnes, The
71
Big Fan
65
Black Dynamite
76
Bliss
26
Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day, The
44
Brief Interviews with Hideous Men
81
Bright Star
76
Broken Embraces
70
Bronson
62
Cloud 9
65
Coco Before Chanel
69
Cold Souls
60
Collapse
82
Cove, The
75
Crude
82
Damned United, The
53
Dare
50
Defamation
67
Departures
70
Earth Days
85
Education, An
55
Endgame
88
Fantastic Mr. Fox
31
Fix
49
Food Beware: The French Organic Revolution
80
Food, Inc.
xx
From Mexico with Love
28
Gentlemen Broncos
72
Good Hair
89
Goodbye Solo
63
Horse Boy, The
74
House of the Devil, The
xx
How to Seduce Difficult Women
26
I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell
70
It Might Get Loud
46
Killing Kasztner
43
Little Traitor, The
34
Looking for Palladin
80
Lorna's Silence
46
Love Hurts
84
Maid, The
45
Mammoth
75
Messenger, The
55
Missing Person, The
59
More Than a Game
34
Motherhood
62
My One and Only
48
New York, I Love You
66
No Impact Man
26
Oh My God
68
Paranormal Activity
68
Paris
79
Precious: Based on the Novel by Sapphire
73
Red Cliff
69
September Issue, The
79
Serious Man, A
65
Skin
41
Splinterheads
42
Staten Island
50
Stoning of Soraya M., The
58
Storm
82
Sun, The
49
Ten9Eight: Shoot for the Moon
73
That Evening Sun
61
Trucker
49
Turning Green
83
U2 3D
45
Uncertainty
67
Visual Acoustics
32
War on Kids
67
Way We Get By, The
65
Wedding Song, The
xx
White on Rice
59
William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe
74
Woman in Berlin, A
43
Women in Trouble
69
Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
Bottle Shock
Mixed or average reviews
Based on 26 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 21 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Drama
Written by:
Lannette Pabon (story)
Ross Schwartz (& story)
Jody Savin (& story)
Randall Miller (& story)
Directed by: Randall Miller
Release Date:
Theatrical: August 6, 2008
DVD: February 3, 2009
Running Time: 110 minutes, Color
Origin: USA
Summary
RATING: PG-13 for brief strong language, some sexual content and a scene of drug use
Starring Alan Rickman, Chris Pine, Bill Pullman, Rachael Taylor, Freddy Rodriguez, Dennis Farina, Eliza Dushku, and Bradley Whitford
There are certain moments in history when America has proven itself to the world: Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon or the US Men's Hockey team beating the Soviet Union in the 1980 Olympics. One such moment, however, never got the recognition it deserved: In 1976, a small American winery bested the exalted French wines of the time and sent the wine industry into a tizzy--putting California wines on the map for good. Based on the true story, Bottle Shock chronicles the events leading up to the famous "Judgment of Paris" tastings, told through the lives of father and son, Jim and Bo Barrett, as well as British wine shop owner, Steven Spurrier. Little did Steven and Jim realize that they were both on a course that would change the history of wine forever. (Freestyle Releasing)
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Bottle Shock is more than the story. It is also about people who love their work, care about it with passion and talk about it with knowledge.
Read Full Review >The Hollywood Reporter Stephen Farber
This intelligent, affectionate, beautifully acted movie gives crowd-pleasers a good name.
Read Full Review >USA Today Claudia Puig
It's the kind of feel-good movie whose resolution is evident from the start, being based as it is on a true story. But that doesn't make the journey any less interesting.
Read Full Review >TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
A charming comedy-drama that's surprising true to the events that inspired it.
Read Full Review >New York Post Lou Lumenick
Beautifully shot by Michael J. Ozier, the dominating taste in Bottle Shock is Rickman's beautiful performance as a snob - a snob who is secretly open to being delightfully surprised.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone Peter Travers
It's a winner. And not just for oenophiles. Director Randall Miller, who co-wrote the script with his wife Jody Savin, keeps the plot brimming with spirit and wit.
Read Full Review >Boston Globe Ty Burr
Low budget, self-distributed, awkwardly charming, it's the kind of midrange Hollywood entertainment that's supposed to be extinct in this modern age. It makes you want to support your local vintner and your local moviemaker.
Read Full Review >LA Weekly Scott Foundas
Just around the halfway point, something unexpected happens -- the movie actually gets good. You can chalk that up to the delightful Alan Rickman.
Read Full Review >Washington Post Stephen Hunter
Whatta movie: booze, unhappy French people, Alan Rickman and really cool pickup trucks.
Read Full Review >Variety Robert Koehler
Wine lovers won't just sip but guzzle a lot of this down, and the same effect that sun-dappled days and sex in California had on "Sideways" operates here.
Read Full Review >Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan
Bottle Shock never quite connects. And considering the more recent transformation of Napa, the movie's triumphant ending rings a bit false.
Read Full Review >Film Threat K.J. Doughton
I found myself in a tug-of-war between enjoying Bottle Shock as entertaining fluff, and thinking that there might be a more serious, gritty, complicated story lurking behind the grab-ass soap opera.
Read Full Review >Slate Dana Stevens
So why did I feel such affection for this scruffy, hokey little movie? Maybe it's the same logic that applies to wine-drinking itself: Sure, a great claret would be ideal, but an OK rosé is better than washing down your dinner with water.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson
Trouble is, it's too rambling and digressive to feel focused, yet too calculating to feel as observational and natural as a good Altman flick.
Read Full Review >Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips
Wine may be sunlight held together by water, as Galileo said, but Bottle Shock is held together only by Alan Rickman.
Read Full Review >The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jason McBride
For all of its intermittent, crowd-pleasing charm, oenophiles (and cinephiles, for that matter) might be better off putting their money toward a good bottle of Robert Mondavi.
Read Full Review >The New York Times A.O. Scott
Bottle Shock is unable to figure out what kind of movie it wants to be, and flops around between madcap comedy and rousing drama. To borrow a wine-snob term of art, it lacks structure.
Read Full Review >Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea
A great story - and a true one, more or less - Bottle Shock nonetheless fails to deliver much in the way of entertainment.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Michael Ordona
The soul of the grape, that thing that elevates a wine to greatness, proves here as elusive on screen as in the bottle.
Read Full Review >Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez
Bottle Shock often feels out of place on the big screen, but it would probably play a lot better as a weekly half-hour TV show.
Read Full Review >Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow
Bottle Shock wastes that intriguing bit of history and some seductive Napa Valley settings on a bland script that's part period piece, part underdog fable.
Read Full Review >Village Voice Robert Wilonsky
The movie should have been more like Rickman: sparkling and light, with just a hint of acid. Instead, it's a huge gulp of vinegar.
Read Full Review >New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman
Unfortunately, Miller never finds the right balance, so while there are some sweet notes, the pileup of clichés ultimately leaves a slightly acrid aftertaste.
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten
Stuff the cork back in: This wine movie was sold before its time.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Reyhan Harmanci
This schlocky period piece doesn't do the pioneering Northern Californians justice. The script is overwritten to the point of parody.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 5.7 (out of 10) based on 21 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Mark C. gave it a10:
For a lover of the idea of a man or woman's dare to dream, I loved it. I am young hopeful winemaker from Oregon and that movie gets me every time. Its a beautiful story. It is Hollywood and it can be critiqued if you want to look that far in to it. But for me it is more of the overall message and the secret appeals of living life true to your heart. Loved it.
Paul L. gave it a2:
Glad I didn't pay for theater tickets on this one. Characters were one-dimensional caricatures for the most part; no depth or complexity. Story had great potential, but fell short. Funny how shiny all the cars were after driving down the dirty country roads in France. And the shack where the love scene happened in Napa was not a believable scene - if the architecture were real she'd be a constant distraction to field workers with the lack of privacy, her person and property would be unsecure, and she'd have serious problems in inclement weather.
Carlito D. gave it a6:
Starts slow and ends corny but everything in between is nice. Don't expect greatness and you'll not be disappointed.
Deborah K. gave it an8:
Found this movie to be very refreshing! Maybe it's because I was 18 in "76" or maybe it's the fact that I love California wines. It had a really good feel about it and seemed like real life. Sorry I didn't see it until it was on a pay channel. Have watched it 3 times.
Johnny2cents gave it a4:
Bottle Schlock. What could have been a Grand Cru turns into a Grand Poo. Uninspired, unconvincing and unbelievable. I am sure that this was so not the way it went down and that the real Barrett's must have cringed at watching themselves portrayed as cliche American morons.
Den M. gave it a1:
Better to be called "Bottle Schlock." What a disappointment. Amazing how Hollywood can mess up a great story through poor screenwriting, bad direction, really bad set design, detectable wigs, unskilled makeup, and cinematography that looks like a TV commercial from a Learning Tree class. Somebody should have kept the camera boom, the helicopter, and the yellow filter away from that cameraman. This film was so bad, we made lemonade, so to speak, and actually had fun making fun of the film, catching all the errors, continuity problems, moving reflectors, and atrocious editing. Wow! I need a glass of good wine!
Rick D. gave it an8:
Small.simple, and, although the love story was a bit contrived, real and engaging. Strong performances by Rickman and Pullman, with a nice little supporting performance by Freddy Rodriquez. Exquisite to look at and absorbing throughout, I consider this a lttle gem that uses its talented cast to create believable characters acting like people act (with enough theatricality to keep it interesting). Nicely done!
