Director Prentice Penny
Starring Mamoudou Athie, Courtney B. Vance, Niecy Nash
Rated M
Score 3/6

Elijah must balance his dream of becoming a master sommelier with his father’s expectations that he carry on the family’s Memphis BBQ joint.

I went to this having seen the trailer after it popped up in my email. I am not overly familiar with director Prentice Penny’s work and Uncorked is Penny’s second feature length movie and I was sort of vaguely familiar with only some of the actors who were cast in this.
This was filmed on location in Memphis, Tennessee and Paris, France. There were not any breathtakingly beautiful shots though given the opportunity I would like to visit Memphis. Uncorked was described to me as something that ‘provides the perfect temporary escapism for lovers of wine, food, and travel’. I would argue against that and say that there are other ‘food’ movies that are better than Uncorked (there wasn’t a scene that caused me to think I need Memphis BBQ and I Need it now) though I did like Elijah’s speech about wines and rappers in the first act of the movie.
I felt that Mamoudou Athie gave an enjoyable performance and I think I might have to check him out in a few of his other movies. Both Courtney B. Vance and Niecy Nash gave good performances.
My biggest complaint about the movie was the arguments Elijah (Mamoudou Athie) and his dad Louis (Courtney B. Vance) didn’t have any heat. Good arguments don’t have to end with punches being thrown they just need passion.