'Uncorked' review: Old Story with New Vocabulary  

Elijah tries sincerely to keep a balance between work and studies but the master sommelier exam he wants to attempt is no mean feat.
Still from the film
Still from the film

Uncorked, a recently released film on Netflix, doesn’t tell a new story but it does reiterate an old lesson: Follow your dreams despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges. In the end, it’ll be worth it.
Elijah, played by Mamoudou Athie, is a young man with a passion for wines. He wants to become a sommelier. But his father, played by Courtney B Vance, who runs a family-owned BBQ restaurant established by his father in turn, doesn’t approve. He wants his son to be a part of the family legacy instead of tasting grapes and wasting his time. 

Elijah tries sincerely to keep a balance between work and studies but the master sommelier exam he wants to attempt is no mean feat. The pressure to keep up starts becoming unbearable. The final straw comes when his mother, played by Niecy Nash, succumbs to cancer. A huge loss for Elijah as she was his only ardent supporter. She encouraged him when nobody did.


But the absence of any emotional reaction from him or other family members upon her demise seemed unreal. Not one tear is shed, not one word is spoken. Also, the fact that she dies abruptly throws you off. A minute ago she’s declared sick and a few scenes later, without any real build-up, she dies.Elijah’s predicaments about being there for his father and also trying to follow his heart have been treated well throughout the script. He is helpless many times through the screenplay but holds it together with a dignified bearing. He is disheartened yet determined. Understated and even-toned, Elijah goes about doing the right thing for his father and himself.

In all of this, the character that seemed redundant was Elijah’s girlfriend Tanya, played by Sasha Compère. With nothing much to say or do, her talent was grossly underutilised. Through the film, there are several references to the existing black bias. It’s interspersed with subtlety within poignant contexts. How white people are served cookies before black ones at the hospital where Elijah’s mother is getting cancer treatment, is just one example.

The film ends on a resolute note but the execution seemed incomplete. You’re expecting a climax but it ends. Nonetheless, it makes the point it started out with which is to follow your dreams. And no matter how many times the same is repeated, it will always find resonance because our dreams do make us more alive. 

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