Bottle Shock
Freestyle Releasing | Release Date: August 6, 2008 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
56
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 26 Critic Reviews
Positive:
11
Mixed:
13
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger 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
80
The Hollywood ReporterStephen Farber
This intelligent, affectionate, beautifully acted movie gives crowd-pleasers a good name. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy 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
75
USA TodayClaudia 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
75
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
A charming comedy-drama that's surprising true to the events that inspired it. Read full review
75
New York PostLou 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
75
Rolling StonePeter 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
70
L.A. WeeklyScott 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
70
VarietyRobert 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
70
Washington PostStephen Hunter
Whatta movie: booze, unhappy French people, Alan Rickman and really cool pickup trucks. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianMarc 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
60
SlateDana 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
60
Film ThreatK.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
58
The A.V. ClubTasha 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
50
Chicago TribuneMichael 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
50
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
Light-bodied comedy. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldRene 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
50
Baltimore SunMichael 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
50
Philadelphia InquirerSteven 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
50
Los Angeles TimesMichael 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
50
The New York TimesA.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
50
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
40
New York Daily NewsElizabeth 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
40
Village VoiceRobert 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
30
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Stuff the cork back in: This wine movie was sold before its time. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleReyhan 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
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