The James Molesworth blog over at WineSpectator.com takes a stab at film criticism, throwing a wet blanket on Somm, the film that documents the quest of four sommeliers leading up to the challenging Master Sommelier exam.
To be fair, the subhead on the Molesworth blog called his a "minority" opinion, for the film has generally played to enthusiastic audiences and has a good buzz simply by word of mouth. What I liked about Somm was the very personal, very human element of the four subjects.
The film was technical enough without being so geeky that casual wine drinkers would flee the theatre in bewilderment. What everyone got from the film was a sense of the dedication required to pass the difficult Master Somm exam. The preparation is gruelling and many wonderful sommeliers do it and fail. Again and again.
I found the film inspiring, but I work closely with somms in the course of doing my job, and I respect their professionalism. Too bad James Molesworth didn’t see it that way.
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