The Sommelier

****READ the NOVEL on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CFJY72H2 ******** In the cellar vaults of the Sumner Winery, an unknown intruder surprises and kills legendary winemaker Broderick Sumner, 85, stabbing him brutally with a sommelier knife’s corkscrew. Thousands of gallons of maturing pinot noir are also lost in an apparent act of “vino vendetta.” The trail leads police to the sommelier, Arturo Cuellar, who is arrested and charged with the crime. One year later, at a quiet memorial dinner in his bistro, Ronan Sumner, Broderick’s son, feuds with sister Sandrine, and family lawyer, Darden, over the fate of their late father’s estate. Darden brings news that a new addendum to the will has been approved by the probate court-- Along with Broderick’s ex, Victoria, the siblings must pass a Master Sommelier exam in order to be named sole beneficiary of the estate and seize controlling interest in the winery. As they assemble at the Sumner Chateau for the test, word that Arturo has been released from jail on a technicality reaches them, casting a pall over the proceedings, but the exam begins in earnest. Administered by Arturo’s replacement, Nigel DuPaul, a renowned Master Sommelier from Europe, the group does well in the blind tasting, a selection from the late Broderick's cellar. But when Ronan detects a fake amidst his samplings, it puts a crimp in the final tallying of scores. Before they have time to investigate further, Victoria abruptly collapses, becoming deathly ill. Nigel calmly reveals that they have all consumed deadly doses of poison along with their wine and have only 90 minutes remaining until it takes full effect. The attack on the palate has never been deadlier, and this will not be a finish to be savored. Nigel reveals that he is actually Nigel Densham, son of Broderick’s longtime rival, Anton Densham, and has come to avenge a wrong perpetrated long ago by the Sumner clan, against the Denshams. Ronan and company are stunned and outraged, but kept in check by Nigel’s hired muscle, composed of disgruntled vineyard workers.   And so, the next exam begins, the final one. Ronan, Sandrine, and Darden find themselves pawns in the sommelier’s deadly game, held at gunpoint, poison running through their veins, and time running out. But rather than just watch them die, Nigel has very detailed plans, and a prize beyond revenge. The hostages must locate a unique collection of super rare vintages, rumored to be worth 10 million dollars, scattered around the estate grounds, in order to be granted the antidote. As a simultaneous plot to burn the vineyard down begins, it’s clear that appearances are not everything, no one can be trusted... and "terroir" has a new name. Ronan must unravel the mystery, locate the treasure trove of expensive rarities, and put an end to Nigel’s plan before all is lost. The SOMMELIER  Vengeance has a new vintage. ***********************The REVIEWS are in on The SOMMELIER********************************************************* ""The Sommelier" is a masterfully crafted screenplay that stands out with its unique setting and authentic scenarios stemming from the context of wine... the mystery aspect of the narrative is very compelling, and it is certainly a very entertaining screenplay... The ensemble of characters is well-developed when it comes to their dysfunctional dynamics and authentic demeanors that make them original characters. The competition of who should get the chateau between the three siblings is a strong example... The plot is bulletproof when it comes to its design... The use of subtext and subtle emotional responses to tell us what the characters are going through. Glances, gestures, and micro-actions, especially during the moments where Ronan doubts Arturo's motivation, are strong examples of masterfully crafted dialogue. Besides that, each character has a unique voice on the page that makes them distinctive, and little quirks within their demeanors tell us more about their personas. Seeing Roman worry during the exam is a crucial scene in this regard, and so are Nigel's reactions when Ronan reveals the wine tasting consists of fakes. Their sophisticated use of language and high proficiency levels also add great authenticity to their interactions and make the overall scenarios more believable... the story stands out before its successful predecessors and the current competitors within the category simply because of its authentic characters and the scenario with the wine. This increases its marketability significantly... The story is auspicious... the writer's knowledge of wine tasting, and drinking adds great value to the screenplay as they have created an immersive and believable fictional world." *********** "Really enjoyed the Sommelier. It's a fun, horror adjacent little piece set in a fun world. It's a great idea and I think you'll have some luck on this one. It's a great job... CONCEPT: I like the concept a ton. The idea of a wine dynasty on a murder mystery is so much fun and you did a great job with the various generations... PLOT: Nice work again. I liked it. I like the way you put it together... CHARACTERS: I think you did a great job. The big, bad Somm is a fun villain. My mind immediately went to slasher, but this is far classier than that... DIALOGUE: Nice work here... there were funny lines and things were clear. People had distinctive voices and you did a nice job... THEME: I don't know that you particularly need a theme, but the idea of revenge is so strong running through the piece I'll give you a 5. I hate that "Theme" is required because so many great films don't have one... I like this. It's well written and I think if you send it around you might have some luck. It's rare to read something good so I don't have much else to say. Keep up the good work." **************** "I really enjoy a good murder mystery story! I love to revel in the juxtaposition of vicious and barbaric actions from affluent characters in the backdrop of high society that these stories so often tend to exist in. From classics like THE MALTESE FALCON (1941), MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS (1974), and CLUE (1985) to more modern successes like KNIVES OUT (2019). There's a lot that goes into making a murder mystery story work to which THE SOMMELIER has varied success... CONCEPT: I mentioned this above, but I want to repeat it here because it applies to this script as well. The brutality and vindictiveness of these characters' actions play such a great foil to how people perceive the microcosm of the wine world. People think of wineries and vineyards as upper-class, refined, and elegant, but this story really challenges those preconceptions right off the bat and doesn't let up for a second. No matter how hard the characters try to present this sophisticated front, they can't hide the venom dripping beneath. Tonally, combining this pulpy thriller with a dark family drama is a good pairing. That part of the concept really works for me. On top of that, I've personally always been super fascinated with wine connoisseurs and the study of winemaking. So, any time the characters were actually having in-depth discussions about wine, I was very interested in listening. I enjoyed all the wine talk... I also think you made great use of the winery setting. You established Sumner Estates as this gorgeous, sprawling vineyard with lush rolling hills. You were able to utilize so many different locations on the same property, which kept the story feeling fresh. From the Chateau to the catacombs to rows of the grove. Each location gave the story a different feel. I imagine watching this film would be visually stunning... CHARACTERS: You did a very good job ensuring your characters were properly motivated with goals that felt extremely important to them individually. At no point did I feel like the characters didn't care about what they were doing. Not only was everybody properly motivated, but I also felt like each character was constantly pursuing their goal, even to their own detriment at times. And to put the cherry on top, their goals were in conflict with each other. Kudos on all of that because you have a lot of characters and most of them feel very active... All these competing goals also generate a lot of character drama. These characters obviously don't get along with each other and they aren't shy in showing that. The story really benefitted from all of this drama because even when the characters needed to work together, we the audience, were prepared for them to stab each other in the back at any moment... Ronan has a great desperation about him, which makes him a good protagonist (and later a surprise antagonist) for this story. He feels competent, yet still like an underdog, which is a hard balance to strike, but it works... DIALOGUE: The way the characters talked was really consistent throughout. I felt like these characters all came from super affluent upbringings. They felt upper-class to me. But the characters that were supposed to be lower class had a different cadence, which was a good thing. To reiterate, I loved any time the characters were really discussing wine (which is a lot in this script)! You definitely seem like you either know what you're talking about, or that you've done your research... THEME: Some of the themes I was picking up on were things like betrayal, bloodlines, lineages, blood ties, wealth, and a struggle for power. For the most part, these are serious themes that give your story a SUCCESSION-type nastiness to it... There's one recurring motif that I really liked, and I think you can double down on it. Obviously, in a script called, THE SOMMELIER, wine plays a huge role in the story. These characters are obsessed with wine. They almost revere it in a spiritual way. Wine is their life, their livelihood, and also the death of (some of) them. Wine is an extremely versatile symbol. The dichotomy of wine is vast. Wine is both ancient and contemporary. It's debaucherous and classy. It's celebratory and mournful. Wine can represent so many different facets if highlighted in the right way at the right times. In Catholicism, wine is representative of the "Blood of Christ," and "blood of grapes." Also, there's a very vampiric way these characters behave. The way they leech off of each other is extremely predatory in a lot of ways. Your story uses wine as a function of the plot really well, but I think you could draw more of these parallels to what wine can represent symbolically for your characters to better enrich and deepen the themes of your story." *************** "From the first glimpse, you seem to have great writing ability... I enjoy your dialogue so much. I also enjoy how you introduce your characters... this is a brilliant script for those who like this specific genre. You've done a great effort and you are a very good writer" ********** Overall, I initially thought that it felt a little bit like Clue meets Sideways, which is a good thing... I think the setting and visuals that you have can be done nicely and keep the story contained. The vineyard, the cellars, the caves, etc. are all pretty cool." ************* "Overall: The action scenes were well-realized, and there were a lot of them. They all made sense within the plot and used the tools at hand (wine bottles, etc.) to good effect... I really, really loved the wine-tasting test... Setting: I really liked the idea of setting an intrigue like this in a winemaking operation and vineyard. Setting worked well with the plot... Enjoyed the nod to Poe, both in the introduction and the flashback cellar scene with the bells."