Mondovino: The DVD

Mondovino--Jonathan Nossiter's film on globalization and evil in the wine business is even better on DVD because of some very juicy extra footage. Zippy stuff.

I love seeing Becky Wasserman inspect some poor shnook of a winemaker’s dead vineyard soil --pumped full of herbicides. It reminded me of my mother trying to make sense of the outfit I put together, one part pity and the other part horror. Later on, trying to illuminate the comparison between plastic surgery and cosmetically enhanced wine, Jonathan interviews a plastic surgeon (friend of Michel Rolland). During the back and forth, the good doctor obsessively pumps a breast implant form.

Best of all was the dinner scene chez Parker in Maryland. "The French," Parker explains to Jonathan, "can defend their oak better than they can their terroir."

Then he proceeds to try to convince Jonathan that the world is indeed flat.

Highly recommended.