MUTE (2018) w/ Jessica Maison - Paired with German Wines that Don't Belong

This week we’re joined by our Produce-er, Jessica Maison!

Did you know you could support the show and this Substack at the Produce-er level, commission your own episode, PLUS get a shout out in every episode!

Well, you can.

Jessica commissioned her episode a few weeks ago which we covered here:

But today, she’s here to follow up on her previous guest appearance last year when we tackled director Duncan Jones’ debut feature, MOON starring sam Rockwell:

So today we’re following up with the second installment in Ducan Jones’ loose trilogy of sci-fi stories that all take place in the same universe: 2018’s “Netflix Original” MUTE.

Mute was actually the first movie Jones wanted to make, but when he brought the script to actor Sam Rockwell, Sam wanted the lead, a character that (at least as far as Jones was concerned) required someone with a more physically imposing presence. They couldn’t convince each other of their respective desires (Jones wanted Sam to play one of the two co-antagonists) but they hit it off bigly, so Jones went home and ccranked out a brand new script just for Rockwell, and that project became Moon.

But here’s the interesting part: Mute was originally a London-based street crime mystery-drama, not sci-fi at all. It was making Moon that had Jones consider if Mute would be enhanced by a similar sci-fi approach. And, unforunately, at least as far as all 3 of us were concerned, the answer is “no”.

Mute was not well recieved upon release, and we strongly suspect it was because the Blade Runner-lite trappings put audience expectations outside of what this story actually was: a narrowly-focused, character-driven crime drama.

I enjoyed the movie on the whole better than Dallas or Jessica, but we all agreed that the third act nearly saves the whole thing. It’s a CRAZY final 30 minutes! Not action packed, mind you, but nevertheless crazy. Alexander Skarsgard plays the mute protagonist (the role Rockwell wanted), while Paul Rudd chews the scenery and Justin Theroux delivers one of the most charmingly terrifying performances since Hannibal Lector. He’s so stupidly likeable and yet holy shit wait for those final 30 minutes.

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Mentioned in This Episode

EXOTICA (1994) by Atom Egoyan

Atom is one of the great Canadian directors and EXOTICA is considered one of his finest. If you’ve never taken the plunge into this one, you owe it to yourself. Go in blind.

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Chapters

2:11 Wine Trivia Question of the Week

3:31 Special Guest Jessica Maison Intro

6:40 Moon (2009) to Mute (2018)

21:03 Our Hot Takes on Mute

36:19 Dave Goes to Bat for Mute

45:33 We All Agree: The Third Act is the BEST

58:55 Weingut Schlossmühlenhof Boden Funk Rheinhessen Sauvignon Blanc 2023

1:02:18 2022 Maison Barboulot Cabernet Syrah

1:05:54 2017 Schnaitmann “Steinwiege” Pinot Noir Württemberg

1:12:30 Answer to the Wine Trivia Question

1:14:08 Wrap-Up!

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And special spotlight shout out for Jessica’s Substack here:

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The Wine Pairings

Jessica’s Pairing

Weingut Schlossmühlenhof Boden Funk Rheinhessen Sauvignon Blanc 2023

Jessica picked this wine for several reasons. One, it’s German and the film is set in Berlin. Two, it’s a woman winemaker, Gabriele Schlossmuhlenhof (and the wine was purchased from Jessica’s favorite local shop, Vinovore, which focuses on all women-made wines) and Mute’s protagonist and main antagonist are completely driven by two female characters, Naadirah and the daughter, Josie.

But, mainly this wine is natural, white, dry, and has some grit with electrifying acidity, just like lead character, Leo (Amish, no tech!)

The name “Boden Funk” loosely translates to sound waves or soil waves. The idea being that the unique characteristics of a vineyard’s wine are transmitted to the grapes. The sound waves and the soil waves really connected to Leo and Duck - Leo’s inability to speak and Duck’s obsession with his own homeland.

Lastly, two of the main characters are AWOL American soldiers in a culture not their own, and Sauvignon Blanc is a grape that similarly does not “belong” in Germany, but finds itself there.

This wine is like a dry Riesling with a lot of acidity and citrus notes. Someone called in Beyonce’s Lemonade which I think kind of sums it up, especially if you are thinking about the album, not just the drink.

Weingut Schlossmühlenhof Boden Funk Rheinhessen Sauvignon Blanc 2023

Dallas’ Pairing

Yes, this wine is SIX BUCKS at Trader Joe’s!

2022 Maison Barboulot Cabernet-Syrah

Dallas is the outlier this week, picking a non-German wine! For him, this film is about the everyday in a seemingly extraordinary world. Its visual palette is sumptuous, vibrant, but also moody, which screams Syrah.

But the film also feels pedestrian in many ways, or “accessible” perhaps. And for Dallas, that part screams something like a Cab Sauv.

Overall, the film was satisfying, but mostly because he often weights “the try” rather than solely weighting the execution. And this film is a very solid try.

The third act certainly delivers a finish and polish to the storytelling and arcs. And the dual antagonists (Paul Rudd and Justin Theroux) alongside the reveal at the end are quite good.

So with all that in mind, he decided to find a “good table wine” more or less. He imagined something that was equal parts Syrah and Cab Sauv-esque. And then remembered our good old friend Joe the Trader, who luckily for us has set up stores all around our fair city of Los Angeles.

Specifically, that 2022 Maison Barboulot Cabernet-Syrah. 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Syrah from the Languedoc in the South of France. It is fermented in concrete tanks and aged a few months with French oak staves.

Lots of deep red fruit, there’s some vanilla, even a little bubble gum and this film does feel a little like elevated bubble gum.

And both are, overall, very satisfying.

2022 Maison Barboulot Cabernet-Syrah

Dave’s Pairing

2017 Schnaitmann “Steinwiege” Pinot Noir Württemberg

So my thinking was similar to Jessica’s, but I decided the focus was on the American expats - the people that were out of place, in the wrong culture, so I needed a wine that was out of place.

Mute is a fairly austere film, even though it’s superficially candy-colored with science fiction elements and colorful (sometimes fatally so) characters. But the story is slow to unravel, it’s day to day, about relationships that are fraying due to each character’s weaknesses.

So I also though of Germany, and of an austere wine made from a grape that doesn’t belong, isn’t from there, but that would bring a balance of austerity and intensity. So I went with German Pinot Noir, or “Spätburgunder”, as the Germans call it because they hate money.¹

2017 Schnaitmann “Steinwiege” Pinot Noir from Württemberg - a region known for its red wines in Germany (70% of wine from this region is red!) Aged 18 months in old neutral casks and then rests in bottle several years before release, so this 2017 is the latest release, similar to this movie, held back and aged before finally coming out to the public.

Pinot came to Germany in the 1400’s, but always struggled to ripen in the cold climate. But climate change + new vinification techniques now allow German Pinot to shine. It stuck it out in this foreign land until it synched. This Pinot is light in body, has tart sour cherry notes but also a little bit of richer depth, some black cherry sweetness is in there, too, some herbaceousness and earthiness and minerality. It’s that perfect balance, German, and a grape out of place.

2017 Schnaitmann “Steinwiege” Pinot Noir Württemberg

1. They’re starting to like money, though, as this bottle called it Pinot Noir! So at least the bottles being explorted are going with the more well-known name.