If there is one thing I have missed most since the COVID-19 locked down the world is a nice cold pint of craft beer at my local tap house or dive bar. The flights sampling the local brewery, the hoppy aroma and taste igniting the senses, and the solid sound of relaxation as the filled glass is placed on the bar top have become a distant memory. So much so, dipping a toe into home brewing has replaced learning to make bread and endless Netflix binges. Thankfully, 2021 brings us Brewmance.
Brewmance, from Christo Brock, kicks off with Jim Koch, founder of Sam Adam’s, speaking to the audience. There is a soft nature as he speaks of the art and joy of craft beer, one he has been a major player in. There is a love in his eyes as he talks about the hops and the yeast that make beer. He has built his entire career on four simple ingredients, and it is clear that he loves what he does.
Following his introduction, viewers are greeted by the sounds of beer and the clanking of glasses as the film brings us through visual and auditory captures of craft beer. The sounds and the visuals are warm, especially if you are a fan, inviting you in not as a viewer but as a fellow lover of “liquid art”.
Crafting a romance
From the very beginning, it becomes clear that Brewmance is a love letter to the homebrewers and the journey of the craft beer revolution. Much like the four simple ingredients of beer, Brewmance captures the four elements of the craft brew industry: passion, perseverance, ingenuity, and drive. Through interwoven threads, viewers are introduced to the history of craft beer alongside the openings of two new breweries in Long Beach, California – Ten Mile Brewery and Liberation Brewing Co.
Beginning with these four ingredients, brewmasters and experts guide viewers through the process of making beer, a montage of their collective insights speaking to the breadth the revolution has encompassed. As they speak, viewers are continually brought back into the personal journey of two homebrewers attempting to take their love and craft to the next step, the passion of a community maintained through the continued pursuit of others. The combination of the two at times becomes very personal, driving home the connective nature of beer and brewing.
“It’s hard to make a good beer”
At one point in the documentary, a talking head speaks to the four simple ingredients and their elusive properties that can make them so difficult to manipulate and merge. There is a parallel that can be drawn between the difficulty to make beer with the challenges of crafting a documentary. You have your ingredients, but they don’t always come together as intended. For Brewmance, there is a disconnectivity often through its editing style. Too often, transitions to different scenes or moments are presented through a long-held black screen, breaking the hold the film might have had on its audiences.
And while the history surrounding the craft revolution is ever-present, I had expected more. It felt as though the entirety of the revolution was not presented to audiences, half of the story left behind. While it presented a parallel between the journey of the two opening breweries to the journey of craft beer in America, it became more about the present than the history that inspired these homebrewers to go big.
Conclusion: Brewmance
Brewmance closes out with a sense of unity and continued perseverance. While the new breweries are a success, they continue to face the same challenges as other emerging breweries – a bloated market, competition, and the need to be the best. Yet, in the face of continued adversity, the drive to push forward continues.
Given the current nature of the economic climate due to the pandemic, there is an added weight on the film, a sadness seeing the hard work put into each of the breweries and the new unprecedented adversities they must be facing. Yet, if there is one thing you leave Brewmance with is the understanding that those who do what they are passionate about will continue to push forward, and there is a community of impassioned people right behind them.
Have you seen Brewmance? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!
Brewmance will be released VOD on April 13, 2021.
Watch Brewmance
Does content like this matter to you?
Become a Member and support film journalism. Unlock access to all of Film Inquiry`s great articles. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about cinema – get access to our private members Network, give back to independent filmmakers, and more.
Join now!
