Anyone born and raised in Wisconsin has a love and respect for cheese. And the turnout at Milwaukee Film Festival’s centerpiece film The Big Cheese reminded me that when it comes to cheese, Wisconsinites show up. The theater was packed for this documentary about American cheesemongers – an occupation I had admittedly never thought about until Friday evening.
That’s exactly the hope of this documentary, directed by Sara Joe Wolansky in her debut feature film: to bring awareness and respect to American cheesemongers on a global stage.
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The Big Cheese follows Adam Moskowitz, a larger-than-life, high-energy cheesemonger. You might be wondering what exactly is a cheesemonger. Simply put, as the name suggests, it’s a professional who sells cheese. But it’s also more than that: They know everything about the tasting notes, flavors and best pairings for every cheese. For the cheesemongers in this doc, cheese is more than just their occupation; it’s their passion. They live and breathe cheese – literally.
Identifying cheese by its smell, texture and taste alone is one piece of the annual cheese competitions that Moscowitz hosts. His contests between the best cheesemongers in the States are meant to find the best team to represent the country at the Mondial du Fromage – the world’s ultimate cheesemongering championship. His goal? To put America on the map for cheese and to bring some respect to our name by winning it all.
At these competitions, cheesemongers also have to do an oral presentation where they essentially “sell” a cheese to the judges, create a cheese pairing and design a cheese plateau (think ultra-fancy charcuterie board) to determine who is the best.
The documentary is as much about cheesemongering – and the intense skill and talent it takes to do it – as it is about the cheesemongers themself. We learn about Adam Moskowitz and his past as a rapper, weed dealer, Yahoo employee and busboy, as well as his struggle with addiction. And we see firsthand the diverse backgrounds and walks of life the other cheesemongers come from. Truly anyone who’s passionate enough about cheese can find themselves in this profession.
I loved the tension throughout the film: America as the underdog in the cheese world, Adam looking for redemption, the competitors working toward the highest achievement in their passion. We get to see the buildup to the competition, as well as the competition itself in a way that feels reminiscent of but deeper than a reality cooking show like “Top Chef.” It came together in a satisfying and heartwarming way that left everyone in the audience feeling happy (and hungry for cheese).
(We actually were given boxes of cheese courtesy of Wisconsin Cheese before the film, but I admittedly ate all of mine before it even started and regretted not waiting to actually taste the different notes after learning more about how cheese is just like wine or coffee, where there are notes to be tasted.)
This is one of those documentaries that’s a perfect balance of inspirational, educational and emotional. I was delighted every time the audience audibly reacted during the screening – cheers at Wisconsin cheese shoutouts, gasps, the folks next to me leaning forward in awe of their skills – all wonderful signs of how great this film is.
