Comedies

Honeymoon in Vegas

July 1, 2014August 30, 2022 LizLockeLeave a comment

A recent trip to Las Vegas has prompted me to re-watch some of the better movies set in Sin City, including Casino, Oceans Eleven, The Hangover, 21, and my personal favorite (and this week’s Cinema Sips pick), Honeymoon in Vegas (DVD/Download). This film gives a bit of an outdated view of The Strip (prompting my mother and I both to wonder- Is Bally’s even there anymore?) but even without Cirque du Soleil ads and trendy restaurants, it’s still a delightful romp about the dangers of gambling, the dry heat of the desert, and the timeless hilarity of Elvis impersonators.

Honeymoon In Vegas is one of the better films to come out of Nicolas Cage’s weird-n-wild oeuvre, only because in this one, his intense, slightly insane mannerisms really work for the character. He plays private investigator Jack Singer, a man terrified of marriage who nevertheless proposes to his longtime girlfriend Betsy (played by Sarah Jessica Parker). They run off to Vegas to elope, but before they can get to the chapel, he enters a rigged poker game set up by mobster Tommy Korman (played by James Caan). Of course Jack loses, and instead of paying money that he doesn’t have, he agrees to let his girlfriend spend the weekend with the mobster. James Caan takes SJP to Hawaii while Nicolas Cages runs around like a chicken with its head cut off, and hijinks ensue. Some great cameos to look for are Pat Morita (aka Mr. Miyagi) as the Hawaiian taxi driver, as well as little baby Bruno Mars singing his heart out as a child Elvis impersonator. The story is ridiculous, but it always gets me excited for Las Vegas, and hopeful that one day I’ll actually spot an Indian Elvis wearing a turban. It’s like seeing a Yeti.

On the cocktail front, I had the good fortune of attending some great Texas Tiki Week events last week. I always look forward to the last week of June because it means Austin becomes a sea of rum drinks in commemorative tiki glasses. How appropriate then to mix up a classic tiki drink to enjoy while watching Sarah Jessica Parker flaunt her perfect body on the beaches of Hawaii. When watching Honeymoon in Vegas, I recommend drinking a Mai Tai.

Mai Tai

1oz light rum

1oz dark rum

½ oz lime juice

½ oz orange curacao

½ oz orgeat syrup

Maraschino cherry and fresh lime for garnish

Pour all of the ingredients except the dark rum into a shaker filled with ice cubes. Shake well, then strain into an old-fashioned glass (or Tiki mug if you have it) half filled with ice. Top with more chipped ice, then add the dark rum. Garnish with a cherry, lime, and a drink umbrella.

As much as I love Vegas, my favorite parts of this film are definitely the Hawaii scenes. Watching Nicolas Cage shout Kapa’aa into a pay phone just makes my year. And let’s not forget the South Pacific sing-along with Peter Boyle’s island chief. As a child I often wondered how the parakeet brandy they drink was made- crushed feathers? Beaks? To be on the safe side, stick with the Mai Tai, and never forget- if you’re about to jump out of an airplane dressed as Elvis, it’s yellow, then red. Kabluna, and Cheers!

Uncategorized

Dirty Dancing

June 23, 2014 LizLocke3 Comments

This week on Cinema Sips, I’m featuring a great summertime classic movie that pairs oh so well with a seasonal fruity cocktail. Dirty Dancing (DVD/Download) was a movie that I was forbidden to watch as a child, so of course my desire to see it grew to epic proportions until I finally watched it at a friend’s house around age fourteen and thought, “That’s IT??” I’d seen more scandal on All My Children on pretty much a daily basis by then, so what my mother’s reasoning was for keeping me in the dark, I still don’t know. But I will say, once I got over the disappointment that my world was not indeed rocked by this movie, I wanted to watch it again and again for the magic that is Patrick Swayze.

Dirty Dancing is the coming-of-age story of a young woman, Baby Houseman, who goes to a resort in the Catskills with her family over the summer, and falls in love with her dance instructor. Jennifer Grey was cast as Baby (despite that nose and badly permed hair), and Patrick Swayze plays bad-boy dancer Johnny Castle (what a name!!!). He teaches her the merengue; she teaches him that rich people are capable of kindness. They make love in his cabin and wear the latest 80’s fashions (despite this film taking place during 1963). Pretty much everybody in this movie is forgettable, with the exception of Mr. Swayze. He’s sexy, funny, vulnerable, and man- can he move! I love it when tough guys can also dance, and in his case, sing too. “She’s Like the Wind” is SOOOOOO 80’s, so again, why is it in this 60’s set film? Who knows. Dirty Dancing veers so close to being a terrible movie we love to make fun of, and of course I do mock parts of it relentlessly, but when it comes down to it, I could watch Baby and Johnny in the lake every day and still swoon every time.

My drink this week is inspired by Baby’s famous line when she first meets Johnny. “I carried a watermelon.” Yes Baby, you successfully brought fruit to a sexy dance party. Well done. I enjoyed this particular cocktail at San Antonio’s Hotel Havana last summer, and I was really excited to find a recipe for it in my favorite cocktail bible, Tipsy Texan. While watching Dirty Dancing, I recommend drinking a Watermelon Sandia.

Watermelon Sandia

2 oz Vodka

¾ oz St. Germain elderflower liqueur

1 ½ oz watermelon water (see note)

¾ oz fresh lime juice

¼ oz simple syrup

Watermelon wedge for garnish

Combine all the ingredients, except the watermelon wedge, in a shaker with ice and shake vigorously to chill. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with the watermelon wedge.

Note: I made my watermelon water by muddling chunks of watermelon into a strainer placed over a small bowl. The solids will collect in the strainer, and the water will flow into the bowl.

Nothing says summertime like watermelon and a passionate fling, though of course we all hope that Johnny and Baby live happily ever after (until he most likely gets drafted and sent to Vietnam). My favorite part is when Johnny punches through the window in his car, causing Baby to shriek “You’re Wild!!” about 5 miles down the road. To which my husband always shouts, “He just made that poor girl sit on broken glass!” So crank up the air conditioning, sip your Sandia, and remember- nobody puts Baby in a corner. Cheers!

Comedies

Spanglish

June 16, 2014July 27, 2022 LizLockeLeave a comment

This week on Cinema Sips, I’m making the bold choice to feature a movie so unabashedly girly and saccharine that I run the risk of being ridiculed for admitting I really like it. But, I will take the heat because it pairs so well with a delicious summertime sangria. See what love I have for you readers? The movie I’m watching is Spanglish (DVD/Download), a 2004 James L. Brooks film that was forgettable to most people, but for me, has cemented its place in my pantheon of Sunday-afternoon rom-coms that I never get tired of watching. Because air-conditioned Sunday afternoons are what summer is all about, I’m popping this one in the DVD player and ignoring all the haters.

Spanglish stars Adam Sandler as a loveable, talented chef whose family hires a beautiful Mexican immigrant to be their housekeeper. He’s married to a cheating, neurotic mess of a gal (played a little too over-the-top by Tea Leoni) so of course the lovely Flor Morales (played by Paz Vega) becomes the object of his desire. She doesn’t speak English, he doesn’t speak Spanish, but they fall for each other anyway. Flor’s daughter is also thrown into the mix as the families become closer over a summer spent at the beach. Perhaps it’s my envy of their beach house that keeps me tuning in year after year to this comedic saga, but I like to think I’m also responding to the excellent (as always) script by James L. Brooks, and the unexpected charm of Adam Sandler. He’s absolutely delightful in this, leaving behind all of the juvenile frat-boy humor of his youth (and unfortunately his present, by the looks of the trailer for Blended). Cloris Leachman of course steals every scene she’s in as the boozy grandmother of the family, and it’s because of her character that I’m never without a drink when I watch this film.

Cloris sticks mainly to white wine in Spanglish, so in honor of her amazing comedic talent, I’m mixing up a white wine peach sangria this week. Of course, part of this decision was based on the fact that peaches are wonderfully in season in Central Texas where I live, and I was hankering for a way to use them in something. I’m not much of a cook, so a fruity cocktail it is. When watching Spanglish, I recommend drinking a Sparkling Peach Sangria.

Sparkling Peach Sangria

2-3 peaches, sliced

¾ cup brandy

1 bottle sparkling wine (such as Moscato)

1 liter white peach seltzer water, chilled

In a pitcher, place ¾ of the sliced peaches and brandy and lightly muddle. Add the sparkling wine and seltzer water, stirring gently with a wooden spoon to mix. Pour into glasses (over ice if you’re enjoying this outdoors, or into a champagne flute if you want to be fancy like me!) and top with a few fresh peach slices.

I had the pleasure of enjoying this drink at a party over the weekend, and it did not disappoint! It’s best to mix up a big batch of this because the movie does run a bit long, but for me, that just means more Adam Sandler to love. Also, kudos to Mr. Brooks for capturing the neuroses of the interior design professional PERFECTLY (I say this because I used to be an interior design professional). Tea Leoni plays it so well. So sit back, drink up, and enjoy this movie about family, culture clash, forbidden love, and maybe the best looking sandwich ever captured on film. Cheers!

Dramas

Saving Mr. Banks

June 9, 2014 LizLockeLeave a comment

Pop quiz- what film seamlessly merges a favorite childhood movie with the style and jet-set look of Mad Men? Answer: Saving Mr. Banks (DVD/Download). This was one of my favorite films of 2013, and it’s my personal opinion that Emma Thompson was robbed by not getting an Academy Award nomination- ROBBED. Since it’s maybe a little weird to be pairing a cocktail with a kid’s movie (though Disney World is selling alcohol in the Magic Kingdom now), I’ll forgo my fantasies of getting drunk and singing along with Burt the chimney sweep in favor of a cocktail pairing with a more adult movie about the making of Mary Poppins (DVD/Download). Showbiz movies are my favorite Netflix niche genre, and this particular film is one of the greats.

Saving Mr. Banks offers a behind-the-scenes look at the process of bringing Mary Poppins to the big screen. Based on the books by P.L. Travers, this was a property highly coveted by Mr. Disney, and highly protected by the author. She finally agreed to consider selling him the rights to the stories, only after making sure she had script approval. So, the cranky Englishwoman journeys to Los Angeles circa 1961 and wreaks havoc on the smiley, giddy, happy-to-be-alive Disney employees working on the film. Tom Hanks does a fine job of playing Walt Disney, and particular kudos go to B.J. Novak and Jason Schwartzman for playing the Sherman brothers, who wrote the music and lyrics for so many classic Disney songs. Hearing the songs I know so well being crafted in Saving Mr. Banks gives me a new appreciation for the artistry behind them, and I give credit to these men for strengthening my childhood vocabulary with words like fiduciary and precocious. The movie veers off periodically to discuss Travers’ childhood trauma and how Mary Poppins came to be, and yes Colin Farrell is magnetic as her father, but it’s the adult scenes with Emma Thompson where the movie really shines. I laughed, I cried, I wanted to get up and dance to “Let’s Go Fly a Kite”. I call that a cinematic success.

My cocktail today references the medicinal flavor-of-choice for Mary Poppins. As she says, a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, and while this drink is never actually consumed in Saving Mr. Banks, I couldn’t help referencing that wonderful scene in the original film. Thus, when you’re watching Saving Mr. Banks, follow Mary Poppins’ lead and drink some Rrrrrum Punch.

Rrrrrum Punch

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1/2 cup grenadine syrup

1 cup white rum

½ cup dark rum

1 cup pineapple juice

1 cup orange juice

1 pinch nutmeg

Orange slice

Mix all ingredients together in a pitcher, punch bowl, or bottle. Chill in the refrigerator at least an hour before serving over ice. Garnish with nutmeg and orange slice.

I’m not sure what kind of “medicine” this is, but it does certainly make me happy to drink it. Even if Saving Mr. Banks was really just one big Disney propaganda film to make you want to go out and buy Mary Poppins and visit Disneyland, all I can say is- sign me up! Walt Disney had a knack for making people see the magic in our world, and I think he would have been pleased with this film- for even though we’re seeing the real story behind the magic, it doesn’t make it any less delightful. Cheers!

Comedies

Gentlemen Broncos

June 2, 2014 LizLocke4 Comments

Warning: things are about to get weird. After OD’ing on girly high school movies in May, I’m kicking off the summer with one of the more bizarre films in my DVD collection. I like to think it’s gained a sort of cult following over the years, but maybe it’s just a cult of me, my husband, and our friend Allen. Oh, and Tilda Swinton, who was quoted in the March 21^st, 2014 issue of Entertainment Weekly as saying that this film was “kind of insane….Just go and find it.” Find it I did, in the 99-cent bin at Blockbuster, to which my husband exclaimed, “They’re practically giving it away! Don’t they know what they have??”

Gentlemen Broncos (DVD/Download) can only be described as an enormous box office flop. Budgeted at $10 million, it only ended up grossing just over $113,000 when it was released in 2009. I vaguely remember Jemaine Clement (who plays author and plagiarizer Ronald Chevalier) coming to our city to promote the film, and then it just sort of vanished. Written and directed by Jared and Jarusha Hess of Napoleon Dynamite fame, Gentlemen Broncos is essentially a story about a young boy who dreams of becoming a science fiction writer, only to see his manuscript stolen, and his book Yeast Lords adapted into a terrible low budget film. While this story is playing out, the filmmakers also intersperse the story of the actual manuscript, acted out a couple of different ways by the always-brilliant Sam Rockwell. It’s confusing, but stay with me. The hilarity of the film stems from its satire of the science fiction genre, complete with bizarre character names, troll analysis, and pompous writing. Jennifer Coolidge steals just about every scene she’s in, playing the mother of the young writer who makes rock-hard popcorn balls, lives in a geodesic dome house, sells Dynasty-era nightgowns and befriends a redneck with a python (played with creepy aplomb by Mike White). This movie is so, so bizarre, but I absolutely cannot stop laughing throughout it.

Of course, even the greatest bad movies can sometimes benefit from a strong cocktail. It can’t hurt, right? In honor of the movie-within-a-movie-within-a-movie-within-a-movie Yeast Lords, I’m making a beer-based cocktail. This one features citrusy notes that pair well with a Hefeweizen, and is a great drink to kick off summer. When watching Gentlemen Broncos, I recommend drinking a Yeast Lord.

Yeast Lord

1 oz bourbon

1 oz fresh lemon juice

1/4 oz simple syrup

4 oz Hefeweizen beer (I’m using my favorite German Hefeweizen, Weihenstephaner)

Lemon Wedge

Mix first three ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, and strain into an ice-filled glass. Top with Hefeweizen, and garnish with Lemon wedge.

Each time I watch Gentlemen Broncos, I always wonder- what must the actors have thought when they read the original script for this? Did they laugh out loud like I do every time I watch it? Did they shrug their shoulders and just figure that it was so bizarre, somebody was bound to find it funny? I like to think that this movie is well on its way to achieving cult-classic status, and surely this groundbreaking and bound-to-be-highly-read post on Cinema Sips will push it over the edge. Or, maybe it’ll just be me, my husband, Allen, and Tilda Swinton in on the joke. Either way, I’m ready for a cocktail and a laugh. Cheers!

Comedies

Heathers

May 27, 2014 LizLockeLeave a comment

I’m concluding High School Month on Cinema Sips with a classic dark comedy. 1989’s cult hit Heathers (DVD/Download) was a pretty big departure from the heartwarming teen romances seen in John Hughes films from that decade. In this film, Winona Ryder and Christian Slater romance each other over dead bodies and games of strip croquet. As a whole, the film is disturbing, hilarious, and absurd- kinda like high school, right? Plus, it’s even funnier with a cocktail, and how excited am I to finally be using some of that Blue Curaçao I bought for a Breaking Bad party?? We’ll get to the mug of blue liquid in a minute.

For those who haven’t seen it, Heathers is sort of a twisted version of Mean Girls. Winona Ryder plays Veronica, a smart, pretty girl who is invited to be part of the Heathers clique (and by “Heathers clique” I mean that all the girls in it are named Heather). In the 90’s my school was filled with Jennifer/Jen/Jennie’s, so it’s pretty easy to see how this clique could happen. I’m currently waiting for a remake of this movie called Emmas, or Madisons. But I digress. In Heathers, Winona Ryder meets Christian Slater’s character JD, and together they accidentally (then on purpose) start murdering the popular kids, while making the murders look like suicides. Pretty soon the whole school is caught up in suicide fever, which causes some truly so-awful-but-so-funny moments (ie. Martha Dumptruck hurling herself in front of traffic with a suicide note taped to her Big Fun t-shirt). My favorite part is definitely when the two homophobic football players meet their doom at the hands of “ich lüge” bullets, and Christian Slater sets it up to look like a gay suicide pact, placing bottles of mineral water and Joan Crawford postcards on the bodies. As I said before- disturbing, hilarious, and absurd.

My drink this week references the demise of queen bee Heather Chandler, who drinks a mug full of drain cleaner and face plants into a glass coffee table. Obviously, my drink has to be blue, and served in a coffee mug. Some great blue drinks come out of the world of tiki cocktails, and I am very excited this week to be sharing one. When watching Heathers, I recommend drinking a Big Blue Freeze.

Big Blue Freeze

3/4 oz Rum

3/4 oz Blue Curaçao

3/4 oz creme de coconut

2 oz pineapple juice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice and shake until chilled. Fill a mug 3/4 full with crushed ice, and pour mixture over top.

Although Heathers was a pretty big box office bomb, I am so thrilled that generations of teenagers are now seeing and loving this movie. It was definitely ahead of its time, and I credit it with being the foundation upon which great movies like Mean Girls and The Virgin Suicides were built. I read an article recently about the sudden nostalgia for Heathers, which has even spawned an off-Broadway musical. I’m not sure how I feel about a theatrical adaptation of this amazing film. Honestly, I think I’d rather sit at home watching the original and popping popcorn with Martha Dumptruck. How very. Cheers!

Classic Films

Splendor in the Grass

May 19, 2014July 26, 2020 LizLocke1 Comment

I’m switching gears a bit on my high school movie binge this May to revisit a classic high school film, and by classic I mean pre-John Hughes. Splendor in the Grass (DVD/Download) was released in 1961 and stars Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty (in his first feature film role) as two star-crossed Kansas teenage lovers. Though I’m of course a big fan of classic cinema, this film has always felt timeless to me. It captures teen angst in such a pure way- ie. that feeling of every little problem being a life or death situation, the intensity of emotions, and inability to wait for the future to happen. On the surface it’s a high school movie about “going all the way”, but really it’s about the passion of youth and the remembrance of things past.

Splendor in the Grass tells the tale of Bud Stamper and Deanie Loomis, two teenagers in rural Kansas. He’s a rich boy who wants to shirk the family oil business in favor of becoming a farmer, and she’s the daughter of a humble shopkeeper. When the movie begins, it’s clear that Bud and Deanie are the most popular couple in school, and genuinely in love. However, soon teenage lust rears its ugly head, and Bud can’t reconcile his passionate yearnings with the “good girl” on his arm. There is a betrayal, and Deanie is driven mad with grief. The film is set against the background of the Roaring ‘20s, and it’s fun to see Bud’s flapper sister come to town to shake up the family. Deanie’s clueless mother also deserves special mention, since her cure-all for mental illness seems to be a big plate of mystery meat and gravy. As the Fresh Prince so wisely said, “Parents just don’t understand.” The beautiful Natalie Wood does an amazing job of becoming unhinged, and it’s easy to see why Warren Beatty was a heartthrob in his day- Yowza! Sorry, but he puts pretty much any teen idol of recent years to shame.

My drink this week is inspired by the Wordsworth poem that is recited during the film- “Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, glory in the flower, we will grieve not; rather find strength in what remains behind.” This drink references floral notes and farm life in Kansas, and I’m using a limited edition gin from Hendrick’s, Midsummer Solstice. When watching Splendor in the Grass, I recommend drinking a glass of Mabel’s Merriment.

Mabel’s Merriment

1 1/2 oz Hendrick’s Midsummer Solstice

1 oz St. Germain elderflower liqueur

6 oz Cucumber Tonic

Fresh Key Limes

Build ingredients over ice in a tall Collins glass. Garnish with fresh key lime slices.

I think everyone can relate to the feeling that what is happening in high school is so tragically important at the time, and this film shows the bonds formed during that period are never really forgotten. Perhaps this is why I love high school movies so much, for they are the films I watched over and over again as a teenager, as I was just beginning to shape my identity. In many ways I feel a closer bond with the characters in these films than I do to my actual classmates from that time. Watching this movie again (still on the VHS tape I bought in high school!) certainly makes me feel like I attended a reunion of sorts. It’s no secret I hated high school, but I absolutely loved that time in my life when I was discovering cinema, and watching anything and everything I could get my hands on. I miss those days, when every script and style and actor was new to me, but I will grieve not- rather find strength in the great films that remain behind. Cheers!

Comedies

Clueless

May 12, 2014 LizLocke1 Comment

Will I ever get tired of watching this movie? As if! This week on Cinema Sips, I’m excited to pair one of my favorite high school movies of the 90’s with a cocktail that is appropriately girly and tart. Truly, it was impossible to grow up in that decade without seeing Clueless, and unfortunately it was also impossible to be a teenage girl and not compare yourself to the physical perfection that was Alicia Silverstone. Did I hike up the hem on my plaid skirts and constantly wonder why my hair wasn’t as silken and shiny as hers? Of course! Did I often eat “two bowls of Special K, 3 pieces of turkey bacon, a handful of popcorn, 5 peanut butter M&M’s and like 3 pieces of licorice,” and also feel like a heifer? Absolutely.

Clueless (DVD/Download) was that rare movie that captured teen angst and pop culture so perfectly (see also Mean Girls, and Pretty in Pink), and it was tailor made for the MTV generation. Amy Heckerling’s film is an adaptation of the Jane Austen novel Emma. Popular main character Cher schemes and plays matchmaker to those around her, before finally realizing that her own life is in need of a makeover. Alicia Silverstone does an amazing job of playing the character as shallow and ditzy on the outside, but secretly smart and caring on the inside. Of course most of the supporting cast has gone on to have long and varied careers (not least of which is the adorable Paul Rudd), and the movie even spun off a pretty terrible television show that was never able to live up to the brilliance of the film’s script. Clueless is full of pop culture references from the era- (ie. The Cranberries, Marky Mark, Ren & Stimpy, etc.) but it also references classic cinema, art history, and Shakespeare. In short, Clueless was the movie I could unabashedly like along with all of my peers, while still feeling good about myself for actually understanding the highbrow references.

This week’s cocktail is a nod to the ladies of Bronson Alcott High School, who are equal parts sweet and acid-tongued. Calling out a classmate’s designer-imposter perfume? Ouch! This drink recipe was adapted from one I enjoyed recently at the Raines Law Room in New York City. I’m guessing on the proportions, but the ingredients remain basically the same. When watching Clueless, I recommend drinking a Duchess.

1 ½ oz White Rum

1 oz Godiva White Chocolate Liqueur

1 oz lemon juice

¼ cup fresh raspberries

Muddle raspberries in cocktail shaker. Fill shaker with ice, and add the rum, lemon juice, and white chocolate liqueur. Shake vigorously and strain into a glass ¾ filled with crushed ice. Top with an additional mound of crushed ice, and one fresh raspberry.

This cocktail is upscale enough to fit in with Cher and Dionne’s Beverly Hills lifestyle, and definitely on the girly side! Just be careful not to spill this drink on anyone’s satin pumps while you’re dancing to “Rollin’ With the Homies”. So not fixable. So this week, have fun, invite your friends over to join you in watching this film, and remember- it does not say RSVP on the Statue of Liberty. Cheers!

Classic Films

Pretty in Pink

May 5, 2014 LizLocke1 Comment

This May on Cinema Sips, I’m excited to highlight a few of my favorite high school movies. I figured, what better time to do so, what with prom season coming up, graduation, etc. As we all know, the reigning king of high school movies is of course John Hughes. It’s difficult to pick my favorite among his 80’s teen classics, but if pressed, I have to choose Pretty in Pink (DVD/Download). It’s the perfect blend of romance, social commentary, humor, and New Wave music, and I never get tired of watching it.

Pretty in Pink is the story of Andie (played by Molly Ringwald), the creative, pretty girl from the wrong side of the tracks, who falls for rich, sweet, and spineless Blane (played by Andrew McCarthy). Duckie (played by Jon Cryer, in a fantastic role that thankfully makes me forget about ‘Two and a Half Men’) is Andie’s best friend, who is also in love with her. Rounding out the cast are the brilliant Harry Dean Stanton as Andie’s kinda pathetic but well-meaning father, and Annie Potts as the hilarious and hip owner of the record store where Andie works. James Spader also has a great role as preppy sleaze Steff (seriously- Blane? Steff? What country club directory did Hughes consult for these names??), and his feathered hair is truly a masterpiece. Of course, anybody that’s seen this movie also knows that it features maybe the ugliest prom dress in the history of prom dresses. What makes it particularly bad is that all the characters say how beautiful and stunning Molly Ringwald looks in it. Are they blind? Drunk? We’ll never know. Yes, it was the 80’s, but still, there is no excuse for someone making this dress happen.

My cocktail tonight is obviously pink, and obviously kinda girly. I’m using gin as the base because Steff and Blane seem like the kind of guys to get loaded on gin & tonics at the country club pool. It’s also a bit on the sweet side, just like Duckie. Generations of women have argued over whether Andie should have chosen Blane or Duckie in the end, so I’m happy to feature a cocktail that celebrates both of them. I stumbled upon a great recipe on The Kitchn blog last week, and with a little tweaking, I’m serving up a Cats Club Cocktail.

2 oz dry Gin

1 oz lemon juice

1 oz raspberry syrup (see note)

1 egg white

Fresh raspberries

Combine the gin, lemon juice, raspberry syrup, and egg white in a cocktail shaker without ice. Shake vigorously for 10-20 seconds. Then add ice, and continue shaking for another 10-20 seconds. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish with raspberries.

Recipe Note: To make raspberry syrup, heat ½ cup sugar, ¼ cup water, and ¼ cup fresh raspberries on the stove until the berries break down and the mixture thickens (about 5 minutes). Strain out the solids and chill before using.

Full disclosure- I never actually went to my prom in high school. Frankly, I’d seen so many proms in movies that I knew the real thing would never measure up. Without a cute guy in a bolo tie and alligator shoes calling me stunning, what’s the point? I’d much rather experience high school vicariously through Molly Ringwald, as I’m sure many girls out there would. So what if most of her classmates appear to be in their early 30’s? That just means they have no problem getting carded at the liquor store. While I have zero desire to relive my high school days, I always look forward to watching Pretty in Pink. And I always look forward to drinking while I do so- beer, scotch, juice box, cocktail, whatever. Cheers!

Dramas

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

April 28, 2014September 21, 2020 LizLocke1 Comment

This week, I’m surrounded by gardens, southern society, cocktails, and guns in the Southern classic Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (DVD/Download). This was one of my favorite movies of the 1990’s, and it still holds up well today. It paints Savannah as a mythical place full of people who drink at all hours of the day, sassy drag queens, and gun-toting antiques dealers. I’d say I’m eager to catch a plane there, but who am I kidding- I live in Austin! We’re practically twin cities.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is based on the bestselling non-fiction book of the same name by John Berendt. In it, he chronicles the trial of a wealthy member of Savannah society who is accused of murdering his paramour. Kevin Spacey plays the antiques dealer/bon vivant on trial, and Jude Law has a few brief scenes as his victim/lover. This film was a great place for Kevin Spacey to hone his eventual House of Cards accent, which he does to perfection. Not so great in the accent dept. is Jude Law, who does a sort of cockney/southern hybrid, but I’m willing to overlook it because he’s young and gorgeous (albeit in a redneck-psycho sort of way). The true star of this film (and the book) is of course The Lady Chablis. I love that the character was played by the real life Chablis Deveau because really, who else could possibly do this part justice? And I also love John Cusack as the fish-out-of-water reporter who stumbles into this world of, as he puts it, “Gone With the Wind on mescaline.”

As I have said, this film is excellent with a cocktail pairing because most of the characters treat drinking like a competitive sport. As one person says, “If you’re thirsty, a drink will cure it. If you’re not, a drink will prevent it. Prevention is better than a cure.” This beverage definitely feels medicinal, with its refreshing combination of rum, cognac, and LOTS of ice. When watching Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, I recommend drinking this Savannah Julep.

8-10 mint leaves, roughly torn

2 tsp simple syrup

2 oz cognac

1/2 oz dark rum

Mint Sprig

Powdered Sugar

In a cup (a metal julep cup is great if you have it, but I’m going even more southern and using a mason jar), muddle mint leaves and simple syrup. Pour in cognac, to rinse off muddler; remove muddler. Fill the cup ¾ full with crushed ice and stir with a bar spoon. Add a small dome of crushed ice, and pour the rum over the top. Garnish with a mint sprig and a dusting of powdered sugar.

This cocktail is so refreshing that it might be my summer go-to when the temperature spikes above 100. It’ll always make me think of Spanish moss, long languorous afternoons that stretch into warm, humid nights, and genteel southerners with secrets for miles. As you watch Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, concern yourself less with whether or not Jim Williams is guilty, and more with the eccentric group of people that populate Savannah. In this instance, the truth is definitely stranger than fiction. Cheers!

	LizLocke on The Cutting Edge
	Kerry Dunn on The Cutting Edge
	Kerry Dunn on Slap Shot