Comedies

The Wedding Singer

April 22, 2014 LizLockeLeave a comment

As my five year wedding anniversary approaches, I’m reminded of a film that was a big inspiration to me in the planning of my nuptials. Namely, it was an inspiration of the kind of wedding I didn’t want. No big hair, or behemoth dresses, or tacky reception halls, or drunken best man speeches for me and my beloved (though the orchestral version of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin” did make an appearance during my aisle walk, in steel drum form). The film I referenced was that classic homage to the 1980’s, The Wedding Singer (DVD/Download). I like to watch this every year in the spring as wedding season rolls around, to remind me of how lucky I am that I didn’t get married in the 80’s. Shoulder pads and perms- oh the horror!

The Wedding Singer is a sweet movie starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore as two people who are unfortunately saddled with fiancés that are totally wrong for both of them. He’s a wedding singer, she’s a waitress, and they meet cute at a catered event as Alexis Arquette covers Boy George songs and pre-teen boys drink too many rum-and-cokes. Sandler and Barrymore are absolutely adorable together, and the script is chock full of hilarious 80’s references. I never really cared for Adam Sandler before this movie, but in The Wedding Singer, he proved that he can be funny and heartfelt (and that he can totally rock a permed mullet). Supporting roles played by Christine Taylor, Jon Lovitz, and the always amazing Steve Buscemi add to the comedic scenes, and even Billy Idol makes a cameo toward the end. If you’re a fan of 80’s nostalgia and romantic comedies, trust me, this is your movie.

My drink this week was inspired by #1 Miami Vice fan Glenn Guglia, Drew Barrymore’s fiancé. Glenn is your typical 80’s smarmy frat boy/stock broker type, and his drink of choice is the classic 80’s cocktail, the Alabama Slammer. It’s sweet, boozy, it’s empty of anything substantial- it’s the 1980’s in a glass.

1 oz Southern Comfort

1oz Sloe Gin

1oz Amaretto

2oz Orange Juice

Garnish: Orange wheel and maraschino cherry

Add all the ingredients into a shaker filled with ice. Give it your best Tom Cruise-in-Cocktail shake, then strain into a highball glass filled with ice. Garnish with orange wheel and cherry.

My advice to you on this one- watch your alcohol consumption closely because you don’t want to end up like Julia Guglia, climbing into a Delorean with vomit in your hair. Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore would go on to make many more movies together over the years, but this one is by far my favorite. The soundtrack is great, and I dare you not to be humming “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” long after it ends. Just be careful of “Ladies Night”- Jon Lovitz has a tendency to get into my head and never leave. Cheers!

The Party

April 14, 2014September 21, 2020 LizLocke2 Comments

Image credit The Mirisch Corp., The Party, 1968

I can’t believe it’s been seven months of Cinema Sips greatness, and I have yet to discuss the ultimate cocktail movie, the one that made me want to do this blog in the first place. This week, I am beyond excited to feature one of my top favorites, and certainly my absolute favorite film to screen during any cocktail-fueled gathering– The Party (DVD).

This 1968 Blake Edwards classic stars comedy genius Peter Sellers as the bumbling Hrundi V. Bakshi, an Indian actor who accidentally gets invited to a dinner party at a Hollywood producer’s home. He arrives, loses his shoe, mingles with movie stars, spills birdseed everywhere, sticks his hand in caviar, and gets a chicken caught on a woman’s tiara. And that’s just in the first half! There are a lot of sight gags involving the ultra-modern home set, such as people falling in the water that runs through the house, guests getting burned by the indoor fire pit, and floors and walls disappearing at the flick of a switch. It’s a ridiculously impractical home, but if I had a million dollars I would build it for myself in a second. The sets and costumes truly capture that ’60s Mod era in a way that Mad Men could only dream of. The real elephant in the room (pun intended) which must be addressed is the fact that Peter Sellers plays a character of a different race. Of course I wish they would have hired an actor of South-Asian descent, and if this movie ever gets remade, I sincerely hope this mistake gets corrected. It’s interesting to watch this and realize how far diversity in Hollywood has come since the 1960s, but of course we’ve still got a long way to go.

What really makes this movie such a great fit for Cinema Sips is the plentiful alcohol that is poured and consumed on-screen for a solid hour and a half. A drunken waiter offering vodka and scotch; Peter Sellers refusing alcohol then getting wine poured all over his hand anyway; Hollywood power players sipping cocktails at the retro bar- it’s a classic cocktail lover’s paradise. While watching The Party, I recommend drinking a Brunette in Yellow.

Brunette in Yellow

2.5 oz lemon vodka

1 oz lemon juice

1 oz simple syrup

3 drops rosewater

Mix all ingredients in a shaker over ice. Strain into a chilled martini glass, and enjoy!

Once Hrundi gives in and actually has a drink, The Party becomes a wild, nutty ride featuring a gorgeous French ingenue, a Russian ballet troupe, and a house full of bubbles. Perhaps you’ve thrown a party or attended one that evolved into something crazier and crazier as the night went on, ending only when the sun comes up. If not, watching this movie makes you feel like you have. I’m sure in real life I would be the neurotic hostess fretting about her hair getting wet while her house is being destroyed, but when I watch this I like to pretend I’m the loopy, drunk actress who sees imaginary things in the bottom of her cocktail glass. After a couple of these vodka concoctions, I might not be too far off. Cheers!

Classic Films

The Mating Game

April 9, 2014April 9, 2014 LizLocke4 Comments

I’m reaching back into the vault this week to highlight a little movie I happened to catch on Turner Classic Movies a few years ago, which has since become one of my favorites. It’s a tradition in my house to watch this during tax season, preferably after completing one’s taxes, with a strong cocktail (because nothing makes me want to drink more than itemizing deductions). This week’s Cinema Sips movie is The Mating Game (DVD), a 1959 comedy starring the adorable Debbie Reynolds and Tony Randall at his geeky, persnickety best. You may be thinking, “How is a movie about taxes funny?” Well, trust me, this one is.

The Mating Game tells the story of the Larkins, a family of rural Maryland farmers. Pop Larkin makes his living as a trader/barterer (physical money rarely exchanges hands). Whatever object he needs, he just trades another one for it. Now, it isn’t expressly stated how this family pays for ordinary things like the electric or phone bill, but as for the rest of their belongings, it’s a pretty great way to operate. Of course since they make no actual money, they don’t file an income tax return, and eventually the government comes calling. The IRS sends Tony Randall to investigate, he falls for the eldest daughter played by Debbie Reynolds, and the rest is history. The Mating Game was actually the final film featuring Paul Douglas, who plays the lead role of Sidney “Pop” Larkin, and who sadly died of a heart attack the same year the film premiered. He is absolutely terrific in the role, and it’s unfortunate to think of the parts we never got to see him play.

My drink this week is inspired by the nauseating cocktail creation the Larkin family plies Tony Randall with in an effort to keep him on the farm and helpless against their daughter’s charms. Their beverage had a hefty dose of moonshine, and I promise mine is a lot more drinkable. Still, it’s big, it’s boozy, and it’s the perfect way to unwind after doing your income taxes. While watching The Mating Game, I recommend drinking a Smirking Hyena.

Smirking Hyena

1 3/4 oz Bourbon

3/4 oz Sweet Vermouth

3/4 oz Cointreau

2 dashes Angostura Bitters

1/2 oz fresh lime juice

1 sprig of mint

Combine the liquid ingredients in a shaker filled with ice. Shake until chilled, then strain into a rocks glass with fresh ice. Garnish with mint.

Let it be known that I’m madly in love with the Larkin family’s greek key-trimmed living room bar, and the vintage glassware makes me swoon. It’s easy to see how Tony Randall got suckered into drinking such a mess of a cocktail in the film- how to say no to the genial, larger-than-life Paul Douglas? Hopefully, you’ll be a little more sensible with your imbibing and your family won’t find you passed out on a pool table come morning. But, if your taxes are as labor-intensive as mine, who could blame you? So tally up your figures, sign your forms, and end the day on a high note with The Mating Game and a strong drink. Cheers!

Dramas

L.A. Confidential

March 31, 2014September 21, 2023 LizLocke2 Comments

Gangsters and high-class prostitutes. 1950’s movie stars. Glamorous fashions. Russell Crowe when he was young and thin. That’s right, I’m talking about L.A. Confidential (DVD/Download). This 1997 film based on a James Ellroy novel and directed by Curtis Hanson is one of my all-time favorites, and an absolutely perfect movie to pair with a cocktail. L.A. Confidential deserves and needs your undivided attention, so put down the phones and laptops, and make your drink before you press Play because the plot has more twists and turns than a street in the Hollywood Hills.

L.A. Confidential centers on three LAPD cops iwho find their cases intersecting in one riveting vice/homicide mash-up. Guy Pearce plays bookish detective Edmund Exley, Russell Crowe plays the heavy-handed goon/good guy Bud White, and Kevin Spacey is the fun-loving Jack Vincennes who stumbles onto a vice case that was more than he bargained for. I love the way the script weaves back and forth between their cases, until eventually they are knotted together. Kim Basinger turns in a great performance as Lynn Bracken, the sex worker dolled up to look like Veronica Lake. I love movies that reference classic cinema, and it’s a lot of fun to see actresses/models cut to look like Lake, Ginger Rogers, and Rita Hayworth. Of course one of the best scenes comes at the hands of Vincennes and Exley interrogating Lana Turner and Johnny Stompanato. I laugh every time because it’s one of the rare comedic moments in this pulpy noir film (outside of any scene with Danny DeVito of course).

For my cocktail this week, I’m serving up a drink that would have been fashionable around the time this movie takes place. It was popularized by Raymond Chandler, another Noir writer, though I’m making it a little differently than he would have. In The Long Goodbye, he called for simply “half gin and half Rose’s lime juice,” but I like to add a little simple syrup to my gimlet. After all, Bud White is a sweetie at heart!

White Gimlet

2 oz gin

½ oz Lime Juice

½ oz Simple Syrup

Lime wedge for garnish

Mix gin, lime juice, and simple syrup together in a cocktail shaker over ice. Strain into a cocktail glass, and garnish with lime.

This film makes me so nostalgic for the glamour of Tinseltown, because even when they’re crawling around looking for dead bodies or roughing up a gangster at an abandoned motel, these cops still call each other by their full names and wear hats. Things were so civilized back then! Enjoy L.A.Confidential as you sip your gimlet, and try not to get so drunk that you end up whispering “Rollo Tomasi” in your husband’s ear for the millionth time while he tries not to become annoyed with you (not that I’m speaking from experience). Cheers!

Comedies

The Royal Tenenbaums

March 25, 2014April 1, 2018 LizLockeLeave a comment

A recent screening of The Grand Budapest Hotel has inspired me this week to revisit my favorite Wes Anderson film, The Royal Tenenbaums (DVD/Download). Of course I love any film by this director who has such a keen eye for style, but my personal favorite is still this 2001 ode to dysfunctional families and Nico. It’s quirky, it’s stylish, and it’s heartfelt (I dare anyone not to feel saddened to their core as Elliott Smith’s ‘Needle in the Hay’ frames a character’s suicide attempt), but it’s also delightfully funny in other moments. With The Royal Tenenbaums, Wes Anderson has created a world that seems so real that I feel like I could just put on a Lacoste polo dress and aviator sunglasses and step right in.

This film tells the story of the wealthy Tenenbaum family and the struggle of the patriarch Royal to bring them back together. Gene Hackman does a phenomenal job of playing the hilarious and conniving Royal, and Anjelica Huston brings an unexpected softness to the part of his estranged wife Etheline. Their three children are played by Gwyneth Paltrow, Luke Wilson, and Ben Stiller, and all three are former child prodigies who have grown up to be adult messes. Anderson regulars Bill Murray and Owen Wilson round out the cast, along with the sadly now-deceased Kumar Pallana (or Pagoda as I’ll always think of him). Of course the sets and costumes are phenomenal, like a 1970’s dollhouse come to life. There are the typical Wes Anderson quirks, like a pet hawk named Mordecai, and Dalmatian mice, and of course the soundtrack is perfect in every way. A mix of The Rolling Stones, Velvet Underground, Paul Simon, and a plucky orchestral score, the music of The Royal Tenenbaums always makes me feel like I’ve just raided the record collection of a very cool relative.

For my cocktail pairing, I wanted to find something that seemed classic yet eccentric, sort of like the characters in this film. I scoured my bar to come up with a list of ingredients that would be off-putting on their own, yet when brought together would make a wonderful union. I call this week’s concoction the Tenenbaum Toast.

1 ½ oz Deep Eddy Grapefruit Vodka
½ oz St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur
½ oz Key Lime Juice
1 oz Club Soda
1 tsp Grenadine

Fill a champagne flute or small glass (the more unusual the better!) with crushed ice. Combine first three ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, and shake until chilled. Strain into prepared glass and top with club soda and grenadine. Dalmatian straw optional.

The pink color of this drink is meant to match that beautiful “Wes Anderson Pink” (as I like to call it) that covers the walls of the Tenenbaum house, as well as much of The Grand Budapest Hotel. I like to think that Margot Tenenbaum would enjoy one of these in the bathtub with her clandestine vintage cigarettes, as her old television teeters perilously close to the water. So as Wes Anderson is showered with accolades for his latest film, I urge you to take the time to re-discover one of his older works with a strange and wonderful cocktail. If you want to go all out, layer on the eye liner and watch with a bored expression. Cheers!

Classic Films

Vertigo

March 17, 2014August 30, 2022 LizLocke2 Comments

While planning an upcoming trip to San Francisco, I felt inspired to watch a film that beautifully captures the scenery, the history, and the mystery of this city. I settled on the Alfred Hitchcock classic Vertigo, which is sometimes remembered more for Jimmy Stewart’s odd Technicolor acid trip dream sequence, but in my mind will always be remembered for a beautiful Kim Novak throwing herself into the San Francisco Bay as the Golden Gate Bridge frames the scene. It’s a dark, confusing tale that manages to make even sunny California seem downright sinister. Furthermore, it’s the rare movie where Jimmy Stewart is a bit of a creep, hobbled by his fear of heights and a strange attachment to a lost love. He’s not exactly a villain, but making your new girlfriend dye her hair and dress up like your old dead girlfriend is definitely on the disturbing side.

In Vertigo (DVD/Download), Jimmy Stewart plays retired police detective Scottie Ferguson, who is hired by an old college friend to investigate the friend’s wife, played by Kim Novak (long before Botox and surgery froze her face- see 2014 Academy Awards). She is suspected of either being insane, or of actually being inhabited by the soul of a long-dead woman named Carlotta Valdes. Of course Scottie falls for her, shortly before she appears to throw herself out of the bell tower of an old California mission. The plot is initially a bit confusing, but Hitchcock manages to brilliantly weave everything together so that in the end it all makes perfect sense. Jimmy Stewart turns in a performance that’s intense and manic (I’d go so far as to call him the Nicolas Cage of the 50’s in this), and the Edith Head costumes for Kim Novak are so wonderful that I would gladly trade places with her for a day (though only as Madeleine Elster and not cheap, tawdry Judy).

My cocktail pairing for Vertigo is a San Francisco classic. Many believe that this drink was first served in the United States at San Francisco’s famed Buena Vista Café, the recipe having been brought over from Ireland by travel writer Stanton Delaplane. I’ll certainly be stopping at the Buena Vista to sample the real thing, but in the meantime, while watching Vertigo, I recommend making an Irish Coffee.

Irish Coffee

1 cup hot coffee

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 ½ oz Irish Whiskey

Heavy cream, slightly whipped

Pour piping hot coffee into a warmed glass mug until it is about ¾ full. Add the brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Blend in Irish Whiskey. Top with the whipped heavy cream by pouring gently over the back of a spoon. Serve hot.

This drink will warm you up as Hitchcockian suspense sends shivers up and down your spine, and images of foggy evenings and the woman in the grey wool suit make you colder just watching them. I’m sure Kim Novak and Jimmy Stewart could have definitely used a couple of Irish Coffees after their dip in the San Francisco Bay. Watching this film reminds me what a master filmmaker Hitchcock was, and it makes me even more excited to visit the city where ghosts and intrigue mingle with fog and warm whiskey. Cheers!

Classic Films

Where the Boys Are

March 10, 2014December 20, 2017 LizLocke1 Comment

It’s spring break in Austin, TX and you know what that means- millions of co-eds fleeing in search of sandy beaches, while millions of music, film, and internet movers-and-shakers descend on the city to fill up our restaurants and hotels during the SXSW Festival. If I still got a spring break, I would definitely be heading for the beach, but since I don’t, the next best thing is watching a movie about spring break at the beach. No, I’m not talking about Spring Breakers– yikes! Rather, I’m watching Where the Boys Are (DVD/Download), a delightful film from 1960 starring Connie Francis, Dolores Hart, and a very young George Hamilton. Yes, that George Hamilton of the tangelo tan. The movie may have been somewhat racy for the time, (Necking on the beach! Giving it up to a Yale-y in a seedy motor lodge! Underage drinking- oh my!) but now it’s just quaint and adorable.

Where the Boys Are follows four northern co-eds who head to Ft. Lauderdale for spring break. Of course they meet boys and each girl must decide it she’s a “good girl” or a “bad girl” when it comes to shacking up. Except Connie Francis, that is, who unfortunately gets saddled with a dialectic jazz musician who looks to be about 40 years old but is playing 20. A self-professed girl’s hockey team member, she’s definitely the Lady Edith of this movie. Dolores Hart fares a little better with rich playboy-with-a-heart George Hamilton, and Paula Prentiss is matched with her usual co-star Jim Hutton (presumably because they’re both about 6 ½ feet tall). Then there’s poor Yvette Mimieux. She plays the girl who’s desperate to hook an Ivy Leaguer so she can drop out of college and be a housewife. Feminists would probably have a field day with this movie, but I look at it as simply her choice. I chose to stay in college, have a career, and make a great life for myself, but to each her own.

My drink this week is tiki-inspired, sort of a rum version of the Cosmopolitan. Fruity and boozy, this cocktail is a great way to kick off a week away from school. Even if you’re not sipping it while laying by the beach or pool, it’s still like a vacation in a glass. When you’re watching Where the Boys Are, I highly recommend drinking a Beachcomber.

2 oz white rum

¾ oz Cointreau

¾ oz fresh lime juice

½ tsp of maraschino liqueur

½ tsp simple syrup (optional, to taste)

Combine all ingredients into a cocktail shaker over ice. Shake well, then strain into a coup glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry and a tiny umbrella.

With its catchy Connie Francis tunes, cute 60’s bikinis, Modcloth-esque dresses, and candy-colored motel set, this movie is pure fun. Think of it as a pre-Sex and the City, long before Carrie Bradshaw ever strapped on her Manolos. In Where the Boys Are, female friendship trumps boys every time, and even the sordid melodramatic scenes are still relatively innocent. Really, underwater bar mermaid Lola Fandango is about as trashy as this film gets. If spring break in Florida was actually as fun as it appears to be in this movie, I might be tempted to go back to school. Cheers!

Dramas

Blue Jasmine

March 5, 2014September 20, 2023 LizLocke10 Comments

After a very late night spent watching The Oscars on Sunday, I admit I had a tough time getting up the next morning. The only thing that got me out of bed was the promise of seeing a recap of last-night’s dresses all over the internet. I admit that I did pretty darn well in my office Oscar pool, though of course there were some definite sure things on the ballot this year. One of those sure things was Cate Blanchett, who very deservedly won her Best Actress statuette for Blue Jasmine. In celebration of her victory as well as her unfailingly good fashion sense, I’m watching the wonderful film for which she was honored.

Blue Jasmine (DVD/Download) tells the story of a wealthy New York socialite whose cheating, embezzling husband commits suicide while in prison for his financial crimes. Broke and lost, Jasmine seeks refuge at her sister Ginger’s apartment in San Francisco. Throughout the film, we discover that Jasmine’s seemingly perfect former life with her husband (played by Alec Baldwin) was decidedly imperfect. Jasmine manages to torpedo her own life as well as everyone else’s around her, resulting in a well-dressed shell of a woman who talks to herself and drinks Stoli martinis like they’re going out of style. Written and directed by Woody Allen, this film is very reminiscent of A Streetcar Named Desire. Bobby Cannavale is definitely no Marlon Brando, but Blanchett is a fabulous stand-in for Vivien Leigh.

For anyone watching this movie, you’ll notice that Jasmine drinks an awful lot of vodka. Specifically, her drink of choice is a Stoli martini. It’s a classic, but a classic for a reason. I’ve always preferred a twist of lemon over an olive in a martini because I think the tart lemon flavor complements the vodka much better than what is essentially a ball of salt at the bottom of the glass. When watching Blue Jasmine, you really can’t drink anything but a Stoli Martini with a Twist of Lemon.

Stoli Martini

Dry Vermouth

2 oz vodka, chilled

Lemon twist

Pour a small amount of vermouth into a martini glass and swirl it around, just so it coats the sides. Pour out excess. Add vodka into a shaker with ice, and gently stir until chilled (or shake it if you’re a James Bond fan). Pour vodka into prepared glass, and top with lemon twist.

The first time I saw Blue Jasmine, I knew it would be an instant classic. It’s a story that’s timeless, but yet so current. Jasmine is a woman who is unraveling, and it’s riveting to watch it happen. Whether she can be redeemed in the end, we’ll never know. I hope so. But for tonight, raise a glass to the great Cate Blanchett, and be glad that the Oscars only happen once a year (otherwise I might need to borrow a Xanax from Jasmine to manage my excitement). Cheers!

Dramas

Magnolia

February 25, 2014February 25, 2014 LizLockeLeave a comment

I’ll admit it- when I first saw Magnolia, I didn’t get it. Specifically the frogs. However, I think that’s what I really like the most about this film now- it leaves me questioning everything, including my own intelligence. I was tempted to watch this recently after the passing of the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman. Really, no retrospective of his work would be complete without seeing at least one Paul Thomas Anderson film. I am singling out Magnolia because it’s a great film to watch when you’re buried inside on a cold wintry day. Dark and stormy weather mixed with a dark and stormy film makes for a hell of a combination.

Magnolia (DVD/Download) tells the stories of several characters in the San Fernando Valley whose lives intersect over the course of a day. At 3 hours long, you may worry that the film drags by, but let me reassure you that every minute of those 3 hours is entirely necessary in order to give each character their due. The actors are all Paul Thomas Anderson regulars, with the notable exception of Tom Cruise sporting a weird samurai hairdo. This is the rare movie where I actually say afterward, “Wow, Tom Cruise can actually act!” He is surprising and amazing in Magnolia, as is the rest of the large cast. As their stories weave back and forth, you realize how interconnected we all are. The movie is about coincidences and fate, and the connections that we make with other people in our lives. The script is superb, and though I still don’t entirely know what the frog scene is about, it does become a sort of glue that binds the stories together.

My drink pairing for Magnolia is an obvious choice. Given the amount of weather references in the film, I have to pair it with a Dark & Stormy. This is a favorite drink of mine that combines simple ingredients into a refreshing cocktail. I like to imagine that Quiz Kid Donnie Smith finally grows up and goes back to that upholstered bar stool and orders up a tall cocktail like this.

Dark & Stormy

2 oz Dark Rum

3 oz Ginger Beer

Lime Wedge for garnish

Pour Rum and Ginger Beer into a tall Collins glass over ice. Garnish with lime wedge.

Of course, this cocktail is much more innocuous than the cadre of pills in Julianne Moore’s character’s purse, but it won’t leave you passed out in your car later on (hopefully). The big line in this film that gets said over and over again is “The book says we may be through with the past, but the past ain’t through with us.” I think that statement holds true for the simple act of watching this film, for even though I’ve seen it before and think I understand it, watching it now makes me consider it in a new light. So if you continue to be buried under winter weather, give this film a chance (along with a Dark & Stormy) and hunker down for a weird, intense, thought-provoking 3 hours. Cheers!

Musicals

Newsies

February 17, 2014 LizLockeLeave a comment

Image Credit Walt Diwney Pictures, 1992 — Image Credit Walt Disney Pictures, 1992

Page-boy caps. Attractive and well-choreographed boys singing and dancing on the streets of New York. Crutchy. That’s right, this week’s Cinema Sips headliner is…… Newsies (!!!!!!). I’ve been obsessed with this movie ever since it premiered on The Disney Channel in the early-90’s. I had no idea what a labor union was, but if it involved singing catchy tunes and Christian Bale as a hot teenager in a kicky scarf, by all means sign me up. This week, while coming down from my Valentine’s sugar buzz, I decided I needed a boost in the form of this totally entertaining movie musical.

Newsies (DVD/Download) was a pretty big flop when it premiered in theaters, but since then, it has gained the cult status it so richly deserves. Newsies tells the story of the newsboy’s strike of 1899, wherein the lowly newsboys battled the mighty Pulitzer and Hearst by organizing a union and striking for increased pay and better working conditions. Of course, this being Disney, there are some wonderful songs and brilliantly choreographed dance scenes interspersed among the drama, along with some truly terrible New York accents. Heavyweight actors Robert Duvall and Bill Pullman round out the cast, but it’s Christian Bale who really shines here. This film may be an embarrassing “what was I thinking?!” moment for him now that he’s SERIOUS ACTOR Christian Bale, but I don’t care. I’ll always love him most as Jack Kelly, the cowboy of Manhattan, sellin’ papes and breakin’ hearts.

I found inspiration for my drink this week in a wonderful book I was given, Tipsy Texan by David Alan. I wanted to do something inspired by my favorite song from the movie, Santa Fe. Unsure of how green chilies might translate into the beverage arena, I opted instead to try something using the Mexican liquor Mezcal . This is similar to tequila (in fact tequila is a type of mezcal) but it has a smokier flavor. I like to imagine that Jack Kelly would have eventually turned 18 and taken his dumpy girlfriend Sarah out west, picking up a bottle of this in a border town along the way. In a nod to the age group of most of the protagonists, I’m mixing the Mezcal with good old fashioned Coca-Cola, something I’m sure the Newsies drank their share of back then. When watching Newsies, I recommend drinking a Barro Negro.

Barro Negro (From Tipsy Texan: Spirits and Cocktails from the Lone Star State)

1 ½ oz Mezcal

2 dashes of Angostura bitters

2 orange wedges

3 oz Coca-Cola (Mexican Coke if you can find it).

Pour Mezcal and bitters over ice in a glass. Squeeze the juice from the orange wedges into the glass, then drop them in. Top with Coca-Cola.

As you watch Newsies and sip your drink, feel free to laugh at all the digs at Brooklyn, which wasn’t always the hipster-mecca it is now. Back in 1899, Brooklyn was apparently a scary place full of teenagers with sling shots. Also, I can’t stop laughing when Christian Bale does his interpretive dance midway through singing Santa Fe. I say interpretive because I think he’s interpreting riding a horse with jazz hands, but it’s difficult to tell. This movie is just a classic. A classic what, I’m not sure, but definitely a classic. So drink up, dream of Santa Fe, and remember- “Headlines don’t sell papes- Newsies sell papes.” Cheers!

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