Anya Taylor-Joy – Cinema Sips

As I wait for peach season to fully hit central Texas, I’m getting a taste of my favorite summertime fruit with a sparkling cocktail and a post-apocalyptic film about maintaining hope in the darkest of times. I have two peach trees that haven’t yielded a single fruit in ten years, but somehow Furiosa can grow one in a dry wasteland whose main crops seem to be gasoline and bullets. Make it make sense!!! Buckle up, fill your tank with gin—we’re watching Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (Disc/Download).

I’m sure I’ll always regret not watching Fury Road upon its initial release (mostly because my husband still hasn’t forgiven me for abandoning him at the movie theater), so when Furiosa came out several years later, I wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice. This high-octane thriller carries the visual masterpiece torch perfectly, serving as a prequel to Fury Road by focusing on the origin story of that film’s badass female protagonist. We learn how Furiosa’s mother died, we learn how she lost the arm, and we learn what pushed her to finally make her great escape with the Wives. Along the way, we get another unhinged cult leader in the form of Chris Hemsworth’s Dementus, acting as foil to original evil cult leader, Immorten Joe. Anya Taylor-Joy does a fantastic job filling in the blanks left by Charlize Theron’s Furiosa, and I’m still amazed that a movie marketed toward the male populace managed to birth one of our greatest feminist action heroes. Ladies, there’s plenty here for you, too.

Furiosa carries a peach pit from her homeland, “the place of abundance”, as a reminder of what the world could be like without the corrupt leaders of the Citadel. Let’s cool off with a cocktail that might be icy cold, but still has a subtle bit of heat behind it. While watching Furiosa, I recommend drinking this Spicy Peach Spritz.

Spicy Peach Spritz

1 ½ oz gin (I use Engine, which is not only thematically perfect, but also very tasty!)

1 oz St. Germain

2 slices jalapeno pepper, seeds removed

1 basil leaf, plus more for garnish

2 oz peach juice

3 oz Prosecco

2 oz sparkling water

Muddle the jalapeno and basil leaf with St. Germain and gin in the bottom of a shaker. Add peach juice and ice, and shake to combine. Fill a glass with ice, then double strain the contents of shaker into it. Top with Prosecco and sparkling water and stir gently. Garnish with a sprig of basil.

Having watched the original Mad Max, and half of The Road Warrior before I fell asleep, I can say that I absolutely love the new direction George Miller has taken this franchise. No longer are women relegated to side roles, gimmicks, and victimhood; they are the main characters and heroes of these movies. The visuals just get better and better, and so too does the political, sociological, and environmental commentary. I don’t know what’s next for Mad Max (if anything), but if this saga is over, at least it went out in a blaze of glory. Cheers!

Image credit: Emma. 2020

As any frequent moviegoer will tell you, 2020 was pretty much our worst nightmare. While theaters began to shut their doors last March, we saw our hopes for carefree, popcorn-scented afternoons dashed as quickly as that animated roller coaster flings itself around a cartoon soda in the opening pre-show. Perhaps you spent some time thinking about the last movie you saw before lockdowns, wondering if you made the right call. In my case, I could rest easy knowing I went out on a high note with Emma. (Disc/Download).

Though any Jane Austen scholar will likely critique this film’s deviation from its source material, to me it captures the spirit, whimsy, and fun of the book. Plus, in contrast to Clueless (my other favorite Emma adaptation), we get to enjoy the sumptuous costumes and polite society of the Regency era. I’ll always have a fondness for “Rollin’ With the Homies,” but there’s something about a choreographed quadrille that just makes me grin from ear-to-ear. Autumn de Wilde’s directorial style shows similarities to that of Wes Anderson or Sofia Coppola- heavy on style and symmetry, light on melodrama and manic performances. Anya Taylor-Joy is perfection as our meddlesome title character, and of course I adore Bill Nighy as her lovable, hypochondriac father whose greatest foe is a chill draft. It’s a pastel world of manners and manipulation, and in a year when literally everything seemed beyond our control, it was comforting to think of another character who had to abandon her controlling ways to find happiness. I was not alone in the struggle.

In the dark days of the pandemic, I often thought about the candy-coated costumes and production design of this film. Even down to the tiniest stitch or ribbon of paint, every element was an important piece of the visual tableau. In my beverage choice, I wanted to celebrate Emma’s love of flowers and bold pastel colors. While watching Emma., I recommend drinking this Night Bloom cocktail.

Night Bloom

1 1/2 oz Gin

1/2 oz Creme de Violette

1 Egg White

1/2 oz Lemon Juice

1/2 oz Simple Syrup

2 dashes Orange Bitters

Flower Garnish

Combine Gin, creme de violette, egg white, lemon juice, bitters, and simple syrup in a shaker. Shake vigorously for ten seconds, then add ice. Continue shaking until chilled and frothy, then strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a flower.

As I write this, I’m about to head back to the movie theater after sixteen months away. The flick: To Catch a Thief. Hollywood still has a long way to go before it lures me back with new material, so until then I’ll be enjoying some old favorites and savoring the memory of watching Emma Woodhouse dance with Mr. Knightley for the very first time (*sigh*). Cheers!

	LizLocke on The Maltese Falcon
	Kerry Dunn on The Maltese Falcon
	LizLocke on The Cutting Edge