Tag: Michelle Pfeiffer

Action/Adventure/Heist · Holiday Films

Batman Returns

LizLockeLeave a comment
Image: Batman Returns, 1992

If you haven’t heard yet, it’s hell here. Never in my wildest nightmare did I think America would one day resemble Gotham City in Batman Returns (Disc/Download), but here we are. Gross billionaires have purchased even grosser politicians to do their evil bidding, “heroes” are kind of useless, and women have been pushed to their breaking point. Like Selina Kyle, we’re all going a little feral.

Batman Returns has always been my favorite Batman movie, for a lot of reasons. Tim Burton sets a perfectly campy tone, capturing the spirit of the earlier comic book and television show while still incorporating his signature brand of the macabre. Michael Keaton is my favorite actor to wear the cape, but in this film he’s met his true match in Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman. They’ve both got secrets, which means they’re both holding back pieces of themselves. It’s an equal playing field that Batman’s never experienced before or since. Then there’s Danny DeVito as The Penguin, a character that seemed too weird to exist, until he did. By the year 2025, it’s not absurd to think that the general population would rally behind a rotund, sweaty, cartoon villain with childhood trauma and weird stuff going on with his hands. All it takes is fear mongering, and a lot of money from a corporate overlord who doesn’t care how much damage he’s inflicting on the planet, or its people.

Michelle Pfeiffer may have been responsible for a lot of unrealistic body goals in the mid-1990s with her skintight Catwoman suit, but she’s also responsible for a lot of little girls (me) thinking they could grow up and have a fabulous pink apartment full of kitschy knickknacks and neon signs. And if the mood strikes, there’s always a can of black spray paint to shake things up. While watching Batman Returns, toast the greatest female action hero with this Kitty Highball.

Kitty Highball

2 oz red wine

¾ oz ginger syrup (I used Liber & Co.)

½ oz lime juice

Soda water to top

Lime wheel (garnish)

Fill a Collins glass with ice and set aside. Combine wine, ginger syrup, and lime juice in a shaker with ice. Shake to chill, then strain into prepared glass. Top with soda water and stir gently. Garnish with a lime wheel.

Gotham City looks great at the holidays, and it’s fun to experience Burton’s giant set pieces, such as exploding presents, enormous Christmas trees full of clown assassins, and snow-covered parks where Penguin feels right at home. It’s a movie that gets more and more relevant with time, but I hope it won’t stay that way forever. I’m ready for Batman Returns to go back to being a fantasy instead of a documentary. Cheers!

Dramas

The Witches of Eastwick

LizLockeLeave a comment

witches of eastwick
Image credit: Witches of Eastwick, 1987

You know that feeling you get when the end credits are rolling on a particularly bizarre film, and you just sit, unblinking, trying to make sense of the last two hours? Such was my experience with The Witches of Eastwick (DVD/Download). Not having read any Updike before, including the novel this film was based on, I was wholly unprepared. What started out as a promising rom-com slowly morphed into a special-effects laden horror-fest, with a dash of surrealism. This one definitely needs some unpacking.

For the first twenty minutes, my take on The Witches of Eastwick was, “where has this movie been all my life???” Cher, Michelle Pheiffer, and Susan Sarandon sitting around, drinking martini’s, complaining about how there are no good men anymore- let’s just call this my ideal Saturday night.   They wish hard for the man of their dreams, not knowing that they’re actually a coven of witches.  Soon after, this mysterious stranger actually appears in the form of Jack Nicholson. And he’s a creep. And he has a teeny-tiny ponytail that’s distracting as hell. And he may or may not be the devil. But he has a mansion with an indoor pool, a healthy sexual appetite, and bowls of fresh cherries (we’ll get to that in a minute). So the three women do what dozens of Playboy Bunnies have done before and move in with the morally bankrupt old charmer. Despite a meandering plot and lack of character development, the performances of these three powerhouse actresses and the great Jack Nicholson basically playing Jack Nicholson, keep me watching long after the movie has gone down the proverbial drain.

One of the spells cast by the witches is a strange revenge on the local town prude. Instead of just poisoning her outright, Jack Nicholson urges his three girlfriends to eat pounds of cherries. Somehow this sanctimonious woman ends up with the cherry guts in HER stomach and well- things get messy. You’d think this would turn me off cherries for good, but I can’t resist that tart, sweet taste. Even better with some activated charcoal to make this the perfect Halloween cocktail. While watching The Witches of Eastwick, I recommend drinking a Black Cherry Martini.

Black Cherry Martini

1 ½ oz Vodka

½ oz Maraschino Liqueur

1 1/2 oz POM Cherry Juice

1/4 oz Lime Juice

1/4 tsp Activated Charcoal Powder

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake until chilled, then strain into a chilled martini glass.

There’s definitely a lot to like about The Witches of Eastwick, and if you’re looking for a fun adult Halloween movie this year, this one is close to the top of my list. Despite the truly weird final act, it’s still fun to watch three women take a dance with the devil in the pale moonlight*. Cheers!

*wrong movie, still applies!

Musicals

Grease 2

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Grease 2 pink ladies
Image credit: Grease 2, 1982

Warning: you’re going to want to stock up on alcohol this month. For the next several weeks, I plan on highlighting some fantastic guilty-pleasure film sequels. Yes, many of them fall into the “so bad it’s good” camp, but what’s wrong with that? The way I see it, alcohol can only improve these forgotten gems. First up is my favorite on any terrible sequel list, the 1982 gem Grease 2 (DVD/Download). What- you didn’t know there was a follow up to the classic musical Grease? And that it stars none other than future-Rex Manning, Maxwell Caulfield?? Yes it’s true- this movie exists and it is AMAZING.

Despite being an obvious rush job in an attempt to squeeze a little more money out of the Grease box office juggernaut, this sequel has a lot of things working for it. Number one is Michelle Pfeiffer, in her first starring film role. I would go as far as to say she’s even better than Olivia Newton John, but that’s just my opinion. Next is the cavalcade of 50’s movie stars such as Connie Francis, Eve Arden, Sid Caesar, and Tab Hunter as the substitute Sex-Ed teacher. Let’s just say, there’s a song called “Reproduction” and things get…. weird. Finally the script has traded motorcycles for busted cars, and it is HOT. Here, tight leather pants make sense. In the original Grease– eh, not so much.

One thing that does carry over from the first film is the ultimate girl gang The Pink Ladies. They might be missing the acerbic charm of Stockard Channing, but they’ve gained Paulette the Marilyn Monroe-wannabe, and Sharon (best quote: “We’re gonna die and I’m wearing my mother’s underwear!”). And let’s not forget little Pink Lady-in-training Delores, played by future star Pamela Adlon. In honor of this stone cold bunch of weirdos, while watching Grease 2 I’ll be drinking a Pink Lady Redux

Pink Lady Redux

3 oz gin

1.5 oz heavy cream

1 oz applejack

1 oz grenadine

Pour ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously until chilled and thoroughly mixed. Strain into a chilled coupe glass.

True story- the soundtrack to Grease 2 was the first cassette tape I ever owned. Blame it on TV networks who aired this relentlessly on Sunday afternoons in the late 80’s, my love of pink satin, or my pre-teen crush on Adrian Zmed, but I can still recite every lyric by heart. Maybe this is a terrible movie, but it’s my terrible movie. And perhaps, after a few drinks, yours too. Cheers!