Classic Films · Musicals

A Star is Born

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Image: A Star is Born, 1954

Because I’m in the middle of an editing project right now (fiction, not film), I thought it might be fun to look at a movie that’s had its share of editing drama. George Cukor’s 1954 version of A Star is Born (Disc/Download) was famously trimmed down by Warner Bros. to accommodate additional screenings, then later restored with some of the missing footage, plus audio and film stills. The resulting three-hour epic is certainly iconic, but it makes me wonder: was it worth it?

This cautionary Hollywood tale has been produced four times so far (the most recent being the Bradley Cooper/Lady Gaga version), and by now, we’re all familiar with the general plot of A Star is Born. In this version, a talented but undiscovered singer/actress named Esther Blodgett (Judy Garland) gets plucked out of obscurity by movie star Norman Maine (James Mason), resulting in a doomed love affair as her career takes off and his gradually recedes due to uncontrolled alcoholism. Cukor takes his time telling this story, adding musical numbers that don’t do much to advance the plot, though they definitely showcase the star power of Garland. Her best moments are when she’s stripped down, not in costume, singing in a tiny jazz club, or in her own Malibu living room, with no orchestra or soundstage in sight. It makes me wonder if Warner’s wasn’t onto something when they cut a couple of those splashy numbers. Just because you can add more razzle-dazzle doesn’t mean you should. The quiet scenes between Garland and Mason are what make me fall in love with this movie—everything else feels like a distraction.

Sadly, alcohol is the main villain of this story, no matter the era or version. Norman is so charming and wonderful when he’s sober, but when he’s drinking… look out. However, if you’re inclined to moderation, there’s no reason you can’t enjoy a tipple with this. While watching A Star is Born (1954), I recommend drinking this Maine Squeeze cocktail.

Maine Squeeze

2 oz gin

1 oz Cointreau

1 oz fresh orange juice

½ oz lemon juice

Orange twist or dried orange slice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice, and shake to chill. Strain into a coupe glass, and garnish with a twist of orange or dried orange slice.

Screenshot

Although I love the music and pacing of the 2018 A Star is Born the most, this 1954 version is miles ahead when it comes to style. The gowns are incredible, the CinemaScope colors burst off the screen, and it’s fun to watch my favorite era of the Hollywood studio system come alive, with all its glamour and backstage machinations. Maybe, if you’re a supreme Judy Garland fan, you’ll love the restored musical numbers. As for me, however, I think a little editing can make even the biggest stars shine brighter. Cheers!

Classic Films · Sci Fi

Beneath the Planet of the Apes

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Image: Beneath the Planet of the Apes, 1970

It’s that time of year again: my annual Planet of the Apes marathon! I’ll be consuming all ten movies in three days, plus countless banana cocktails. I’ve covered a couple of them on Cinema Sips before, but now seems like a particularly good time to travel deep down into the weird apocalyptic world of Beneath the Planet of the Apes (Disc/Download).

Taking place immediately after Charlton Heston slams his fist onto a beach and screams, “DAMN YOU ALL TO HELL!!!”, this movie feels like an answer to his call. Humans are indeed, damned to hell. Actually, they’re down in a former New York City subway station, communicating through mental telepathy, wearing skin masks to hide their radiation burns, and worshiping at the altar of a nuclear bomb. But before the movie moves underground, another astronaut touches down on Future Earth to look for the missing Colonel Taylor. Newcomer Brent (James Franciscus) makes his way to Ape City, clashes with the gorillas, and befriends the always-delightful Dr. Zira and Cornelius. Once he manages to find the fallen city of New York, he finds Taylor, and together, they must stop the mutant humans from launching their nuke and destroying the world. It’s dark, it’s strange, and it’s absolutely a movie for these times.

Even though Dr. Zira makes her hatred of bananas known in Escape From the Planet of the Apes, I’m compelled to use it in this week’s cocktail because Beneath the Planet of the Apes is probably the most bananas movie in the franchise. While watching this film, I recommend drinking a Brûléed Banana Daiquiri.

Brûléed Banana Daiquiri

2 oz aged rum

½ oz banana liqueur

1 oz lime juice

¼ oz simple syrup

Banana slice

Pinch of brown sugar

Pineapple leaf

Combine rum, banana liqueur, lime juice, and simple syrup in a shaker with ice. Shake to chill, then strain into a coupe glass. For the garnish, take a slice of banana and sprinkle a pinch of brown sugar on top. Heat sugar with a torch or flame until bubbly and caramelized. Spear it onto a cocktail pick and rest it on the pineapple leaf.

You’ll notice the bubbling brown sugar on this banana looks very similar to the skin of the mutant humans after centuries of radiation poisoning. After every Ape movie, I always ask myself: is this really our future? Sadly, with the recent reemergence of nuclear energy and threats of war, Beneath the Planet of the Apes is starting to look less and less like science fiction.

Comedies

Slap Shot

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Image: Slap Shot, 1977

You may have seen Paul Newman flex his shirtless physique in movies like The Long, Hot Summer and Cat On a Hot Tin Roof. You may have also seen him wear a bowler hat in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and look incredibly sexy doing it. But until you’ve seen him in hockey padding and 1970s leisurewear in Slap Shot (Disc/Download), you haven’t seen the best of Newman.

Filmed in the Rust Belt town of Johnstown, PA (about thirty miles from where I grew up), director George Roy Hill and screenwriter Nancy Dowd perfectly capture the scrappy defiance of the area and its people. Coarse language; opinions as outdated as the clothing; a general cold, grey filter over the entire landscape—watching Slap Shot is like coming home. Newman stars as a minor league hockey player on a losing team, who discovers the fans only want to see a brawl, not a game. He convinces his fellow players to lean into the violence, hoping the increased publicity will lead to the Charlestown Chiefs being sold, instead of outright dissolved. This leads to a lot of bruised knuckles, bloody noses, and in the case of the Hanson brothers, broken eyeglasses. At night, Newman can be found parked on a barstool, juggling the ex-wife he still has feelings for, along with a couple of other dissatisfied, horny WAGs. He’s one big flirt, making Reggie Dunlop my favorite Newman character. The man looks like he’s having the time of his life, and his cheeky charisma is infectious.

Although a case of Rolling Rock beer would go really well with a screening of Slap Shot, I prefer to make a variation on the whiskey sour. Think of the pomegranate liqueur as the bloody lip at the end of the game, and imagine you’re drinking it in the local dive bar wearing polyester and a perm. While watching Slap Shot, I recommend drinking this Sucker Punch Sour.

Sucker Punch Sour

1.5 oz bourbon

1 oz PAMA pomegranate liqueur

½ oz lemon juice

½ oz simple syrup

½ oz egg white

3 dashes Angostura bitters

Combine bourbon, pomegranate liqueur, lemon juice, simple syrup, and egg white in a shaker. Shake well for about thirty seconds, then add ice. Shake for another thirty seconds, and strain into a glass filled with fresh ice. Top with a few dashes of Angostura bitters.

Hockey is back in the zeitgeist thanks to Heated Rivalry (a show I loved!), but as sexy as these young players + lovers are, they can’t hold a candle to Paul Newman in Slap Shot. Plus, with a soundtrack that includes hits by Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, and Maxine Nightingale, I think I’d rather hang out at the dive bar than the cabin. Cheers!

Classic Films · Dramas

Love Affair

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Image: Love Affair, 1939

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired. Now that the holiday hosting is nearly finished, all I want to do is lay on the sofa with a cocktail and a comfort watch. Even though Love Affair (Disc/Download) was a new-to-me pick in 2025, it’s a film that’s been retold so often, it feels like an old friend at this point. Or perhaps, an old lover.

Starring Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne as a pair of star-crossed paramours who meet aboard a cruise ship, Leo McCarey’s original film sparkles in a different way than his remake An Affair to Remember. The dialogue seems looser, more natural, with Dunne and Boyer sharing flirtatious banter as they enter a romance that seems impossible from the start. She’s a nightclub singer, he’s a playboy who dreams of painting, and as is the case for so many young creatives, two struggling artists put together do not equal one lavish champagne budget. But nevertheless, they decide to try. They shrug off the relationships of convenience like a mink stole on a warm summer day and agree to meet six months later at the top of the Empire State Building. I think you know where this goes, so I won’t rehash the ensuing melodrama, but boy, does it make my heart clench. I don’t know if men “get” this movie, but I definitely do.

While on the cruise, the lovers try in vain to stay away from serious topics, trying to keep everything “beautiful and bubbling like pink champagne”. Life, as they find out, doesn’t work that way. But in movies, we can wish for it anyway. While watching Love Affair, I recommend drinking this Pink French ’75.

Pink French ’75

1 oz pink gin

1 oz simple syrup

3/4 oz fresh lemon juice

Pink Champagne

Lemon twist (garnish)

Pour gin, simple syrup, and lemon juice into a shaker with ice. Shake to chill, then strain into a champagne flute. Top with pink Champagne, and garnish with a lemon twist.

If wishes are the dreams we make when we’re awake, then my wish for 2026 is that we all carve out time for more pink champagne moments. Life can be heavy, hard, and full of disappointment, but that just makes it even more essential to celebrate the tiny wins and joys where we can. Reality may not be beautiful and bubbly all the time, but for the length of a classic comfort watch, it can be. Cheers!

Action/Adventure/Heist · Holiday Films

Batman Returns

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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!

Classic Films · Comedies · Holiday Films · Uncategorized

We’re No Angels

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Image: We’re No Angels, 1955

If you want to get me excited to watch a movie, all you have to do is tack on VistaVision before the opening credits. Paul Thomas Anderson has been bringing the format back into the zeitgeist with his 2025 release One Battle After Another, but there are so many classic films that benefited from its vivid colors and wide aspect ratio. One of these is the 1955 Christmas movie, We’re No Angels (Disc/Download), starring Humphrey Bogart, Peter Ustinov, and Aldo Ray as a trio of escaped convicts on Devil’s Island.

I confess, I had to look up Devil’s Island on a map to see what kind of setting we were dealing with. Turns out, it’s solidly in what I like to call “Rum Country”, off the coast of French Guiana in the Atlantic ocean. In 1895, our three main characters escape from the island’s penal colony and take refuge in a general store. They convince the manager to let them fix the roof, with the intention of robbing him blind. But then, they get sucked into the manager’s family affairs, soon realizing they enjoy selling unnecessary junk to customers, cooking a (stolen) Christmas dinner, and menacing some evil relatives. But the true MVP of this movie is Adolphe the snake, who has no lines, but is the most integral to the plot. An honorary “fourth angel”, he’s judge, jury, and executioner all in one.

Because of the film’s tropical setting, I’m inclined to make a Tiki cocktail. There’s a great scene of a woman buying a bottle of Chartreuse for her Christmas celebration, and if you can find some these days, that’s reason enough to throw a party. While watching We’re No Angels, I recommend drinking A.C. Davidge’s 1949 classic, the Palm Breeze.

Palm Breeze

½ oz lime juice

½ oz dark Jamaican rum

½ oz white crème de cacao

¾ oz yellow Chartreuse

1 tsp grenadine

Gummy snake (suggested garnish)

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake to chill, then strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a gummy snake.

It’s fun to watch these tough guys get into the holiday spirit on a tropical island, and for that reason, I think We’re No Angels would make a great double feature with Donovan’s Reef. Just remember to keep the rum flowing and watch your wallet…  

Cheers!

Dramas · Holiday Films

Babygirl

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Image: Babygirl, 2024

The last time I did a Dystopian Christmas series was in 2017, and back then, I featured the Stanley Kubrick film Eyes Wide Shut. I thought this would be the end of my anti-holly jolly picks, until (supposedly) seventy-seven million Americans decided they wanted Dystopia: The Sequel! So, in the spirit of “you asked for it”, I’m watching a Christmas movie for these darkest of times: Babygirl (Disc/Download).

I’ve always thought of Babygirl as the spiritual follow-up to Eyes Wide Shut. Both films take place at Christmas, both star Nicole Kidman, and both fall into the “psycho-sexual thriller” genre. But where Eyes Wide Shut features Tom Cruise gallivanting to orgies and basement jazz bars while Nicole stays home wrapping gifts, in Babygirl the tables are turned. Here, she finally gets to explore the phrase, “If you men only knew…”

As robotics exec Romy Mathis, Kidman plays a woman who seemingly has it all. Great job, two kids, a devoted husband (played by Antonio Banderas), and a fabulous selection of cashmere coats. But still, it’s not enough. She longs to explore her sexual kinks, and she does so with the hot new office intern (Harris Dickinson). I see echoes of Belle du Jour as Romy puts herself in debasing, risky situations, addicted to her secrets and powerless to stop. One can’t help but be enthralled by the chemistry Romy shares with her younger lover, but also by the tension of waiting for it all to implode.

In one particularly interesting scene, Romy shows up to the office happy hour where her paramour sends over a glass of milk. I prefer to mix that milk with some other ingredients, so while watching Babygirl, I recommend drinking the classic Tiki staple, a Rum Cow.

Rum Cow

1 oz dark Jamaican rum

½ oz simple syrup

1 ½ oz milk

Pinch of grated nutmeg

Fill a shaker 1/3 full with ice, then add rum, simple syrup, and milk. Shake to chill, then strain into a chilled coupe glass. Dust with grated nutmeg.

Babygirl definitely isn’t for everyone, but if you’re the type of person who likes psychologically fraught tales about adult relationships, you’ll probably enjoy this. Even if you’re only here for the cashmere coats and Harris Dickinson’s hotel striptease, it’ll be worth your time. Cheers!

Holiday Films

Champagne Problems

LizLocke1 Comment
Image: Champagne Problems, 2025

Holiday movie season is upon us, which deserves a toast with whatever you can afford. Thanks to tariffs, it may not be Champagne, but even if it’s just your finest bottle of Trader Joe’s Blanc d’ Blanc, everyone deserves to taste the stars. On that note, I couldn’t think of a better movie to kick things off than the new Netflix release Champagne Problems.

First, I want to welcome Minka Kelly to the Christmas Movie Universe. Her Friday Night Lights co-star Aimeé Teegarden has been riding this seasonal train for a few years now, and it’s about time she had another Dillon, TX resident out there with her. In Champagne Problems, Minka plays V.I.B.P. (Very Important Business Person) Sydney Price, who travels to Paris with the intent to purchase a champagne company. But before the Big Meeting™ happens, her flaky sister encourages her to have one magical night in the city. She quickly meets-cute with a charming French guy in the most charming French bookstore, and they end up sharing a Before Sunrise evening together. However, at the Big Meeting™, guess who walks in- the charming French guy she just slept with!! It turns out he’s heir to a Champagne fortune, and now she’s got to go to his family’s chateau to compete against other V.I.B.P.s to win the company. This competition includes:

  • Eating a smorgasbord of French cheeses
  • Trimming the vines
  • Snuggling with the cutest dog alive
  • Fixing a vintage Citroën (in true holiday movie fashion, she is not just a businesswoman; she’s also an amateur mechanic!)

Obviously, the best beverage pairing for this movie is Champagne. You could certainly open a nice bottle and call it a day, but I wanted to challenge myself to come up with a sparkling cocktail worthy of Minka’s debut. While watching Champagne Problems, I recommend drinking this American in Paris cocktail.

American in Paris

1 oz St. Germain

½ oz Cocchi Americano

3 dashes orange bitters

3-4 oz Champagne or sparkling wine

Lemon twist and romemary (garnish)

In a cocktail shaker, combine St. Germain, Cocchi Americano, and bitters with ice. Shake to chill, then strain into a coupe. Top with Champagne, then garnish with a twist of lemon and sprig of rosemary. (Optional: dust Rosemary with powdered sugar to mimic “snow”)

This movie checks a lot of boxes for me, including international travel, alcohol, attractive actors, and the aforementioned cute dog. If you only watch one streaming/TV holiday movie this year (although, why would you ever stop at just one???), make it Champagne Problems. Cheers!

Comedies

Uncle Buck

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Image: Uncle Buck, 1989

If you’re planning a family visit this holiday season, then you might be in the mood to watch everybody’s favorite movie relative: John Candy. In Uncle Buck (Disc/Download), the actor makes a killer breakfast, looks great in a bowling shirt, and knows how to talk dirty to a washing machine. He also puts the “fun” in funcle.

Written and directed by John Hughes, this film features many Hughes hallmarks such as the mid-western suburban setting, a great soundtrack, and precocious children. Gabby Hoffmann and Macauley Culkin steal every scene they’re in, always game to participate in whatever crazy scheme their uncle has cooked up. It could be pancakes the size of a kiddie pool, or microwaved socks, or a trip to the horse track; every day is a new adventure. Where the film’s conflict emerges is in his relationship with surly teen niece Tia (Jean Louisa Kelly). They butt heads because she wants to grow up too fast, while he doesn’t want to grow up at all. Honestly, this guy is a saint for putting up with her scowl for as long as he does. I’d have left her to Bug.

The cozy scenes of colder climates have me longing for a bourbon cocktail, and what better than a “buck”? This style of drink traditionally has a spirit + citrus + ginger beer, and it’s a fantastic base for experimentation. The possibilities are limitless, but in honor of Uncle Buck’s most hilarious scene, I recommend trying this Buck Melanoma cocktail.

Buck Melanoma

2 oz bourbon

¾ oz lemon juice

3-4 fresh blackberries

½ oz maple syrup

4 oz ginger beer

In the bottom of a shaker, muddle the lemon juice, blackberries, and maple syrup together. Add bourbon and ice and shake to chill. Double strain into a highball glass filled with fresh ice and top with ginger beer. Stir gently to combine.

John Candy’s improv skills save Uncle Buck from being too formulaic, and they also distract from some of the broader physical comedy moments. My ego took a bit of a bruising when I realized I’m now older than Buck, but that’s okay. You can be a dreamer and a sillyheart at any age. Cheers!

Classic Films

Written on the Wind

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Image: Written on the Wind, 1956

In my house, it’s just not fall until I’ve watched at least one Douglas Sirk movie. No other director does changing leaves and soaring orchestral scores quite like the master of women’s pictures, and Written on the Wind (Disc) is a prime example of his iconic style. By the end of this movie, I’m ready to pop the collar on my flannel shirt and find the nearest picturesque pond.

Written on the Wind is a natural fit for Cinema Sips because somebody is holding a cocktail in nearly every scene. Robert Stack and Dorothy Malone play spoiled boozehound siblings, while Rock Hudson and Lauren Bacall try to temper the siblings’ wild ways. Rock loves Lauren, Lauren loves Robert, Dorothy loves Rock, Robert loves liquor, and this quadrangle is one delicious Texas soap opera. Rock is maybe the hottest geologist to ever set foot on an oil rig, and it’s easy to see how Dorothy Malone’s character Marylee could self destruct over her unrequited love for him. She has all the best scenes in the movie, leaning over cars and divans with a glass in her hand like the world bores her to death. But it’s all a front: she’s just a lonely girl who wants her brother’s best friend to view her as more than a kid sister. And in Rock’s case, she’ll be waiting forever.

Robert Stack makes his last drunken stand on a pint of corn whiskey, and since I happen to have a jar that’s been waiting for just such a scene, it seems like a good time to use it. Maybe if I drink enough, I won’t shudder at the part where he swings the door wide open on a windy night, allowing ALL THE LEAVES TO BLOW INSIDE. The absolute horror! While watching Written on the Wind, I recommend drinking this Cinnamon Apple Mule.

Cinnamon Apple Mule

1 ½ oz Sugarland Shine Dynamite Cinnamon moonshine

1 oz spiced apple cider

1 oz lime juice

4 oz ginger beer

Dried lime wheel

Build drink over ice, stirring to combine. Garnish with a dried lime wheel.

It wouldn’t be a Douglas Sirk picture without stunning costumes and sets, and Written on the Wind‘s are certainly gorgeous. At one point, Robert Stack flies Lauren Bacall down to Miami on a whim and stocks her hotel room with every gown, evening bag, and cosmetic she could possibly need. I was rooting for her to marry him right then and there, morals be damned, but this classy dame made him wait another twenty-four hours. He may be an alcoholic mess, but the man has good taste. Cheers!