20th Century Women [2016]
1. She listens to the punk record for a moment. Then asks, “Can’t things just be pretty?”
2. “These are a bunch of songs that I think my life would have been better if they had been around when I was a teenager. So I’m hoping that if you listen to them now, you’ll be a happier and more realized person than I could ever hope to be.”
3. Menstruation.
The One I Love [2014]
1. “That’s my grape.”
2. Mary Steenburgen’s voice on the phone.
3. He processes her offer of bacon for breakfast.
A concoction I put together as an experiment, it’s modestly sized but full of flavor.
CHEERFUL LITTLE EARFUL
Fill a small tumbler to the top with crushed ice. Add the ingredients to an ice-filled cocktail shaker, shake like crazy, and strain into the tumbler. Garnish with a large swath of orange peel.
The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear [1991]
1. “I’m sure we can handle the situation maturely, just like the responsible adults that we are. Isn’t that right, Mr. Poopy Pants?”
2. Random Mel Tormé cameo.
3. Electric toothbrush vs. blow-dryer.
Crossfire [1947]
1. “Some of them are named Samuels. Some of them got funnier names.”
2. Empty moonlit patio.
3. “Where were you when he needed you? Maybe you were someplace having beautiful thoughts. Well, I wasn’t. I was in a gin mill, where all he had to do to see me was walk in and buy me a drink.”
A little preachy? Perhaps. But still relevant as hell.
Roma [2018]
1. Shower curtain rod.
2. Picking out a crib.
3. Silently eating ice cream together.
First Reformed [2017]
1. Martin Luther in the outhouse.
2. They slowly lift off.
3. “Despair is a development of pride so great that it chooses one’s certitude rather than admit God is more creative than we are. Perhaps it’s better I didn’t say that to him.”
Me on Chicagoist
