WFC Spain: Carne Trémula

This started off kinda wonky, but then it got better. Almodovar is Almodovar, of course, but sometimes he goes off the rails. This is quite different from his usual themes, though.

I quite enjoyed parts of it, but it does drag a bit…

Live Flesh. Pedro Almodovar. 1997. Spain.

Aquavit 43

  • 3 parts Licor 43
  • 2 parts Aquavit
  • 2 parts Noilly Prat
  • 1 part lime juice

Fill a lowball glass with orange and lime wedges and ice. Pour the ingredients. Stir well. Garnish with a mint sprig.

This is a very weird cocktail. I’m not sure whether it’s horrible or great. Do the flavours go together? Hm…

This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.

WFC Saudi Arabia: وجدة‎

Hey! It’s a comedy about a spunky girl in Saudi Arabia. Not what I expected at all. It plays with the constant trivial, petty and extreme repression of Saudi society vs trying to have a normal childhood very effectively.

Funny and enraging at the same time.

And the girl playing the lead is just amazing.

Wadjda. Haifaa al-Mansour. 2012. Saudi Arabia.

Flying Carpet

  • 2 parts vodka
  • 1 part Advocaat
  • 1 part Pisang Ambon
  • 2 parts cream

Shake with ice and strain into a cocktail glass.

This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.

WFC India: द लंच बॉक्स

Hm… this might not be totally genuinly Indian. Lots of European financing going on…

//

From the cover of the DVD I thought it was going to be a Bollywood film with lots of dancing and singing, and… it isn’t. Boo!

But this film has a very silly premise, anyway. Me like! Marrying that great premise to a film with emotional depth is a really good idea.

It kinda drags in the last act, though.

The Lunchbox. Ritesh Batra. 2013. India.

  • 6cl whiskey
  • 2 tsp orange marmelade
  • 1 tsp finely graded ginger
  • a splash of soda
  • orance slice

Shake the three first ingredients with ice. Strain into ice-filled glass, splash some soda into it, and garnish with a slice of orange.

This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.

WFC Iran: کلوزآپ ، نمای نزدیک‎

This is a totally fascinating film. It’s mostly a documentary, but the film-maker didn’t arrive until a bit into the proceedings, so he had the people involved re-enact what happened before he arrived.

And the story being told isn’t a super-duper mega-important one, but a really weird one.

It’s so bizarre structurally. I had to google it to determine that it wasn’t just all made up, because that’s the only thing that would have made it more mind blowing.

Close-Up. Abbas Kiarostami. 1990. Iran.

  • 8 parts gin
  • 7 parts Persian sweet lemon juice
  • 2 parts lemon juice
  • 2 parts Cherry Heering
  • 1 part rosewater
  • 1 part simple syrup

Shake with ice and strain into glass.

I’ve never had sweet lemons before. It’s a quite subtle flavour. It’s not even that citrusey. But nice.

This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.

WFC Denmark: Idealisten

This film veered between being almost a parody of a serious documentary about a brave journalist and… er… Hm. Perhaps it didn’t veer that much.

It wasn’t a good film, but it was occasionally exciting.

The Idealist. Christina Rosendahl. 2015. Denmark.

Complement Cocktail

  • 2 parts gin
  • 1 part aquavit
  • a few dashes of maraschino liqueur

This post is part of the World of Films and Cocktails series. Explore the map.