TV Bites: A Separation (Jodaeiye Nader az Simin)

THE SNACK:
Ash-e Reshteh (Persian Noodle Soup w/Meatballs)



So, I'm pushing back the Bogart double bill and bumping what was to be the mid-March post up because of A Separation's Oscar win on Sunday. The second Bogart film will appear in its place later this month.

As you know if you've been following this adventure, I typically don't do films currently in the theaters. But occasionally I find myself wanting to share something new I really like. (The last time was for the Vik Muniz documentary Waste Land.) Plus, in this case, it's an opportunity to make some Persian food. And it seemed perfect timing in that March 20th is Norouz, the Persian New Year.

I had heard about this film back in November and I was interested in it, but I thought, "Oh, a family drama. It could be kind of boring." But then I watched it in December and I was just so taken by it.

The Class: Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

THE MENU:
Garlic Mushrooms in Red Wine (Champiñones al Ajillo con Vino Tinto)
Fried Eggplant With Honey, Mint, And Sesame Seeds (Berenjenas Fritas con Miel, Menta y Semillas de Sésamo)
Gazpacho de Pepa
Spinach with Pine Nuts and Raisins (Espinacas con Piñones y Pasas)
Orange & Brandy Pancakes with Cinnamon Ice Cream (Pescajus Naranja con Helado de Canela)



Was very pleased with the class today, though I wished, as always, that we had more people in attendance. Nevertheless, it all went very smoothly. And, as always, big thanks to the staff at Central Market for helping me pull it off.

I've never been a huge fan of Almodóvar's later films, but this one I think is my favorite and his best. It's very skillfully executed but never takes itself too seriously. So many perfectly shot scenes.

The idea to do the film came about because Central Market was doing this whole "Passport to Spain" thing and they asked me to come up a movie to do and this was the first one that popped into my mind, especially for a matinée class. And it was perfect and I thoroughly enjoyed revisiting it and researching the notes for the class.

TV Bites: The Palm Beach Story

THE SNACK:
Texas Weiners



April 17, 2011 marks the 100th Anniversary of the Town of Palm Beach, which was entirely coincidental in my choosing to write about The Palm Beach Story for this particular post. I'd been wanting to do a Preston Sturges film for some time, and in fact, traded some emails with Sturges' son, Tom, who is a friend of a friend. Tom was able to get me a photocopy of the menu from The Players, the restaurant Sturges owned during his time in Hollywood. Plan on seeing a dish from that menu in a future Sturges movie posting. However, there is only one dish that would be appropriate for The Palm Beach Story - watch the movie, kids! - and so it is the Texas Wieinie.

TV Bites: A Fistful of Dollars (Per un pugno di dollari)

THE SNACK:
Clint Eastwood's Hush Puppies



Well, I survived the "overcrowded & overmarketed" edition of South by Southwest and it's time to get back to work. Though, for Chef du Cinema, it was a very productive shmoozefest. I've got some interesting things in talks for some fun projects - more to come on that. But, if you've been following me on Twitter, you'll know I met with Mike Etchart of Sound & Vision Magazine Radio and I did a live interview with them. But the most exciting news is that I got contacted by the Rachael Ray Show about possibly doing something with them. We'll see what happens, but either way it's all good and it means that Chef du Cinema is moving onwards and upwards. Maybe some day soon, I'll be able to take this on the road and - if you're not in Austin - have a class in your town!

TV Bites: North by Northwest

THE SNACK:
Bourbon Cured Steelhead Trout



Well, currently I'm stuck in bed with an upper respiratory infection which means it hurts to talk and I've been on a liquid diet for the last 48 hours. And I'm contagious. But the show must go on and I'm hard at work trying to knock out the special Christmas and New Year's editions of this blog. So, in the meantime.....

I hope you will believe me when I say that I have no grand master list of films I'm choosing, but rather selecting them as the urge strikes. So it's as much of a surprise to me that in the few films I've chosen so far, this is now the third film that was made in 1959 (along with Some Like it Hot and Rio Bravo). Why this year has such a pull on me for this "adventure," I'm not sure. But here we are, number three.

TV Bites: Some Like It Hot

THE SNACK:
Tony Curtis' Stuffed Cabbage (Töltött Káposzta)



I'm sure one could easily write a master's thesis on the subject of how in American society, where male sexuality is so filled with issues and general weirdness, that the top 2 films on AFI's 100 YEARS - 100 LAUGHS list are Some Like it Hot and Tootsie - two films about cross-dressing men.