February 21, 2007
OOEY, GOOEY, RICH AND CHEWY
So, today I got a package into the paper I've been wanting to do for more than a year: bestowing Chewy Awards for great achievement in cinematic depiction of food.
I love movies. I love food. I figured, why not combine them both?
When you think about it, food plays an important role in films. It humanizes characters. It gives them something to do onscreen. It adds warmth and a touch or reality so viewers can relate.
A few scenes that didn't make the Hall of Fame for space reasons:
"The Cable Guy," 1996
Chip Douglas (Jim Carrey) and Steven Kovacs (Matthew Broderick) visit Medieval Times for a night out. During the meal, Chip puts food on his face and re-enacts a scene as Hannibal Lecter from "The Silence of the Lambs." Janeane Garofalo is hilarious as their disaffected serving wench.
"The Color Purple," 1985
After decades as the under-appreciated and abused wife of Albert (Danny Glover), Celie (Whoopi Goldberg) finally confronts him at the dinner table and announces she's leaving him. "Until you do right by me," she says. "Everything you think about is gonna crumble."
"Stripes," 1980
Newly enlisted Army private John Winger (Bill Murray) gives MP Stella Hansen (P.J. Soles) the "Aunt Jemima Treatment" with a spatula on the stove top of General Barnake's house on base. An ice cream scoop - and cheap, meaningless gratification - soon follow.
A little glimpse into the glamorous world of food journalism: The Chewy Award shown on the Flavor cover today was painted in my garage.
I had to buy three bags of popcorn: one to test, one to try and a third to make up for the two I screwed up.
You have no idea how hard it is to spray paint popcorn and have it maintain any semblance of its true form. Damn stuff shrinks on contact with just about any fluid.
Now I have golden trash lids to remember my story. I have some paint left over. Maybe I'll bling out my Rubbermaids and have the only solid gold trash cans in the neighborhood.