CineDrunk: Final 2015 Oscar Predictions

A drumroll, please. But not from Whiplash, because it would be cruel to remind us of such things.

Nay, a drumroll to announce our final* predictions for the 88th Annual Academy Awards. Drinks in hand, we worked through all 24 categories in a magnanimous effort to help you win your office pool. No need to send us a cut of your winnings. Helping fellow Oscar-obsessives is what we do.

*Final means "subject to change." Set-in-stone predictions to be posted Sunday.

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CineDrunk: Best of 2015 - Top Ten Lists

It's that time of year! We've seen more than one hundred 2015 movies, so it's high time we rank them--unmercifully.

Just kidding, we're as giddy as BB-8 to talk about this impressive crop of films. And we do just that in our latest CineDrunk podcast. Without further ado, our long-awaited top ten episode in which we are drunk on movies, lists, and celery martinis. Cheers!

Celery Martini
(adapted from Saveur)

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2 oz London Dry Gin
1.5 oz lemon juice
1.5 oz dry vermouth
celery salt
lime wedge
celery hearts

Rim a martini glass with lime wedge and celery salt. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add gin, lemon juice, and vermouth. Shake vigorously and strain into rimmed glass. Garnish with a celery heart.
 

Watch the blog in the coming days for our full write-ups on the films that were most special to us in 2015. Want more? You can't possibly, but there's more anyway! Below is a short (we promise!) bonus podcast where we discuss even more films we loved from last year, though not quite enough to make any of our lists. Spiked hot chocolate is involved.

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CineDrunk: Favorite Films of 2000

Remember the New Year that fueled our fears of end-of-the-world-caused-by-computer-glitch destruction? The New Year that outsmarted all the math machines on Earth because... math?

Those were innocent times.

Sixteen years later, we're taking a look back at Y2K. We're not quite ready to unveil our list of the best films and performances for the current year (though we're well on our way, with 80 films under our belt).

(Our first thought was to continue with our 2005 retrospective, until we decided we weren't the biggest fans of the films of 2005.)

So instead, we're rolling out our 15th-anniversary celebration of the films of 2000! The first year of this century brought us some great cinema, both popular and indie alike, and we had drunken fun trying to recall our memories from that crop of films.

Y2K Cocktail

• 2 oz cold espresso (we used super-concentrated Vietnamese coffee)
• 1/2 oz Cognac
• 1/2 oz Grand Marnier
• 1/2 oz simple syrup

Stir, strain, and garnish with a twist of orange peel.

SPOILER: Nathan's source for trivia question #3.

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CineDrunk: Top 10 Favorite Oscar Nominations of the Last Decade

Our favorite Thanksgiving related film moment - Addams Family Values

Before the current Oscar season discards or ignores our favorite films and performances, we thought we'd take a moment this holiday weekend to focus on the positive. We love the Oscars, drinks, and lists in almost equal measure, so what better way to celebrate Thanksgiving then by counting down our ten favorite Oscar nominations from the last decade in our latest inebriated podcast! 

We considered every nominee from 2005-2014 in all categories, even films or performances that won. While our tastes aligned much of the time, we were surprised at the diversity in our selections. A few choices seem like no-brainers, but each of our top ten lists provides a personal snapshot of what we're thankful the Academy got right.

You can find the recipe for the mulled wine we were drinking here -- we added 1/2 cup applejack brandy and replaced the star anise with an anise flavored liqueur because of course we did. Enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend or at least the start of the true holidays (Oscar season!), and let us know which nominations from the last ten years you're most grateful for!

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CineDrunk: 2015 Fall Movies Thus Far

With November half gone, we've been busy at the cineplex as we work our way through the list of our most anticipated films of the season. This week we're discussing a handful of fall movies that may or may not factor into the fast approaching Oscar race. In honor of the season, our inspired cocktail was either titled the "Flouncy Flirty Fall Philanderer" or the "Clea DuFall."

Gin and Poached Pear Tonic
1 part gin
1 part tonic
1 part poached pear juice (find your own recipe b/c we're not helping)
1 sprinkle-dinkle cayenne pepper
1 small squeeze fresh lime juice

Pour gin, tonic, and pear juice over ice and stir. Add cayenne and lime juice. Garnish with lime, poached pear, or 1st Place Sash from the World Bartender Championships. Enjoy!

Films Discussed in This Episode:
00:00   Intro & Drink Recipe
03:21   The Martian
13:17   Goodnight Mommy
18:21   Room
29:06   Black Mass
33:54   Everest
37:51   Crimson Peak
45:39   Sicario
49:05   Bridge of Spies
1:02:50   Steve Jobs

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CineDrunk: 2005 Oscars Retrospective

Before we dive head first into this year's Oscar season, we took a quick trip in our DeLorean to a decade ago and the Academy Awards race of 2005. In case you need reminding (or inspiration to drink), this was the infamous year when Crash took down Brokeback Mountain for Best Picture in the final lap. We let the expletives fly as we discussed the top races, who or what we would've voted for, and what we think of the nominated films and performances ten years later.

In honor of the Best Picture winner, we couldn't be bothered to create an actual drink recipe, but threw a large amount of liquids (mostly of the alcoholic variety) in a bowl and called it the "Crash and Burn." You can do the same at home with any non-poisonous liquid! Though you might want the poison handy if you're thinking of re-watching Crash. Hiyo! No, we have some nice(ish) things to say about that divisive Paul Haggis film, so not to worry if you're a fan. 

Listen in, and let us know how you might've voted, or if you agree with Nathan that Felicity Huffman in Transamerica is "the most garbage piece of human acting in the past thirty years." 

Editor's note: Matt's fuzzy memory mentions that Chris Cooper was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at that year's SAG Awards for Capote. His memory is as hazy as his recollection of Capote, and he is mistaken. He was thinking of the much-less-prestigious Golden Satellite Awards, where Cooper was indeed nominated for his work in that film. He did receive a random SAG Supporting Actor nomination for Seabiscuit two years prior, so that's probably what he was thinking of.

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CineDrunk: Emmys Predictions 2015

This special television themed episode of the podcast ("TeleDrunk," if you will - and you will) sees us delving into the major categories for the 2015 Primetime Emmy Awards. We've got some drinks, our predictions, who might spoil, and who we're rooting for to take home a trophy this weekend. 

The Emmys will air this Sunday, September 20th on FOX. Be sure to follow along with us during the ceremony on Twitter @CineMunch!

Editor's note: Matt was correct in his guess of Mary Tyler Moore when one of this week's trivia questions asked which actress held the record for most nominations in the Lead Actress in a Comedy category. MTM has ten nominations (followed by Bea Arthur and Julia Louis-Dreyfus with nine, and Lucille Ball and Jean Stapleton with eight).

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CineDrunk: Best & Worst of Summer 2015

Labor Day has come and gone, so it's time to cleanse your wardrobe of white and say goodbye to the summer movie season. Before we part, though, let's take one last look at the past four months, CineDrunk Podcast-style.

Last winter we introduced the CineMunchies--our awards for cinematic excellence (just one step down from the Oscars). Now we present the CineMunchies' stunted stepchild: the CineSnacks. Join us for an approximation of coherence as we award our favorites of the summer in categories such as Best Actress, Best Food or Drink Moment, and Favorite Scene.

On the Drunk side of things, we continue to lower our standards. This time: rum punch and Jell-O shots. Hello, Jell-O; goodbye, dignity.

Photo by Simply Fresh Cooking

Jell-O Shots
Turns out there are as many Jell-O shot recipes as there are food blogs. Our go-to (read: the first one we found that sounded marginally well-informed) is Method 1 of 7 from wikiHow. You will need:

• 1 6oz package Jell-O
• Approximately 3 cups water
• Approximately 1 cup chilled alcohol of your choice (we used rum with mango Jell-O)

Visit wikiHow for the full recipe. Create gelatin magic. Slurp, swallow, repeat.

By some twist of fate/rum-filled bite of gelatin, we each had the same favorite, runner-up, AND worst film of the summer. Listen in to find out which!

Missed our first summer 2015 movie recaps? Have a listen to part one and part two. Or travel back in time to listen to what we thought of the summer of 2014.

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