Keep It Short and Sweet
When you’re preparing for a move to a new state, do you know what you don’t have time for? Pretty much everything. You have to pack. Find movers. Have a small panic attack when you hear how much interstate moving costs. Pack some more. Set up utilities for one place while canceling them in another. The list goes on. But wait, what about movie watching?
We decided we didn’t want to skip a month, so I suggested the idea of short films—capping them at 60 minutes or less. Any genre was fair game as long as it was shorter than an episode of Last of Us. As for the meal, we decided to serve up some quick dinners from our respective repertoires.
Week 1: Mel’s Movie
Movie: Strange Way of Life (2023)
We all want Pedro to look at us that way.
This was our first Pedro Almodóvar film, and it did not disappoint (big thank you to my friend Bettie for telling me about it!). While the dialogue at first felt stunted between Ethan Hawke’s Jake and the town cowboy, that changed shortly after Pedro Pascal’s Silva shows up. In my opinion, once Jake and Silva were together and talking, the dialogue had an almost lyrical quality to it—an ease. Absolutely worth the $3.19 it cost to buy it and the 31 minutes spent watching.
Check it out if you want to:
Enjoy the sensual pan down to Pedro’s butt, and then a little something more later.
Meal: Salmon Caesar Salad
This is one of my go-to salads I make. I usually use romaine, but our store was out, so this salad features kale, alongside dried cranberries, shaved parmesan, oven baked salmon, and homemade croutons and caesar salad dressing. I like to make the majority of my salad dressings so I can control the flavor and thickness, and honestly, it’s not that hard. Definitely one of my favorite go-to meals that doesn’t require a recipe, and if you don’t have time, just buy croutons and dressing.
Week 2: Johnny’s Movie
Movie: Timecode (2016)
Why play Solitaire on the work computer when you can show off your moves?
Winning the Short Film Palm D’Or for the 69th annual Cannes Film Festival in 2016, followed by a nomination for the 2017 Best Short Live Action Film Academy Award, Timecode was our first foray into Spanish film (to my knowledge). Johnny did a bit of research, and landed on this Juanjo Giménez short. I felt it was a quiet film, and definitely quirky, with so much storytelling being done with very little talking in 15 minutes.
Check it out if you want to:
Experience a secret unfolding.
Meal: Steak Tacos
Tacos have always been an easy, go-to-meal, and for this meal Johnny opted to do a shaved steak taco with shredded lettuce, cheddar, pico, and homemade pickled red onions. Honestly, sub in almost any other protein, and this formula still works. Want to skip the cheese? Makes sense. Add in some guac? Go for it. A little crema? Sure. But when it comes to moving, it’s all about using up the ingredients you have in the fridge.
Week 3: Mel’s Movie
Movie: The Phone Call (2013)
What if the old guy from Up didn’t meet Russell and Dug? Well, you get this movie.
Another film nominated for an Academy Awards Best Live Action Short Film (and winning), The Phone Call popped up for me when I googled a list of good short films. Listed as “thriller/drama,” I’d say it’s light on thriller, but still quite good with some really beautiful cinematography. Sally Hawkins, as Heather, is absolutely fantastic.
Check it out if you want to:
Wonder why Stan’s voice is so familiar (hint, it’s because you stress-watched ALL the Bridget Jones movies over the course of a week).
Meal: Quick Pantry Pasta
Having an easy pasta dish on hand that can be customized to any kind of ingredients in your pantry or fridge is an essential part of anyone’s cooking skills, in my opinion. Pasta? Use what you have (I needed to use up a box of bowtie pasta). Veggies? Add them! I had extra mushrooms on hand, as well as half of a bell pepper. Sauce? It depends on what you have—this is a creamy sauce because I had some light cream I wanted to finish up, but you could go in any direction. Follow your heart and stomach, and clean out that pantry!
Week 4: Johnny’s Movie
Movie: Interesting Ball (2014)
Well, that was a bizarre 13 minutes.
Available on Vimeo, this was an easy pick for Johnny. He had seen it years ago and added it to a list of interesting media and shorts—perfect for our theme. But, for me, this honestly was a challenging watch, I think because the absurdity of many situations distracted me from the storytelling. That said, afterwards we discussed the film, which helped to bring more things into full focus.
Check it out if you want to:
Experience a blend of absurd and heartfelt storytelling.
Meal: Roasts Chicken Thighs with Mashed Potatoes, Onions and Mushrooms
In my humble opinion, Johnny has mastered roasted chicken thighs—he can adjust things by changing up his seasonings, or what we serve as a side, but they’re always juicy, flavorful, and with crisp skin. We tend to use instant mashed potatoes to keep this a quick meal, but because we also had some mushrooms and onions on hand, Johnny sauteed them and added them to the mix. Delicious as always!
Did we survive the move? Yes. Are we still living in a sea of boxes? Somewhat, but we’re getting things settled (and often resettled as we come up with new ideas about how to use our new space well). With May in our rearview mirror and summer ahead of us, June will get us back into feature-length films and something a bit more seasonal appropriate.
Also, if you haven’t already seen Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, GO! Now! We saw it in an adorable theater near our new place that offers homemade baked goods as snacks (along with the usual movie theater classics), and I can say I had THE most delicious slice of chocolate cake.