111: Heat Wave

If you're in the eastern half of the United States, you've probably been stuck under a heat dome for the past week or so. It's been pretty bad in Chicago—my phone keeps telling me the temperature is a good 12 to 15 degrees above the daily average. It feels like the middle of August with a kind of swampy heat that hovers, like an unwelcome guest.

I like to lean into the season with the movies I watch. Maybe it's the liturgy lover in me: for every season, there's an appropriate prayer, a song, a reading...a movie. (My friend Abby Olcese's written a book about this very topic! If you like this sort of thing, you should preorder it!)

Right now we're in the middle of the longest stretch of Ordinary Time in the church calendar; we've also hit the part of the season where summer feels like it's going to be forever. I like to sink into movies during this season in the same way; my favorites for summer are the ones that feel lived-in, that linger on the setting and the characters almost more than they do on the plot.

Cléo from 5 to 7 – My favorite hangout movie. It takes place in real time on the cusp of the summer solstice during the long wait for the sun to slide down over the horizon, all as its titular character frets about an impending medical diagnosis. Agnès Varda holds the promise and the fear of the unknown in tension together.

Near Dark – Grimy sweat and vampires in Texas and Oklahoma. Kathryn Bigelow shoots violence in a way that feels enervating and oppressive: perfect for the summer heat.

Princess Cyd – This indie by Stephen Cone understands the beauty of living in Chicago in the early summer: the beaches, the green streets, the promise of a flirtation or even of a romance.

NOPE – Jordan Peele seems to like messing with his audience. There's a couple of great fake-out sequences in this creature-feature movie before he reveals the true monster, and it's all grounded in Keke Palmer's exuberant performance and Daniel Kaluuya's taciturn stare.

Crimes of the Future (2022) – Languorous, sweaty noir, shot in a run-down town in Greece. David Cronenberg's movie is a vision of a future where nobody feels pain any more, and where some people have evolved to be able to eat plastic. In the real world, we're still in denial about the effects of climate change and microplastics; here, Cronenberg has moved all the way through the stages of grief toward acceptance, and he finds grotesque beauty along the way.

Spirited Away – Miyazaki animates summer better than any other season. It's in the landscapes: lush green hills sprinkled with flowers, and the steady roll of the ocean. Spirited Away's summer is literally otherworldly, a place I like being transported to again and again, especially when I can't remember that the heat won't last forever.

What I made:

Because it's been so warm, House Welch-Larson refuses to cook anything hot unless it's over a grill. On really hot days we revert to sandwiches and fancy salads. Last year's MVP was a strawberry/kale number with a killer homemade dressing that has lime and cilantro in it. This past week we just tried a new chickpea salad that is going to join the rotating menu.

What I'm reading:

Lord help me, the Alien: Covenant novelization. It's for a podcast. It's going to be a blast. Watch this space.