Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Stream a Little Stream - Hellraiser

It's the holiday season, and nothing complements the softly colorful lights of my Christmas tree and the scents of vanilla and cinnamon in the air like a 1987 British horror film about an attic creeper with no skin.























Frank, the skinless gentleman in question, has been held in a state of eternal torture by a posse of sadomasochistic demons called the Cenobites as payback for messing with a supernatural puzzle box. Frank's doofball brother drips blood onto the attic floor one day, and Frank is incompletely reborn. He enlists Julia, his brother's wife (and his former lover) to lure unsuspecting schlubs in business suits up to his lair so he can suck them dry.






















The way this movie is shot and edited freaked me out. When Frank and Julia first meet in the attic, she backs herself against the closed door and stares in horror as quick cuts show gooey demonic Frank scuttling across the room toward her. At the climax, the attic door slams shut on Frank, caught by the Cenobites, just after the audience gets a glimpse of his body getting torn apart by hooks. A wild-eyed vagrant who bothers Frank's niece also factors into the story; his purpose is revealed during the "surprise" (i.e., wtf) ending.


Last but not least, look out for that hallway monster (featured here in an accurate 30-Second Bunnies summary of the movie)!



Monday, December 19, 2011

Rollin' in Dough

Today marked the official start of Christmas Cookie Blitz 2011 in my apartment, which I celebrated by falling ill with some sort of inflammatory Martian virus, watching Gremlins, and making the Mexican Wedding Cookies from The Joy of Vegan Baking.



















There go dah bawlz into the oven. Joy of Vegan Baking claims that these should take "about 30 minutes" to bake, but my batches took a bit more than twice that. Not to scare you or anything, but...PREPARE YOURSELVES.




















Once the pecan-flavored lovelies are ready, toss them by the handful in a mixing bowl full of powdered sugar and you're ready to stand back and stare wistfully into space as you imagine yourself munching these between sips of espresso at the holiday table.



















Sugar Crunch Divinity. No, that's not my drag queen name - I'm still swooning over these cookies. Thanks to Monica for inspiring me to try this recipe!



















Now that I've started my food frenzy, here's recommendation #1 from my list of songs one should listen to while baking Christmas cookies: