CTC in the Movies: Singles in Seattle

I've done enough "tea in the movies", time for some "coffee in the movies". 

Singles centers around a group of twenty-somethings in Seattle in the early-early 90's, trying to find themselves and each other.  Ah, young love.  The reason it's showing up here is there's a coffee shop in the movie that I fell in love with. 

Interesting that all the plot summaries and blurbs I read about this movie don't mention the coffee shop.  Not once.  It's all about relationships and apartment living and grunge rock.  Especially the grunge rock.  Who's writing these blurbs, and where are their priorities???

There were several reasons why I bought this movie... Grunge rock isn't one of them.

The biggest reason is that I've been going through serious water withdrawal.  I grew up in Seattle.  Born and raised on dark clouds and puddles and rain-filled skies.  Folx talked about chronic depression and light deprivation and I had no idea what they were talking about.  That's my norm.  And summer has hit us here in Phoenix now with a horrible vengeance.  When it gets hotter than 110 in May, I know I'm in trouble.  I really miss the Northwest weather.  I miss the wet, and the green.  I crave a good, dark rainy day.  In fact, the need got so bad that this morning I turned off all the lights in the house, shut all the curtains, and turned on the sprinkler so that it would hit the roof and window. 

Anyway - returning from digression - I saw "Seattle" on the blurb for this movie and bought the DVD, hoping for a fix to help my cravings.

It was somewhat satisfying. And I do love romantic stories.  But I think I may be too old for this movie.  As far as "generation" movies go, I'm a little ahead of the St. Elmo's Fire crowd, and a little behind The Big Chill.  I kept wanting them to just get real, be honest about how they were feeling and quit all the dancing around.  Age has made me impatient with relationship games.

But I guess that would have destroyed the point of the movie, wouldn't it...  heheh.  Ah well. 

I can see why Singles was a hit with some folx.  And there were some things about it that I really liked.  The coffee shop.  The rain.  Sitting in the coffee shop with the rain beating on the window.  *sigh* 

One thing bothered me.  Although the coffee shop is a central hangout for the main characters, we don't see them drinking their coffee very much. There are lots of scenes where they gather, and talk and share angst and plans and whatnot, with their cups in front of them on the tables and counter.  But they seldom drink.  I found that a little weird.

And other than these two shots, shown at the very beginning of the film, there's not much in the way of coffee culture. 

This was the only non-ordinary coffee served in the whole movie, that I could see!  (In case you're wondering, the book the girl is reading over her latte is Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung : The Work of a Legendary Critic: Rock'N'Roll as Literature and Literature as Rock'N'Roll - more emphasis on outside-the-mainstream rock, I guess.)

But the ambiance of the Java Stop is wonderful.  There was a coffee shop I used to hang out at near the UW that reminds me of this place. 

I've included some of my favorite coffee shop shots in the Gallery, so travel over there to see more.