Morning Coffee & Afternoon Tea

Division of the Classes

And the angel of the Lord spake and said,
Thou shalt keep the classes separate,
and separate shall ye keep them,
each abiding in their own portion of the house,
upstairs and downstairs,
and keeping to their own tasks.

And by the labor of their hands shall ye know them.

And each shall keep to the traditions of their fathers
and to the law of the Lord,
as I have given it to you.

And he who crosseth that line
shall be sorely punished
and the wrath of the Lord shall rain down upon his head.

Or lap, as shown here, in the case of poor Mr. Denton in Gosford Park who dared to cross the line between the classes. 

Gosford Park is a visually luscious movie that combines three of my favorite things: Robert Altman, murder mysteries, and British period pieces showing the lifestyles of the rich.

CTC in the Movies

I've added a new photo album and a new category.  Coffee, Tea, & Chocolate in the Movies.

I was watching one of my favorite movies - Sense and Sensibility - and I was struck both by the beautiful shots of tableware and china, and by the way they used tea as a tool in the storyline.  This photo, for instance:

Here, Elinor sits on the stairs with a small blue china cup.  The tea was meant as an offering of comfort to Marianne who is distraught over Willoughby's defection.  Margaret, the younger sister, brings the tea and when it's refused by a sobbing Marianne, starts to cry in her turn, as does their mother, and all three disappear behind their respective bedroom doors, leaving Elinor alone on the landing.

There's a tinge of irony in this scene, and in the quiet cuppa on the stair alone, as Elinor is the stoic one of the bunch, and yet it is she who takes the comfort of the tea, quietly sipping while the others sob loudly behind their doors.

The other movie I included was Chocolat, another of my favorites.  The beverage - hot chocolate - isn't incidental to this movie.  It's the central theme, in fact the whole point of the movie.  Hot chocolate, all kinds of chocolate, and food in general.  The conflict is sensuality vs. spirituality.  Indulgence vs. abstinence. 

I love the luscious imagery in this movie, and I've chosen a few of my favorites that focus on special moments with hot chocolate.  For instance, the photo here shows a moment when Vianne's special hot chocolate is used as a transformation tool.  Armande takes a careful sniff, and then a careful sip, and her face transforms from a scowl to a delighted smile.  She is transported  to some happy childhood memory perhaps, although we never find out what.  But from that point she is changed.  She laughs and shares more of herself.  She's still a cranky old broad at times, but we see the warmth of her soul, transformed or at least brought forward by the hot chocolate.

I know, I'm waxing a little too lyrical here, so I'll stop. 

More in the CTC In the Movies Photo Gallery