Coffee in the movies plays a very similar role to coffee in our real everyday lives. It’s everywhere, and is often a background character for the important moments in our lives, but it’s not something that non coffee nuts give much thought to. Coffee needs no explanation, so it’s the perfect shorthand between a writer and an audience. Don’t believe me? Imagine these scenes without coffee.
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You’ve Got Mail. The gourmet coffee revolution was still less than a decade old, people were just started to recognize Starbucks for the behemoth is was becoming, and Tom Hanks character delivered a monologue which summed it all up.”[Starbucks lets] people who don’t know what the hell they’re doing or who on earth they are, for only $2.95, get not just a cup of coffee but an absolutely defining sense of self: Tall! Decaf! Cappuccino!” |
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The Bucket List. Jack Nicholson is obsessed with Kopi Luwak in this movie, the world’s most expensive coffee. The scene in which he finds out it’s less than appetizing origin, cat poop, is unforgettable. There has to be a metaphor about life in there somewhere. |
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The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou From the moment you see the massive coffee grinder on this supposed research vessel, you know that this is no normal outfit. By the time Zissou’s crew robs their rival vessel, it’s no surprise that they steal the other ship’s espresso machine, which put’s his own ships coffee machine to shame. Is it any wonder then that the rival captain’s biggest concern is that they stole it? |
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Coffee and Cigarettes This independent film is the ultimate love letter to the brew, which is uses to illustrate the little obsessions that make life worth living. This film knows that if you understand that the proper order of things is to have your cup of coffee poured first, then the story can begin, and not before, then you’re a real coffee nut. |
