I can't actually remember if it is Three Colours: Blue or The Double Life of Veronique. I remember it is a Krzysztof Kieslowski film where either Irene Jacob or Juliette Binoche pours coffee over her ice cream in a cafe. I remember it struck me as a stunning moment in the film and a very good idea for dessert, yet somehow, whenever it strikes me to do the same, I have a moment of reflection, a remembered sadness that probably stems from the mood of the film at that moment. It struck me that I could probably never eat that particular combination of bitter and sweet without wracking my brains as to which of the two films I had seen it in and then experience that half remembered moment of sadness. Try it. It's got to be very strong coffee, a ristretto or an espresso and the ice-cream should be just out of the freezer or you'll have a bowl of coffee and vanilla soup. Better still, do it in a cafe and watch the world go by. It seems almost the perfect accompaniment to spending some time by your self.
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Funny how a memory can evoke such strong connections to something. I remember that scene from Three Colors: Blue with Juliette Binoche and the feeling of melting into her coffee along with her ice cream. It's a profoundly sad scene and yet, what I took away from it is the coffee and ice cream. What started out as a post about coffee and ice cream morphed into a succinct and exquisite post on the nature of sadness.
Mmmmm. One of my favorite scenes in Blue. I know the whole film is about sadness, but I found this scene comforting--while much of the film implies that she's sort of moving around underwater in her separation from the world and her pre-accident life, Binoche's character can still TASTE. Some sensations are getting through to her and frankly, this dish of coffee and ice cream looks like it is making more of an impact on her than the contact she attempts through the brusque sex scene. The ultimate power of food.
It's called "affogato" which is Italian for drowned. Ice cream drowing in espresso ... the very taste of summer!
For me it's one of the major characteristics of summer here in Munich, every cafe serves it during summertime, some even with a generous dollop of whipped cream... :) Ahemmmm, when's summer due again?
You really like Three Colours, don"t you? :) My favourite has to be Dekalog, although I love The Double Life of Veronique as much.
How strange. I was going through my divorce and sitting outdoors in a little cafe in autumn. And I ordered an affrogato and sipped my first bittersweet memory, I thought of Juliette Binoche in Blue too. Beautiful movie. Memorable beerage/dessert.
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