The draw, for me anyway, was actually the Brooks Branch film Multiple Sarcasms. Even before I knew anything about the film, I knew Timothy Hutton was in it and honestly, that was all I needed to know. I'll leave the film critiques to Big Bob Wilonsky, but suffice to say Jen and I found the selection a fine way to start off the festival. (I've got 24 films on my schedule, though, so I can't wait to see how others rank against it.)

Following the screening as well as a Q&A with director Branch, we were ready to get our drink on at the "after party" in and out and around the Angelika. As we exited our theater, a DIFF volunteer smiled at us, shot double guns askance and trilled, "MarTINIS!" so naturally, we went the way of the guns. 

Blue plastic match.com martini glasses lined the bar station where bartender Rickels (yep, as in Don, but spelled different) was shaking up Director's Cut Martinis just for the occasion. Comprised of Stoli Blueberi (blueberry for those who don't read stylized Russian advert slang), Monin blueberry syrup, lime and mint, the whole concoction was sickly sweet. With about half as much syrup, the drink would've probably been twice as good.

After cruising the party, talking to Bill Henrickson, er, I mean Bill Paxton, Gary Cogill, a guy with a great haircut, a girl with a cute feather in her hair, the sweet volunteer lady we see every year, we each ate a tiny hamburger. Only then were we ready to give the Director's Cut martini another try.

Turns out, the bar set-ups could make whatever you wanted provided they had the ingredients, so we got Caroline, a savvy bartender downstairs this time, to nix the Monin, and try something she thought would be good. To the Stoli Blue she added a splash of cranberry, a little OJ and some sweet and sour. Perfection. Like a Director's Cut, but with an added disk of bloopers and behind-the-scenes footage.

It was a good luck charm, too. We sipped our drinks and turned to find Brooks Branch making his way to the bar table. He introduced himself and chatted with us for a bit and we got to geek out on all the little details we noticed in the movie: Among other things, for Jen it was the movie posters in the characters' homes, and for me the specific Olivetti typewriter Hutton uses. And Branch egged us on every minute. I kinda think he enjoyed our banter. Or maybe it was the martini that made me think so. 

Either way is fine by me, really, since in the end, drinking a custom Director's Cut during a personal cutaway with a director is...well...delicious.

That's a wrap. Off to the movies!