...Summer spritz, not scotch 🍹

Hi friends,

Welcome to SCREEN SOMM, a newsletter filled with recommendations of what to watch, from me, Kristen, a screenwriter. And hello new subscribers. If you’re here from Downtime, 👋🏼 we’ve probably hung out in the chat. I love it over there. Last week I offered Deadloch as a fix for your Widow’s Bay obsession. Next week w’ere heading West with our grandmas. I post daily recs and more and host Thursday check ins on the Substack site or app. Fun fact, I’m in Lisbon right now with the fam. (Wish me luck.) Let’s dive into this week’s bubbly recs!

One of my paid subscribers cashed in on her perk of getting personalized watch recommendations. She’s in a bit of a watch slump and wants to watch films that aren’t total garbage wastes of her time but also don’t demand too much of her. She hasn’t watched a new movie in ages because they all seem to be trash or too much work. As she put it, she wants a summer spritz, not scotch. (But also we can do better than Mike’s Hard Lemonade.) So here’s a list of summer spritz films to help you remember watching movies can be fun AND good.

• Rye Lane (2023) - A vibrant rom com about 2 people reeling from recent break ups, who connect over the course of a day in South London.

• Challengers (2024) - A sexy sports drama about a love triangle between three former best friend tennis pros.

• Lost Daughter (2021) - Based on the Ferrante novel, a woman on Holiday in Greece makes friends with a mother and daughter who inspire her to look back on her difficult time as a young mother.

• First Cow (2019) - Two settlers in the Oregon frontier become friends and band together to seek their fortune. Sweet, cozy, a little heartbreaking. But there’s baking involved!

• Anora (2024) - A young stripper marries an Oligarch’s son. Parties and fallout ensue.

• Trap (2024) - A serial killer takes his daughter to a concert that’s all just a front by the FBI to catch him.

• Black Bag (2025) - A sleek thriller about spies and their relationship drama with other spies.

• Duplicity (2009) - A rom com about corporate spies who are dating and attempting to pull off a 40 million dollar scheme… if they don’t break up first.

• Woman of the Hour (2024) - A woman appears on live television in a dating game alongside a serial killer. Based on a true story. (A little heavier than a spritz, as it’s about true crime, but that counts as fun for Erin.)

• You me and Tuscany (2026) -A woman stays at an empty Italian villa without permission and lies that she’s engaged to the owner. Hijinx ensue. (There may be too much juice in this mimosa but looks like a very summer fun watch.)

• Andor (2022, 2025) - A spy series set in the Star Wars galaxy about what fascism looks like, how it operates, how much people can tolerate until they stand up to it, and what is the cost of joining the rebellion. (This is not a spritz or a film but it will make you believe in humanity again or at least remind you that not everything is garbage. Sometimes there is excellence.)

Add your recs for Erin in the comments below!

I use “party” more for vibes than implied effort. There should be very little. Do not clean up beforehand, unless it makes you feel good.

• Drink - Whatever you’ve got lying around. If it’s fun to make intricate cocktails together, go for it! Drop an egg white and ice into that shaker. OR, speaking of spritz, just toss a shot of something into that spindrift or ghia someone left in your fridge last week. Yum!

• Dinner - Order takeout from that place you go all the time even if you had it last night. Get the usual, even if you’re both ordering the same thing (it won’t kill you) and move on.

• Snack - Totally fine if that bag of chips someone brought is already opened. Are they delicious? Yes? Great!

• Dessert - Ooh you grabbed a chocolate varietal from the grocery store before you arrived? Thank you!

• Get cozy - If you’re hosting, and you have a no-shoe policy, offer your guests a pair of clean, cozy socks. Well, aren’t you fancy! But not that fancy, we’re keeping it chill.

MOVIES • ‘Series’ • Did Not Finish* • Rewatched • Ongoing… •  🍼= first rewatch >20 years

08/04 - SHEEP DETECTIVES

08/05 - WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT…

New releases on my radar

• THE END OF OAK STREET - Ok, a comedy where your street ends up back in time with dinos and you gotta survive? Bonkers premise, and time travel without a mechanism is terrifying to me. But I’m excited to see Ewan McGregor and I would follow Annie Hathaway off a cliff into a dinosaur infested past.

• Reacher (Amazon Prime) - Season 4 premiere.

• My Brilliant Career (Netflix) - Looks like a more grounded, Australian ‘Other Bennet Sister. Christopher Chung (Roddy from Slow Horses) looking buff but not a buffoon.

• Lanterns (HBO) - Coach Taylor is the Green Lantern.

This week, last week, next week? Let’s discuss! And remember, life’s short. Make every watch a great one. If you ever need a rec, I’m your SOMM.

Sound off in the comments with more “summer spritz” recs for Erin! And leave a ❤️ while your down there.

Happy watching, everyone!

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