The Saint poster via Wikipedia

Who doesn’t love a good spy thriller? Even a great one? This, The Saint, is one.

Starring the living anime figurine Val Kilmer as the mysterious thief-for-hire Simon Templar and Elisabeth Shue as his scientist sweetie, it’s a fun and slick romp through the respective depraved underbellies of the Russian Mafia, Big Energy, Catholic orphanages, and university physics departments, with Templar playing both sides against the middle. It comes to us from that golden year 1997 and has a strangely low 6.5 rating on IMDB.

Who wins? But that would be telling…

As always, enjoy it while it lasts, and you can go here to buy your own copy of The Saint. If you enjoy the premise, there are a couple of tv series, a radio show, and the books on which they are all based, all available for purchase. Roger Moore, sigh.

We’re pairing The Saint somewhat predictably with The Saint cocktail. We’ve found two versions, both very tasty. We’re calling this lightly alcoholic version, from Saveur Magazine, the Summer Saint. Basil, mint and vermouth are paired with ginger and fizz to make an attractive, refreshing patio drink you can quaff all afternoon without offending your liver. This version, which comes to us from Imbibe, is a play on the classic Brown Derby and although the magazine calls it summery, we’d have to say the assertive presence of bourbon puts this firmly in the Sweater Weather cocktail category.

We included them both because to us, they both seem exceptional, and well worth adding to your repertoire. Cheers! Or is that Slainte!

Categories: 90's, Cocktails, Crime, Film Friday, Media, Movies, Movies