We didn’t do a show in early December because I was still on the island of Kauai, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t writing and the Garden Isle always provides inspiration. Kauai has also inspired many movies that were filmed here so if you have never visited it and were curious, do I have some movies for you. Not to mention wine and spirits paired to those movies; some that I discovered on Kauai.
Kauai: the Garden Isle
The oldest and most northerly of the main Hawaiian Island chain and the most photographed and in the most movies featuring tropical islands. The Garden Island’s Mt. Wai’ale’ale is the wettest spot on earth. Well, except for my bathroom after I shower. It features towering waterfalls cascading thousands of feet to the valleys below.
The Na’Pali (“the cliffs”) on the North Shore has been used in many movies, with steep cliffs, many valleys and waterfalls and covered in deep green vegetation attached to its steep sides. It never fails to take my breath away. Like all the islands there is windward and leeward side with the wetter North Shore covered in thick vegetation with jungles and valleys that ever encroach on the sandy beaches.
Movies Filmed on Kauai
Anytime you watch a movie with a tropical setting, chances are part of it was filmed on Kauai. Of all the islands in the Hawaiian chain, Kauai is the one most like your vision of paradise, or tropical hell for that matter. You do recall Jurassic Park, right? Sometimes you’ll watch a movie and think, didn’t I see this scene in another movie? Well now I can confirm it.
White Heat (1934): Dir Lois Weber, Mona Maris, Virginia Cherrill
This is Kauai’s first movie, one even I haven’t seen, which deals with a plantation owner falling for a native woman and later bringing a society woman back from San Francisco and ignoring Leilani, who is heartbroken. Weber was one of the first female directors, the majority in silent films, and works in racist and misogynist themes. Finding a print, other than a poster is not likely.
Since then, directors have used The Garden Island as a backdrop for more than 70 TV series and feature films. And most likely you’ve seen a number of them. If not, what are you waiting for? A number of Kauai resorts have websites featuring some of these movies and often promote movie tours. One can also book a movie tour, often by Jeep, to several of the accessible places.
South Pacific (1958): Dir Joshua Logan, Rossano Brazzi, Mitzi Gayner, Frances Nuyen
It was South Pacific that put Kauai on the map. Hanalei Bay Resort boasts views of Makana, the twin peaks that are also known as “Bali Hai” after the movie’s famed song. Happy Talk Lounge after the song is a popular sports bar. The musical is performed yearly on the island; and has been embraced by the islanders ever since it was filmed here.
The cinematography by Leon Shamroy is sumptuous and intoxicating, music and lyrics by Rogers & Hammerstein is considered their greatest musical. Set during WWII’s Pacific theatre, many of the locals were impacted by the war. Everyone who has seen Bali Hai at sunset was mesmerized by the sight.
What to drink: A Mai Tai, of course. Various fruit juices can be used, I love guava nectar myself. Light or amber rum is added in a tall glass, I prefer the amber, aged rum. Add the juice and float ice cubes on top. Then using a spoon, slowly pour dark rum over the top so it forms a dark brown lip to the drink. I used Koloa dark rum, which is made on Kauai with incredible flavors of molasses, chocolate and malt.
Blue Hawaii (1961): Dir Norman Taurog, Elvis Presley, Joan Blackman, Angela Lansbury
After arriving back in Hawaii from the Army, Chad Gates (Presley) defies his parents’ wishes for him to work at the family business and instead goes to work as a tour guide at his girlfriend’s agency. Blue Hawaii was filmed on location, using Lydgate Park and the long-closed Coco Palms Resort Hotel as a backdrop.
I’ve watched the resort fall into ruin over many trips with rumors that someone would buy the resort coming to naught. Later I heard it was a burial ground for ancient Hawaiians. Oh, not the Indian burial ground plot. The ghost of Elvis might still haunt the place as well.
What to drink: This one is obvious, a Blue Hawaii made with 3/4 ounce vodka · 3/4 ounce light rum · 1/2 ounce blue curaçao · 3 ounces pineapple juice · 1 ounce sweet and sour mix of sugar, water and lime juice · Garnish: pineapple wedge.
Optional choice, add a miniature umbrella. Legendary Honolulu bartender Harry Yee created the drink in 1957 and is also responsible for those now ubiquitous tropical umbrellas perched on drinks.
Donovan’s Reef (1963): Dir John Ford, John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Elizabeth Allen, Cesar Romero
In an ideal society on a picturesque South Sea Island, people of several races and backgrounds live together in harmony. John Wayne is a WWII hero, who works hard at running a shipping company, finds his true love. Believe it or not this is a Christmas movie, and those celebrations are part of the film.
The locations are across the island: Waimea Canyon, the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, Ahukini Pier in Hanalei Bay, the Wailua River, the major river on Kauai’s east side and at Lawai’s Allerton Estate. The Duke reportedly learned to dance the hula while on this trip. He wouldn’t be the first. We have watched the famed west side’s Tree Tunnel on the way to Koloa grow from young trees to old road-draped ones that have truly made it a tunnel.
In a bar fight, Marvin grabs a bottle to throw at Wayne, who says, “Not the brandy, you dope.” Marvin carefully sets in down and says, “Sorry” before hurling a different bottle.
What to drink: Pineapple Punch, which combines 12 oz. brandy (rescued from that bar fight), 6 oz. pineapple juice, 3 oz. fresh lime juice 3 oz. simple syrup, a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg and 9 oz. chilled club soda and Ice. Lemon wheels, for garnish. I’m hoping this is not just for you.
King Kong (1976): Dir John Guillermin, Jessica Lange, Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin
In this version of the giant gorilla movie, an oil exploration vehicle lands on Skull Island looking for oil, but that’s not what they find. Shot in Kalalau Valley on the northern Na’Pali Coast, this is a view featured in many movies. Kauai is also home to King Kong’s Profile, a mountain that resembles the colossal gorilla. This was model Lange’s first role, a wonderful actress in many films since.
What to drink Monte Rio Skull Red blend of 60% Zinfandel, 30% Petite Sirah, 10% Mission, $21. Adding the Mission grape, planted across the southwestern US was an interesting choice.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981): Dir Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman
In 1936, archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can obtain its awesome powers. The first of this venerable series with Ford perfect as Jones. The opening scenes were filmed on the Huleia River and Kipu Ranch, just south of Lihu’e, the largest town in the south, which is where the airport is located. Nazis and snakes abound, both of which Indy hates. So will you when you see it.
Bosma Estate Roussanne from Rattlesnake Hills AVA is a big full-bodied wine from the Rhone Valley’s most prized white wine grape. These wines age well and this part of Yakima Valley, Washington is known for top quality. This will also clear the dust out of your mouth from all those excavations.
Honeymoon in Vegas (1992): Dir Andrew Bergman, Nicolas Cage, Sarah Jessica Parker, James Caan
Nicky loses $65,000 in poker to Tommy in Las Vegas, where he’s stalling marrying Betsy. Tommy (Caan) believes Betsy is his reincarnated wife and agrees to waive the debt for a weekend in Hawaii. Of course Nicky has to follow, in case you wondered that’s how they ended up on Kauai.
In Waimea town, Cage’s confused character yells into a pay phone, “Is it Kapa-a-a or Kapa-a-a-a?” What Cage was referring to was that the Hawaiian language requires all vowels to be sounded, except for two vowel combinations like ae and au. So Kapa’a, one of major east shore shopping and dining towns is not a long ah sound, but Kapah’ ah. Also, the house featured in many scenes is on Anini Beach, one of the most popular beaches for snorkeling and windsurfing.
Stop by the Olympic Café in Kapa’a for a local craft brew like Longboard and an Ono fish sandwich. Ono is also the Hawaiian word for good. They might have been thinking of the fish.
Jurassic Park (1993): Dir Steven Spielberg, Sam Neil, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum
Naturally, Spielberg would return to Kauai after Raiders. A pragmatic paleontologist touring an almost completed theme park on an island in Central America is tasked with protecting a couple of kids after a power failure causes the park’s cloned dinosaurs to run amok. The movie features breathtaking shots of the Na’Pali Coast and Manawaiopuna Falls in Hanapepe Valley. I’ll leave it to you to figure out how to pronounce the Falls.
I’m going with Acrobat Pinot Gris from Eugene, Oregon. 91% Pinot Gris, 8.5% Chardonnay, 0.5% Muscat, 13% ABV. I picked up a lot of this from Costco in Lihu’e and it goes great with any seafood. This was also a top Wine Enthusiast’s Best Buy. Nobody does Pinot Gris better than Oregon.
Six Days, Seven Nights (1998): Dir Ivan Reitman, Harrison Ford, Anne Heche, David Schwimmer
Not exactly Indiana Jones, but Harrison Ford returned to Kauai to play the lead in this romantic romp with Anne Heche. It was filmed on the Na’Pali Coast, in Papa’a Bay near Anahola in the northeast, and on the South Shore. I have hiked the area where Ford admits to Heche that this isn’t the island he first suspected. Of course not, I could tell it was Kauai, but this was a movie, after all.
In a favorite scene the duo leapt from the huge peak at the edge of Shipwreck Beach on the South Shore. Now thrill seekers try to mimic this jump, which is against the law and very dangerous, especially for the sea turtles below. After several adventures and nearly being killed several time Heche says, “I’ve had about all the vacation I can stand.”
To get rid of that salt taste from riding too many waves, we often turn to a Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc, a fine New Zealand wine that is readily available in Kauai. Fresh, crisp and clean with zesty flavors of ripe tropical fruits, especially passionfruit and pineapple with subtle hints of green herbs.
Tropic Thunder (2008): Dir Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black
Through a series of freak occurrences, a group of actors shooting a big-budget war movie are forced to become the soldiers they are portraying. “The movie is a send-up of Hollywood, actors, acting, agents, directors, writers, rappers, trailers and egos, much enhanced by several cameo roles” so states Roger Ebert who loved it.
The guy’s stumble on drug lords who capture them and they have to extricate themselves. It’s a good thing they didn’t stumble on some real drug lords deep in the Kauai jungle. The movie was the largest production ever staged on the island. The actors filmed almost all their scenes in Kauai.
And I suspect they seriously partied there. Skinny Colada is made with Koloa rum, made in Kauai and a local favorite. We’ve visited the tasting room at Kilohana Plantation many times.
- 5 oz Kōloa Coconut Rum
- .25 oz Kōloa Cacao Rum
- 2 oz Coconut Water
- 1 oz Pineapple Juice
- And a splash of Pineapple Soda for Effervescences
A Perfect Getaway (2009): Dir David Twohy, Milla Jovovich, Steve Zahn, Timothy Olyphant
Three pairs of lovers on a Hawaiian vacation discover that psychopaths are stalking and murdering tourists on the islands. The final reveal is intense and action-packed. The main feature is the Kalalau Trail, which traverses several valleys, beaches and waterfalls along the famed Na’Pali cliffs. Most tourists take a boat ride along the coast, catching glimpses of hikers on the trail and camping at the beaches. My West Point niece and nephew joined me on a hike to the first valley and beach before we headed back as this is several day’s adventure.
Being on-the-go, I’d pack a few Durham Distillery Cucumber Vodka Sodas, 8% ABV and have them rest in a clear mountain stream before popping open.
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011): Rob Marshall, Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz
This fourth venture into the Caribbean with Captain Jack Sparrow features Penelope Cruse in one of the most addicting series on screen. This swashbuckler visits the tropical estate at Allerton Garden and a hike through the caves at Waikapala’e, where much of the movie was filmed.
Hibiscus Rum-tini is made with locally-distilled Koloa rum from Kauai.
- 2 oz Kōloa Coconut Rum
- .5 oz Orange Liqueur (Cointreau or Grand Marnier)
- .5 oz Rose Hibiscus Syrup
- 2 oz Fresh Rose Water Lemonade (equal parts simple syrup, lemon juice and rose water)
Jurassic World (2015): Dir Colin Trevorrow. Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard
A new theme park, built on the original site of Jurassic Park, creates a genetically modified hybrid dinosaur, the Indominus Rex, which escapes containment and goes on a killing spree. Boy, wouldn’t you think with all the previous disasters they’d have learned their lesson? Of course not, because it’ll still rake in the bucks. This fourth installment was rated better than 2 and 3, with better CGI, but with a new cast. I miss Goldblum’s Ian Malcolm: “Oooh, ahhh, that’s how it always starts. Then later there’s running and… and screaming.”
The movie is set on fictional Isla Nublar off Costa Rica, but the movie crew used Mount Waialeale, Olokele Valley, and other Kauai locales for filming. Mount Waialeale is one of the wettest spots on earth and a thrill to see when clouds part and waterfalls thousands of feet high cascade over verdant lands.
Bee Sting on the Lanai is another great rum drink made with Koloa Rum.
- 5 oz Kōloa Aged Rum
- 1 oz Fresh Lime Juice
- .5 oz Simple Syrup (1:1)
- 1 oz Honey
Muddle blueberry and cucumbers. Add Kōloa Aged Rum, lime juice, simple syrup and honey. Shake and strain over ice and garnish with fresh blueberries and a cucumber ribbon.
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