First and
foremost, I must say that I am a big
rom com fan.
Wait, let me clarify that: I'm a big fan of
good romantic comedies.
For example:
Bridget Jones's Diary? Adorable.
Good Luck Chuck? I think not.
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days? Delightfully cheesy.
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past? Horrifically cheesy.
Love Actually? ADORE.
Love Guru? Hell no.
Obviously, you get the picture.
So, when I heard this movie was coming out, I immediately got my hopes up after finding out Nora
Ephron wrote and directed it, seeing as she did a few of my other faves --
When Harry Met Sally,
Sleepless in Seattle,
Bewitched...just to name a few. I told myself I would see it as soon as it came out, that I would march myself down to the nearest theater and plunk myself down on opening day. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Now, practically a MONTH after it came out, I've finally gone and seen it. But boy, was it worth the wait.
Julie Powell (Amy Adams) is a less-than-average, slightly glum, cubicle worker, and the fact that she's moving into a small apartment over a
pizzeria in Queens doesn't make her much happier. But at the end of the day, what always cheers her up is cooking. And having a cute husband and adorable cat doesn't hurt either. Now, everyone knows who Julia Child (Meryl
Streep, at her absolute comedic finest) is: that famous, high-voiced, giant of a chef who brought a break-through to cooking with her book,
Mastering the Art of French Cooking. 524 recipes, purely French, all in English, happy housewives around the globe. So what happens when you combine the two of these very unlike ladies together by the force of cooking? Easy: a blog, a bestseller cookbook, mental breakdowns, and hyperactive lobsters. Julia takes cooking lessons while in Paris with her husband and begins to write a cookbook with friends, and Julie decides to cook every single recipe in said cookbook within one year and write it down in a blog.
But before I divulge myself into how feel-good and happy-happy it is, I must clarify one other aspect:
Julie & Julia is not a
rom com...
per se. It's most certainly not what comes to mind when approaching the genre. It's not delightfully cheesy, there is no budding relationship between two lovers, no final scenes where the leading man chases down his lady at the airport to confess his love to her, no romantic montage of them
picnicking, riding bikes together, or getting married; if you're looking for another
Raising Helen or
Just Like Heaven, this is not it. But I personally would categorize it under
rom com. Is there comedy? You bet your sweet fanny bottom there is; the loud, obnoxious
laughter that was sitting in front of me certainly proved that. Are there relationships? Not in the sense that you're thinking of. Julie and Julia both happen to be
Mrs. Julie and
Mrs. Julia, but those aren't the relationships that I think qualify it as a
rom com. Don't get me wrong, Stanley
Tucci and Chris
Messina both prove to be wonderful husbands and good for funny-moment gags -- but I think the main relationships here are two completely different ones: the one between Julie and Julia themselves, and the one between everyone and that delicious, fantastic, and marvelous necessity that is
food.
Throughout the movie, Julie is portrayed as having a very large...infatuation, I guess would be the proper word, for the 6'2'' cooking legend. She fantasizes herself talking to Mrs. Child, cooking meals for her, being a bridesmaid at her wedding, and looks up to her as a role model. In her mind, when everything around her fails to be perfect, Julia Child doesn't. Following this philosophy, she brings her life together and finds her strength (not to mention a book deal and movie contract) in the cooking that Julia brings her. Julia enables Julie to clean up her act through the beautiful art of food. Which brings us to the next relationship: food and
us.
We love it. We absolutely hate what it does to us sometimes (hello, five pounds! I don't remember seeing you on the scale last night!). But let's not deny it: we couldn't live without it (and not just in the literal sense). Food doesn't just serve as a requirement for filling our stomachs; it satisfies our taste buds with scrumptious flavors, brings friends and family together (the main reason why we always huddle around the appetizers during parties), and, in some cases, gives us something to do, like cook. Whatever the case may be, we must always acknowledge this: that we, as humans, love to eat. We must also acknowledge that it is not a crime to enjoy foods and gratify our tummies. It's
okay to eat that last piece of cake in the fridge. Make your stomach happy and eat that hamburger with french fries. This isn't a message to encourage the gorging of fatty foods; rather, it's the message that we should appreciate food a little bit more. Nora
Ephron seems to understand this a great deal and wants to make it clear to everyone.
So, onto the typical
rom com details: good, well-written relationship? Check. Burst your buttons comedy? Check. Good acting? Check and check for both Adams and
Streep,
Tucci and
Messini, and the rest supporting cast (especially a cynical Mary Lynn
Rajskub). Feel-good movie of the year? Check all the way. With this delightful and charming film, you'll leave with both a good feeling in your heart
and stomach.