I've read both books this movie is based off of: My Life in France by Julia Child and Paul Prudhomme and Julie and Julia by Julie Powell so when I heard there was going to be a movie I was intrigued, and when I heard that Meryl Streep was going to be Julia, I knew I had to see it.
It was a nicely done movie, Meryl Streep did a spot on Julia Child, if not just a tich over done. The Husband noted right off the bat, as Paul and Julia are assigned to Paris right after the war, that it wasn't reflected how battered Paris was. I also thought Julia's ignorance of food and cooking could have been emphasized a bit more at the beginning as that was what really launched her 'food affair'. There were other small nuances that needed to be overlooked as well from both books, but I have to remind myself, they were condensing two books into one movie.
The segways between Julia Child's life and Julie's world were also very smooth and the parallels nicely emphasized; the 'mid-life crisis's, the inexperience of the cooks, the tribulations of daily life. But it is there that the similarities end. As in the book, Julie P. comes across as a bit of a whiner. Downtrodden government employee by day, frantic cook by night, neglecting husband and social life in her quest to cook 524 recipes in 365 days in one tiny apartment.
Julia C., as an ex-government employee with nothing to do in post-war Paris, she takes cooking lessons. A passion is ignited within her and she hooks up with Louisette Bertholle, Simone Beck to produce a French cookbook for the "American cook who has no servants to cook for her..." Julia comes across as bold, unconventional, and daring.
I enjoyed the movie even though I knew how it was all going to come together at the end simply because Meryl Streep was a delight to watch - it was as if she was channeling Julia herself. I did find myself becoming fidgety as I didn't realize (and should have) that this was a 2 1/2 hour movie. Fortunately my knitting was nearby.
Recommended if you like Julia Child and have a lazy afternoon or evening to commit to it.
1 comment:
I agree it was a bit long and got a little slow in the middle. The ending left a little to be desired, but that is typical of movies based off of reality.
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