The Oscars are right around the corner. I find myself woefully
unprepared this year, but a couple weeks ago I managed to cross one more
contender off my list. It’s a movie that I suspect will inspire many a
delicious delicacy at Oscar parties across the country: Julie and Julia.
This film, written and directed by Nora Ephron and based on the book by
Julie Powell, tracks the journeys of two women from frustrated
obscurity to culinary greatness. Julie (Amy Adams) is an aspiring writer
who spends her days as a receptionist fielding angry phone calls from
New Yorkers still reeling from 9-11. She longs to do something
different, something that will inflame her passions and give her
something to look forward to after a difficult day. The solution? A
blog.
The subject of the blog? Cooking her way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking,
the magnum opus of kitchen virtuoso Julia Child (Meryl Streep). As
Julie embraces this project, eventually winning oodles of followers and
becoming so caught up in it that it begins to put stresses on her
marriage, we see the struggles Julia herself went through as she took up
French cooking and embarked on her cookbook project with two friends.
This portion of the movie is based on her memoir My Life in France.
I’ve found Adams endearing in nearly every role she’s taken on, and
while she doesn’t quite have the charm here that she does in such films
as Enchanted and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day,
she seems like a likable enough young woman, and I can certainly relate
to the desire to make a name for oneself as a writer through online
efforts. At the same time, Julie has some negative characteristics, such
as a tendency toward egotism, that are amplified by her endeavor, which
makes her jocular husband Eric (Chris Messina) all the more appealing. A
light-hearted and very supportive man, he truly is the glue holding
Julie’s life together.
But even he pales in comparison to the
gentlemanly, erudite, utterly devoted Paul Child, portrayed by the
magnificent Stanley Tucci. This was a man with an impressive career of
his own who never sought to keep his wife in the shadows, who always
encouraged her to pursue her dreams. This was also a man with great
integrity whose diplomatic views earned him one doozy of an
interrogation by Senator Joseph McCarthy’s ilk. It’s easy to understand
how Julia would have blossomed so brilliantly when sharing a life with
such a remarkable fellow.
The incomparable Streep, who starred in Doubt with Adams last year and The Devil Wears Prada
with Tucci in 2006, has been getting plenty of raves for her
performance, all of them well-deserved, as she completely immerses
herself in the role, to the extent that I almost forget who the actress
is behind the portrayal. Her voice, mannerisms, inflections, body
language... All of it makes her a thoroughly convincing version of the
famous chef, and because she is such a distinct character, there’s a lot
of humor to be mined from her story. Julia’s joie de vivre comes across
perfectly, and more often than not, her escapades bring a big smile to
the face.
This is a beautifully shot film that makes one want
to go to France and to attempt cooking French cuisine oneself. Rarely
has a movie taken such care to make food look so enticing, so that one
can almost smell it as it sits simmering on the table. Of course, there
are a few disasters too, and a very funny scene involving an unfortunate
excess of onions. But whatever is on the menu, Julie and Julia serves up a treat.
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