Julie & Julia
| Julie & Julia | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Nora Ephron |
| Written by | Screenplay: Nora Ephron Book: Julie Powell |
| Produced by | Nora Ephron Laurence Mark Eric Steel Amy Robinson |
| Starring | Meryl Streep Amy Adams Stanley Tucci Chris Messina Linda Emond Jane Lynch Mary-Lynn Rajskub |
| Cinematography | Stephen Goldblatt |
| Edited by | Richard Marks |
| Music by | Alexandre Desplat |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date | August 7, 2009 |
Running time | 123 minutes |
| Country | Template:FilmUS |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $40,000,000 |
| Box office | $118,552,384[1] |
Julie & Julia is a comedy-drama film written and directed by Nora Ephron. The film depicts events in the life of chef Julia Child in the early years in her culinary career, contrasting her life with Julie Powell, who aspires to cook all 524 recipes from Child's cookbook during a single year, a challenge she described on her popular blog that would make her a published author.
Ephron's screenplay is adapted from two books: My Life in France, Child's autobiography, written with Alex Prud'homme, and a memoir by Julie Powell. In August 2002, Powell started documenting online her daily experiences cooking each of the 524 recipes in Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and she later began reworking that blog, The Julie/Julia Project.[2] Both of these books were written and published in the same time frame of 2004 to 2006. The film is the first major motion picture based on a blog.[3]
Ephron began filming Julie & Julia in March 2008. Meryl Streep portrays Julia Child, and Amy Adams appears as Julie Powell. The film officially premiered on July 30, 2009 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City and opened throughout North America on August 7, 2009.[4] Meryl Streep and Amy Adams previously starred together in the critically acclaimed Doubt.
Plot
In the year 2002, Julie Powell (Amy Adams) is a young writer trapped in a rather unpleasant job at the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation's call center, where she answers telephone calls from victims of the September 11 attacks, as well as members of the general public calling to complain about the LMDC's controversial plans for rebuilding the World Trade Center. To enliven her dreary life, she attempts to cook every recipe in Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, which was published in 1961, and writes a blog to document her progress.
Woven into her story is the story of Julia Child's time in Paris, in the 1950s, in which she discovers the art of French cooking. The plot structure carefully highlights similarities in the challenges encountered by both Julie and Julia. Both women get much support from their husbands, although at one point Powell's husband is fed up with her excessive devotion to her hobby and leaves her briefly for a few days.
Eventually, Julie's blog is highlighted in a story published in the New York Times, after which her project finally begins to receive the attention of journalists, literary agents, and publishers, if also the dismissal of Child herself. After Julia's book is initially rejected by Houghton Mifflin, it is eventually accepted and published by Alfred A. Knopf. The last scene shows Julia Child receiving her book, Mastering the Art of French and celebrating with her husband.
Cast
- Meryl Streep as Julia Child
- Amy Adams as Julie Powell
- Stanley Tucci as Paul Child, Julia Child's husband
- Chris Messina as Eric Powell, Julie Powell's husband[5]
- Linda Emond as Simone Beck ("Simca"), with whom Julia wrote Mastering the Art of French Cooking
- Helen Carey as Louisette Bertholle, co-author of Mastering the Art of French Cooking
- Jane Lynch as Dorothy McWilliams, Julia Child's sister[6]
- Mary Lynn Rajskub as Sarah, Powell's best friend[7]
Reception
Critical reaction
The film has received generally positive reviews from critics.[8] Rotten Tomatoes reported that 75% of critics gave positive reviews based on 155 reviews with an average score of 6.7/10. [9] Another review aggregator, Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 top reviews from mainstream critics, gave it an average score of 65%, based on 32 reviews. [8] Meryl Streep has been widely praised for her performance as Julia Child. Movie critic A.O. Scott of The New York Times affirmed that "By now this actress [Streep] has exhausted every superlative that exists and to suggest that she has outdone herself is only to say that she’s done it again. Her performance goes beyond physical imitation, though she has the rounded shoulders and the fluting voice down perfectly."[10] Reviewer Peter Travers wrote in Rolling Stone that "Meryl Streep — at her brilliant, beguiling best — is the spice that does the trick for the yummy Julie & Julia."[11] Similarly, Stephanie Zacharek of Salon magazine concluded that "Streep isn't playing Julia Child here, but something both more elusive and more truthful — she's playing our idea of Julia Child."[12]
Los Angeles Times critic Kenneth Turan commented, "[Julie & Julia] does it right. A consummate entertainment that echoes the rhythms and attitudes of classic Hollywood, it's a satisfying throwback to those old-fashioned movie fantasies where impossible dreams do come true. And, in this case, it really happened. Twice."[13] The A.V. Club gave the film a C, explaining, "Julie & Julia is two movies in one. That’s one more movie than it needs to be."[14] Entertainment Weekly gave it a B+.[15] The review by Slate was also positive.[16]
Criticisms
The movie was criticized by critic John Boot for having anti-republican overtone without reason in "Julie & Julia: Cute, with a Side of Republican Bashing".[17][18] There has otherwise been very little criticism regarding political undertones.
Box office
On its opening weekend, the film opened #2 behind G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra with $20.1 million. [19] As of October 12, 2009, the film has made $118,552,598 worldwide, surpassing its $40 million budget.[20]
Awards and Nominations
| Awards | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Award | Category | Recipient(s) | Outcome |
| Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Pending |
| Detroit Film Critics Society Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Pending |
| Satellite Awards | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy | Meryl Streep | Won |
| Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical | Film | Nominated | |
| Best Screenplay, Adapted | Nora Ephron | Nominated | |
| Chicago Film Critics Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Nominated |
| San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Won |
| Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Won |
| Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Won |
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Won |
| Boston Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Won |
| Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actress | Meryl Streep | Pending |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actress, Musical/Comedy | Meryl Streep | Pending |
| Best Picture, Musical/Comedy | Film | Pending | |
Film Inaccuracies
- The film does not show how Julie's eating habits had a slightly negative effect on her weight.
- Powell wrote an article explaining that the film gave no emphases on her relationship with her beloved cat Maxine. The cat does make a few appearances in the film, but the "cat actor", according to Powell, has almost no physical resemblance.[21]
- The depiction of Julie as herself in a New York magazine article at the beginning of the film is fictional.[22]
Home Media
Julie & Julia was released on DVD and Blu-ray on December 8, 2009. The DVD includes special features, Commentary with Writer/Director Nora Ephron; Secret Ingredients: Creating Julie & Julia. The Blu-ray version includes special features also, Secret ingredients: Creating Julie & Julia; Commentary with writer/director Nora Ephron; Family & friends remember Julia Child; Julia's Kitchen: take a tour of Julia Child's kitchen; Cooking lessons: featuring Julia Child and other world renowned chefs including Jacques Pépin, Suzanne Goin and more; MovieIQ with Julia Child's original recipes. The DVD and Blu-ray releases also include closed captioning, which is optional on the disc.
References
- ^ http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=julieandjulia.htm
- ^ The Julie/Julia Project
- ^ Philadelphia Weekly
- ^ "Tweetin' Streep". Zagat.com. July 30,, 2009.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Chris Messina Joins Julie & Julia". 2007-12-13. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
- ^ Bryon Perry (2008-03-05). "Jane Lynch". Variety. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
- ^ "24's Rajskub Cooks Up Role in Julie and Julia". Retrieved 2008-06-19.
- ^ a b "Julie & Julia (2009): Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
- ^ "Julie & Julia Movie Reviews, Pictures". IGN Entertainment. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
- ^ A.O. Scott, The New York Times: Two for te Stove, movie review of Julie & Julia. Aug 7, 2009.
- ^ Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: Movie Review of Julie & Julia. Aug 6, 2009.
- ^ Stephanie Zacharek, Salon: Movie review of Julie & Julia. Aug 7, 2009.
- ^ LA Times review, August 12, 2009
- ^ A.V. Club review, August 12, 2009
- ^ EW review, August 12, 2004
- ^ Slate review, August 12, 2009
- ^ http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/julie-julia-cute-with-a-side-of-republican-bashing/2/
- ^ http://www.christiananswers.net/spotlight/movies/2009/julieandjulia2009.html
- ^ "'G.I. Joe' commands box office with $56.2M debut". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
- ^ "Julie & Julia (2009)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved October 12, 2009.
- ^ "Julie Powell: What 'Julie & Julia' Butchered", August 25, 2009
- ^ Ibid.
