Julie and Julia

4 out of 5

I didn't go into this movie with very high expectations. I really enjoy Meryl Streep and Julia Child, and I have to say I was not anticipating a merger of the two. I can't quite put my finger on the reason for that reaction. It's almost as though I didn't want the magic of Hollywood and mass-marketing to sully these two icons with a forced imitation.

Thankfully, the movie was raised a level by mature writing and much more comedy than I had expected.

POSITIVES:

• Stanley Tucci got all of the best lines.
• Portrayal of the dirtier side of Julia Child.
• SNL clip of a Julia Child imitation of the ilk I remember as a child.
• Brought up a new inspiration to read Julia's books.
• Meryl's black and white Julia Child's TV appearances did Julia justice.
• Sweet love story for both the Julie and Julia characters.
• Renewed my interest in blogging. Go figure!
• VERY humorous.

NEGATIVES:

• Not a lot of tolerance on my part for a Julia Child imitation.
• Amy Adam's terrible haircut robbed her of her signature cuteness.
• The overt theme of struggle, perseverance, and 'what you believe is your reality' is a turn off for me. Outside of Boo in Monsters, the feel-good music brings out the cynic in me.

Summary - very enjoyable :)