Julie & Julia (DVD, 2009)

Julie & Julia is a film that should be relished with gusto--accompanied by the freshest and best ingredients, pounds of butter, and bottles of the very best wine. It lovingly celebrates the life of one of American food's most influential and beloved figureheads: Julia Child--played here with zest, humor, and a sweet, subtle respect by Meryl Streep, whose performance is spectacular.
Julie & Julia is based on the book by Julie Powell, a frustrated New York bureaucrat who wants to be a writer. "But you're not a writer until someone publishes you," she moans. So she gives herself a challenge: to cook her way through Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year, and to blog about it. As Powell (played with chirpy determination by Amy Adams), begins to find her groove as a cook, and her voice as a writer, the project takes on a life of its own--and in the end it does provide the struggling young woman with her life's purpose, to her very pleasant surprise. But mostly, Julie & Julia is a valentine to Child, to Child's amazing love affair with her dashing husband, Paul (Stanley Tucci, as divine as any soufflé in the film), and to her outlook on embracing life, and ordering seconds. Streep throws herself into the Child role with real affection for her character, and while certain of Child's idiosyncrasies--including her warbly voice and unflappable haphazardness in the kitchen--are retained, it's Child's character and vision which form Streep's portrayal, and which make the film so involving and rewarding.

Nora Ephron directs with deftness and a light touch, though she seems at times to be encouraging some of Meg Ryan's onscreen tics in Adams (the self-conscious head tilt, for one). But mostly she simply allows Streep to channel Child and her love of food, her husband, and 1950s Paris. And that is a recipe for something truly sublime.

Amy Adams and Meryl Streep Shine in this one

Amy Adams (Enchanted) stars in this heartwarming story about a young women who falls in love with the cooking styles of Julia Childs (Played by Meryl Streep). A failed writer and feeling her life is going no where, Julie, who loves to cook, is talked into writing a blog about cooking and she decides to cook Julia Child's entire cook book, that is a total of 524 Recipes and gives herself a deadline of 365 days to finish.

This movie is actually two different movies. As we follow Julie as she cooks her way through the cook book and writes on her blog, we also follow the life of Julia Child as she learns to cook and then writes and attempts to get the cook book published.

Both Amy and Meryl Streep give fine performances in this movie and the way the two story lines work together is great.

Get this movie, you will not be disappointed.

DVD Julie & Julia

Amy Adams stars in this truth-inspired tale as Julie Powell, who decides to enliven her uneventful life by cooking all 524 recipes outlined in Julia Child's culinary classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Based on Powell's book Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen, director Nora Ephron's heartwarming dramedy stars Meryl Streep as legendary chef Child.

Amy Adams, Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, Chris Messina

Julie & Julia

I like Meryl Streep and biographies. Meryl brightens up the screen as Julia Child. Amy Adams also does an excellent job as Julie. It was interesting the way the film would jump from Julie to Julia and then back again and you had no trouble with the transitions. The films shows her, in France, getting into cooking as she likes to eat and did not know what to do with herself while her husband was at work. Her attending Condon Bleu cooking school and the Manager hating her to a chance meeting of two women who will open a cooking school with her and co-author of her first book. And moving back to the U.S. and her book being rejected by several publishers and her husband suggesting the she should be on television. I have watched the DVD 5 times and there is a short about the making of the film with interviews of the director and the stars. Absolute great entertainment.

Great Movie!

I have come to appreciate Meryl Streep over the years, and this is another homerun of hers. Amy Adams is terrific as well, and Stanley Tucci playing Julia Child's husband is so great! He and Streep were both in The Devil Wears Prada, and work SO well together in both movies. I did not expect to like the movie as much as I did, but when you find yourself considering buying the French cookbook by Julia Child you know the movie got to you. Great drama and humor, like a REAL reality show that is spontaneous and not so "scripted" sounding. Two thumbs up!