Julie & Julia
Director: Nora Ephron
Cert: 12A
Time: 2hrs 3mins
There are so many programmes on television these days devoted to cooking that it’s hard to imagine a time before they existed. The catalyst for this revolution was Julia Childs, a larger than life American who, whilst on a posting in Paris with her diplomat husband, first learned how to cook the French way and then wrote a book about it. Her opus, Mastering the Art of French Cooking was first published in 1961 became an instant hit accompanied as it was by a television series in which Childs popularised the phrase “Bon Appetit”.
Fast forward to 2002 and Julia Powell a young government employee, wedded to a dead end job, yet dreaming of being a writer. Over dinner one evening she hits on the idea of preparing all 524 recipes contained within “Mastering….” in a calendar year and writing a blog about it. It went on to be a huge online hit and her story provides the basis for Nora Ephron’s charming comedy starring Meryl Streep as Childs and Amy Adams as Powell.
If there is one thing that this film delivers so successfully it is in the performances of Streep and Adams who convey, so convincingly, the love which Childs and Powell held for cooking. And along the way we get some delightfully funny moments interspersed with a poignant depiction of the strength of the relationships that each of them enjoyed with their respective spouses. Well worth going to see.
Rating: 3/5
Patrons: 18
