Movie Review: Julie & Julia

Went to see "Julie & Julia" starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. I read the book about a year ago and had heard they were making a movie. So often when I have read the book and then eagerly await seeing the movie, I am sadly disappointed. This was not the case.

684 pages of recipes
plus 32 pages of index

They did a beautiful job! Meryl Streep was absolutely wonderful playing Julia Child. She really had her warbling voice and mannerisms down. Stanley Tucci was so terrific as Paul Child. I remember watching Julia Child cooking on TV years ago and it never once crossed my mind that she had this beautiful romance and sex life going on. They were truly made for each other.

Amy Adams as Julie Powell and Chris Messina as her husband, Eric Powell, were so endearing. What a supportive husband he was through this project. The way he dived into her dishes as she cooked her way through "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" was adorable. It is so great to cook for someone who appreciates it -- and will try anything!!! And, oh, we women can be so dramatic. The scene where she ends up laying on the kitchen floor in despair looked like something that may have happened in our house a time or two. Totally believable.

I loved the way they moved back and forth between 1960s Paris and 2002-03 New York. The scenery in Paris was beautiful and the quaint little apartments. How the hell did they turn out such amazing meals in these miniscule kitchens with such tiny, tiny ovens? I am so going to make the Boeuf Bourguignon (beef stew in red wine with bacon, onions and mushrooms) and I'd like to try the Pate de Canard en Croute (boned stuffed duck baked in a pastry crust). I don't think I've ever even had duck -- I wonder if you can substitute chicken for the duck ... is this culinary blasphemy?

When we got home from the movie theater, I grabbed my copy of "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" off the shelf. I bought it on October 2, 1995. I know this because I try to always stamp my keeper books with a book plate stamp for my name and I record the date. I guess I hope that my daughters and grandchildren and so on and so forth will someday look inside the cover of an old cookbook and think Nana bought this so long ago ... it's an antique!

All I can say is I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and can't wait to have it on DVD so I can watch it over and over. It really made me want to cook something! Bon Appetit!!!