That's what happens when you eat nothing but shelf stable chocolate pudding for three days.

[jlh]

So ali_wildgoose and I just unashamedly saw Sex and the City at a matinee on opening day. And the non-spoilery thing I have to say is: if you liked the show, go see the movie. Also, we saw previews for Hancock (why before SatC?), Nights in Rodanthe (looks horrible), Mama Mia (Colin Firth too young), Australia (can't wait) and probably some other stuff that didn't stick.

The spoilery things I have to say :

So there was this rumor going around that Big dies, which I really didn't think was true, but all the conversations that Carrie and Big had the night before made me sad because I was so like, omg he's going to die tonight! or something. And I did know enough, not only about SatC but also about the production, to know that Carrie was absolutely not going to just walk merrily down the aisle in that dress. So that was a bullet dodged!

Speaking of the boys, I love that the boys always not only understood but appreciated the relationships of the girls with each other, that Harry still calls Carrie when he's worried about Charlotte, or that Big called the girls to come meet them at City Hall, or the way that Harry tried to put in a good word for Big, or Harry, Big and Smith having cigars at the rehearsal dinner, and their sympathetic look at Steve when he walked up to them.

The Miranda-and-Steve story made me woeful, but I thought it was exceptionally well done, and on the totally superficial side, Steve's ass makes a gratuitous appearance, to which I say hell yeah. I particularly appreciated that while what Steve did wasn't excused, it was put into the context of his relationship with Miranda, and that their journey back together wasn't without its difficulties.

If there's one disappointment that I have it's that they didn't really have a story for Charlotte other than having a baby. Despite being a new parent when we last saw her, and getting pregnant in the film, she still didn't really have a personal journey here, while the others did.

Samantha's story, on the other hand, was surprisingly respectful. I've always adored Smith, and I appreciated the way that entire arc was constructed. In particular, I liked that she didn't fuck Dante, but instead went home and broke up with Smith. Classy and grown-up.

I also liked that Louise, Carrie's assistant, didn't turn into the "sassy black friend" (we saw one in that horrid Nights in Rodanthe preview) but instead was an interesting minor character. Ali screamed over the Stanford-Anthony kiss, though I couldn't tell if that meant they were together or not, even if they were sitting next to each other at the Carrie-Big wedding meal.

And then there's Carrie. I thought that the Carrie-Big Miranda-Steve Carrie-Miranda thing was a little tidy, but I really like the way that one relationship can echo another, and that the echo wasn't just another romantic relationship but a friendship, and in a movie like that you really don't have time to be too awfully subtle. I was pleased that Carrie ended up getting married in her suit after all, and also that she recognized how she had let the wedding get ahead of the marriage itself, even if Big was a prick about it all. And also, it was a reminder of what a flawed character Carrie is—even though she's a great friend she's definitely self-absorbed, and generally in the show that would come back to kick her in the end.

But my favorite part, after all that, was that we ended on the four girls going out for Samantha's 50th. It was a sweet and perfect way to end the film.

Comments

[ali-wildgoose.livejournal.com]

WOULD SCREAM AGAIN <3

[wordplay.livejournal.com]

God, what a fun movie, eh? And omg closet porn. *drools at the lighting in there, because that's obv. fashion heaven* Also loved the Stanny/Anthony kiss, but I have to say that my favorite part between them was Anthony saying, "OMG I'm so glad you're here" b/c awww, boys! *smishes them* I really loved it, so please don't let the following rant make it seem like I didn't. I'm just having a "Love Actually" moment here.

Here's my thing about the Miranda & Steve conflict: I am sick sick SICK TO FUCKING DEATH at this idea that the best way to help a marriage where communication has broken down is for one person to fuck somebody else, like all Steve REALLY needed before he could communicate honestly with Miranda was to fuck somebody else and then WHOOSH it all made sense again and he was no longer emotionally bottled up. Is infidelity really that therapeutic? It INFURIATES me that, again, this is really all Miranda's fault - like, if she hadn't just gotten so beat down by everything, Steve would have never HAD to fuck around and so, really, she brought it on herself.

I think that (a) that reason/excuse line is a fine one and I wasn't real impressed by the way they handled it here and (b) I don't actually think that IS a reason for fucking somebody else. Being angry and wanting to hurt her? Yes. That's why the "I never meant to hurt you" thing just made me want to kick his (admittedly, exceptionally fine) ass - oh really? What DID he mean to do?

Also, the whole equation of Miranda accidentally saying something completely inappropriate and hurtful, something that probably happened in like 2 seconds, and Steve sleeping with somebody else, is absurd. Maybe it's the deceit of the two that's equated, but I still find the underlying sin not at all comparable.

Note that I have never been cheated on, but this is probably pretty bog-standard married woman rage. That he told her while she was turning herself inside out to make sure that everybody got where they needed to be just made it all the more infuriating. :))

Our previews included "American Teen", which I am so ridiculously excited to see.

[jlh.livejournal.com]

Well, given everything, I thought that it was really selfish of him to even tell her, because why did she need to know? Only his own guilt, really.

But I didn't see Steve as being let off as easily as you are, or given that excuse. I thought there were more excuses given for Big leaving Carrie at the altar than Steve cheating on Miranda, not that those things were comparable. I think the movie was less saying, "oh, steve didn't do much" as much as, "maybe miranda should actually talk to him about this." I mean, in the therapist's office when he said, "how do I know she won't punish me for this forever?" the therapist said, "how does she know you won't do this again?" and that was pretty much the last time we got anyone giving him an out.

I don't know, I guess it depends on whether you think that cheating is like, okay, over, done, or whether it's okay, what's going on, why did that happen? And this show has never been good at getting inside the men's heads, because in a way it doesn't care?

The underlying sins were totally not comparable, but I think the point was more that Miranda was asking for forgiveness without being willing to think about being forgiving herself. That Carrie didn't say that to her for some months, I think, was important.

I don't know, in some ways I think the movie didn't have time to really expand on this plot, but I really didn't at all think that any of it was Miranda's fault in terms of why he cheated. More, it was that Miranda wasn't just like, "You hurt me and I'm very upset and I need some time" but "You did this thing and I have totally closed the door." I mean, Steve was never Big; he didn't have a ton of sins to make up for; this wasn't a pattern of behavior. This was one really shitty thing that he did. And the question was more, was that worth Miranda walking away?

So, what did you like about the movie?