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Seeing Julie & Julia This Weekend? Discuss It Here!

2009_08_07-Julia01.jpgThe big food movie of the summer, Julia & Julia, opens today! Are you going to see it? If so, come and tell us what you thought about it here!

 
 

2009_08_07-Julia02.jpgWe are looking forward to actually getting to see it (we tried to go to a preview, but it was way overbooked).

We've heard good reviews of the film, especially for Meryl Streep playing Julia Child. (Not a surprise, right?) But we are eager to see it for ourselves; after all, how can we pass up a movie about food blogging? All that drama inherent in writing witty posts about food we've cooked! Errr...well. The draw is really more Julia; as professional food bloggers, we don't think that blogging can hold a candle to Julia's life! It will be interesting to see how it all plays out on the screen.

Have you seen the movie yet? What did you like about it?

More Julie & Julia:
The Julie/Julia Project Goes Mainstream with a Book
Survey: Are You Looking Forward to Seeing Julie & Julia?
A Look at the Food Styling Behind Julie & Julia

(Images: Sony Pictures)

Tags

Food on Film, Julia Child, Julie & Julia, Julie Powell

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Comments (25)

I'm seeing it this weekend! Can't wait! A friend went to a preview and said it was hilarious.

posted by adorninc.wordpress.com on August 7th 2009 at 2:03pm
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I stayed wide-awake at last night's midnight showing, which is a testament to the great reviews the movie has received (I'm a sleepy person).

Julia Child is a true gem and Meryl Streep's portrayal of the kitchen queen is absolutely charming!

Regarding Julie Powell: she's the "everywoman" who got a lucky break, good for her. Definitely a reflection of how many of us twenty to thirty somethings feel, stuck in an office when we'd rather be baking a cake.

Now how many food bloggers are gonna be pining a little bit more for that book and/or movie deal? How many of us just want to continue to master the art of cooking?

posted by gabrielaskitchen on August 7th 2009 at 2:09pm
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Nerd that I am, I've got tickets reserved for a show this evening at the Sundance Theater in SF, in the balcony where we can also have a glass of wine. In general I'm looking forward to this film as a light treat--keeping my expectations low except for Ms. Streep who I'm sure will be amazing.

posted by Dana V on August 7th 2009 at 2:29pm
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Unfortunately, I won't be watching this weekend or next (too many conflicting items on the calendar) but in honor of the release, I did buy Volume One of "Mastering...". Any ideas/suggestions on which recipe I should break the book in with?

posted by rosebud on August 7th 2009 at 2:30pm
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Saw it last night! The Julia parts really are the true gems of the film, and I honestly would go see it again. If you've read "My Life in France," you'll love how magically the story is depicted on screen.

posted by gourmandizzy on August 7th 2009 at 3:24pm
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Just saw it and loved it. I've read both source books and Ephron did a wonderful job of blending both. The story of the creation of the book, the love affair between Julia and Paul, the hurculean and life-changing task that Julie Powell undertook-great stuff. The food looked delish as did Paris. Wonderful performances and casting throughout. What a pleasure! I'm looking to make Julia's Boeuf Bourgingnon at Autumn's first chill.

posted by bhdancegirl on August 7th 2009 at 6:46pm
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It was really quite good, and I'm glad they put more of a focus on Julia than the book did. Frankly, the book is Julie being a slob and whiney mess. I was pleasantly surprised they were smart enough to leave most of that out of the movie and focus on Julia more. Because reading the book, that is what I wanted more of, Julia. Not Julie's whining.

posted by King of Arcadia on August 7th 2009 at 7:13pm
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I made it to a screening on Thursday and I have to say, it was really charming. I loved the book, so I expected this to be a bit watered down, but the "Julia" parts were so vibrant and lovely. Amy Adams was cute as Julie, but Meryl really shined in her role. The Julia/Paul dynamic was so fun to watch, whereas the Julie/Eric one was kind of..meh.

posted by aesargent on August 8th 2009 at 7:38am
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I can't wait to see it, but have visitors this week so will have to wait, when I was a latchkey kid I'd come home after school and a local TV station was repeating Julia's cooking show. It was just Julia & me until my mother came home and I'm really looking forward to 'seeing' her again. And who else could have played her except Meryl Streep?!

posted by Rucy on August 8th 2009 at 10:11am
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I had the good luck to have a free pass to the premiere in Montreal a couple of weeks ago, and I came out of the theatre with a huge smile stuck in my face for hours...!It was simply wonderful to see the passion of cooking brought on screen. And honestly, having already read the book before, I started it again as soon as I got home and it was way better, being able to understand in a better way Julia Child's letters that are inserted in the book, and having a precise image of Julie, Eric, the New York flat, etc... run! Go See It!!

posted by elybou on August 8th 2009 at 4:38pm
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Though I love to read this site, I am by no means a cook (though I hope to change that someday), and I really had no interest in seeing the movie...until I read about it here. I just got back from the theater, and I loved it -- very funny and inspiring, though I doubt I'll be deboning any ducks anytime soon!

posted by sheri on August 9th 2009 at 3:08pm
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I'm just waiting for it to be captioned (seeing that I am deaf.) It should be captioned in SF next week.

posted by Kathryn Hill on August 9th 2009 at 4:57pm
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Saw it yesterday and left starving to death. I swear I could smell everything that was cooking. The movie was very charming with Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci playing the loving couple seemingly effortlessly.

Eat before you go!

posted by kjb on August 9th 2009 at 6:16pm
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Saw it with a group of 6 women last night, and it was
wonderful!! I can't say enough! We went to a local Italian buffet after, and when our cabernet arrived, I toasted us
with a "Bon Apetit" in a perfect Julia falsetto!!

posted by laffcat on August 9th 2009 at 7:45pm
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The Julia parts were great, but I actually missed the whiny slobby Julie parts from the book - without that, it's harder to get a sense of just how big this project was. I went in expecting it to be Julie with Julia in the background, but it was almost the opposite. And it was almost more about writing than about cooking, but I did still leave with the need to rush home and make dessert... The acting was great, the sets were lovely, but I think we missed a lot of the conflict in Julie's life that would have made it more engaging. Perhaps the two books really wanted to be two separate movies.

posted by lemonadefish on August 9th 2009 at 9:59pm
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I really loved the movie a lot, and then wrote about it here:

http://dish-and-rag.blogspot.com/2009/07/movie-review-julie-julia.html

If you haven't yet, GO SEE IT! :)

posted by The Dishwasher on August 10th 2009 at 12:26am
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Saw it on Friday and loved it! I'm definitely going to go see it again. It was very funny, though I think I would've liked a little more Julia Child.

posted by kitchengraffiti on August 10th 2009 at 10:06am
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@bhdancegirl Do yourself a favor and skip Julia's recipe for something shorter! I was insipired and made Beef Burgandy yesterday (Julia's recipe), was in the kitchen for four hours straight and came out with the sneaking suspicion it would be just as good if I browned the meat and threw everything into a pot to simmer. Don't get me wrong, the dish is good, it's just far too much work for the payoff.

I didn't expect to love this movie. We were actually going to go see GI Joe, but after skimming a few reviews changed our minds. Amy Adams was darling as always but Meryl Streep did an amazing job and made me wish I'd grown up watching Julia's show. Definitely eat before you go, though.

posted by Tiamat_the_Red on August 10th 2009 at 11:49am
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I cried and ate a lot of caramel corn at the Arclight in Hollywood. Great movie, even my husband was inspired and he is much more of an eater than a chef.

posted by mangabanga on August 10th 2009 at 12:45pm
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i saw it and am so glad to say it was really realy good.

i have read the books and it does a wonderful job of staying true to the stories.

go see it if you love food and cooking.

posted by kristian on August 10th 2009 at 12:57pm
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I wrote my thoughts on the movie, including the culinary gaffes (big surprise: I'm a culinary school student!), here: http://cookingschoolconfidential.com/?p=599

Cheers!

posted by CookingSchoolConfidential.com on August 11th 2009 at 8:35am
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I really liked it, alot of good parts from both books and combined well. And even though we ate lunch right before, my husband still wanted to make the duck en croute after seeing it on the big screen! :)

posted by Knerq on August 11th 2009 at 12:43pm
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I, too, thought that this was about writing as much as cooking--and I loved it for that. I could so relate to the process of boxing up hundreds of pages of manuscript--the product of years of work--and the elation of hearing good news from a publisher. This was real to me.

posted by kelleyk on August 11th 2009 at 9:57pm
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I love love loved the movie! I thought they did a good job of interweaving the two story lines. I'll probably have to go see it again. I especially appreciated seeing the food and how Mastering the Art of French Cooking came to be. And of course, Meryl Streep did a fabulous job.

posted by Halley B on August 12th 2009 at 10:02am
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it made me HUNGRY!!!! but also it made me laugh and cry, too, so all in all i liked it and made me want to read the books.

posted by Joan in SB on August 12th 2009 at 10:39pm
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