Everybody needs a little inspiration in their day-to-day lives—this is exactly what character Julie Powell sets out for in the movie Julie & Julia, based on two remarkable women’s true stories of inspiration, passion, and hardships. Used to working in a stressful job for the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, Powell is dealing with the emotional aftermath of the 9/11 Twin Towers attack and takes crisis calls all day. Julie and her husband, Eric, have just moved into a new apartment closer to Eric’s work when the movie begins. A fan of Julia Child (a famous cook, co-author of Mastering the Art of French Cooking), Powell cooks a delicious meal each night for herself and her husband to get away from work’s stressors.
Meanwhile, the movie transports back in time to the 1950’s when a middle-aged Julia Child was experiencing the same thing Julie Powell experienced. Julia and her husband Paul had just moved to Paris for Paul’s job, and Julia does not know what to do besides “be a housewife”. She enrolls in an advanced French cooking class and is the only female. She is motivated to beat the guys in speed, strength, and quality, and forms cooking into her new hobby to keep herself occupied.
Now back in present-day, Julie Powell decides to start an online blog about her experiences in 365 days, covering every recipe from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. She records her daily troubles, tantrums, and joys of cooking in her cramped, unaccommodating kitchen until it drives her and her marriage into the ditch. Eric had always been a great support and encouraged Julie when she thought she could not write, but they eventually began to argue when her blog started to run her life and consume all her time during the day.
In the movie time frame, Julie Powell is weeping over the fact she could not make the perfect lobster dish, while Julia Child is having a tough time keeping interested and is very scrupulous about her involvement in her new hobby. While at cooking school, Child meets two women who ask her to publish their French cooking book (Mastering the Art of French Cooking), and agrees. Child becomes their editor, coming up with plan after plan until the recipe for publishing success is just right.
Julie receives numerous phone calls and letters from editors, publishers, and T.V. shows asking her to perform interviews and even write her own book, but one particular phone call stood out from the rest. A male editor calls Powell to tell her that he spoke with Julia Child and claimed Child had said she disliked Powell’s blog and thought it was an “offensive” or “unnecessary” way to take upon such a serious subject. This concept is never really elaborated upon, nor made clear in the movie, as Julie and Julia never meet.
At the zenith of the movie, a good-hearted scene of Julie and Eric Powell visiting the Smithsonian Institution to see Julia Child’s kitchen exhibit is shown, as Julie places a stick of butter near Julia’s portrait (Julia’s trademark was: “You can never have enough butter.”) The scene fades into the actual kitchen of Julia and Paul Child, identical to the one at the exhibit, as Julia opens a package and it reveals the first printed copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Julia lets out a shriek of happiness as the scene is finished and paused, fading into the credits.
While the movie was a comedy-driven, romantic two hours, I really disliked the fact that Julia Child and Julie Powell never meet. Julia Child is portrayed as a happy, lively woman that lives in the moment, yet she dislikes Julie Powell’s blog. This does not make much sense, considering Julie has never said one offensive word, nor made fun of Julia Child’s cooking. Families watching this flick will sure find a kick out of the storyline and let out a loud chuckle, even if the end is left unresolved.
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