I have a place in my heart for "food" movies.
I'm not talking about movies such as "Supersize Me," or the recent "Food, Inc." Those are documentaries (and both very good films). I'm referring to movies wherein food itself - and the preparing, the eating, the sheer love of it - is a central theme - a main character, in fact.
Nora Ephron, who has written and directed some well-respected romantic comedies ("Sleepless in Seattle," "You've Got Mail") takes on an ambitious project with her latest film, "Julie & Julia." In the movie, food is at the forefront.
The tale consists of two connected stories, taking place decades apart and remotely crossing paths in the present. Food and romance and the search for self are present in every scene.
"Julie & Julia" is based on real events and two books: Julie Powell's "Julie & Julia," and "My Life in France," which was co-written by Julia Child and her great-nephew, Alex Prud'homme.
There's another tome that has great influence on the screenplay, however. Child's now-classic 1961 cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," permeates both Julie's and Julia's stories.
A brief prelude introduces us to Julia (Meryl Streep) and Paul (Stanley Tucci) Child as they arrive in Paris in 1948.
Cut to 2002, when we meet Julie Powell (Amy Adams), an aspiring writer who works in a cubicle in a post-9/11 bureaucratic government agency. She's desperately looking for a creative outlet. It's obvious, from several sumptuous scenes, that Julie is not only a good cook, she loves to cook, and to eat. Her husband Eric (Chris Messina) encourages her to write a blog. She doesn't know what to write about but then it hits her. She will, in one year, make every recipe in Child's classic cookbook and share her experiences and thoughts with her blog devotees.
Cut back to Julia's story, which shows her restless (but always good-natured and charming) in Paris with Paul, who works for the U.S. State Department. She doesn't speak French and has little to occupy her time except for her absolute love of eating and cooking.
There's a vignette when Julia discovers salmon sauteed in a great amount of butter. It is nearly as sensual as a love scene. And she does fall in love with butter.
After finding no solace in a hat-making class, Julia decides to go to cooking school. Not just any cooking school, but the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu, where she is greeted with much disdain by many of the rather snobbish powers-that-be.
"Julie & Julia" slips back and forth between the two women's struggles. Julie is determined to cook all of the more than 500 recipes in the book in one year and Julia is determined to gain acceptance and also complete the aforementioned cookbook, a feat that eventually took eight years.
Both stories are compelling but Julia's is more so by a long shot. To point out Streep is as fine an actress to have ever graced the screen is saying nothing new. To see her embody the role of Child is jaw-dropping, though. Not a hint of caricature (the film does that with an old "Saturday Night Live" skit featuring Dan Aykroyd) but a full immersion in the role. Seeing her on "The Daily Show" promoting the film was almost as amazing as her performance in it.
She's got a gift and knows how to use it. No pomp, simply an artist totally at home with her art.
The most revealing thing to me was finding out that Julia Child was quite a romantic - randy if you will - woman. Streep and Tucci bring this fact to light in a way that doesn't violate the movie's PG-13 rating but is touchingly real.
In the age where cooking shows are broadcast 24/7 and hundreds of cookbooks line the shelves of every bookstore, seeing Julia Child's history is revelatory.
Julie's story is necessary to make this film work (and Adams pulls her weight), but a biopic of Child would be a great movie as well.
I love food movies and loved "Julie & Julia." Some other suggestions in the genre include: "Big Night," "Tampopo," "Babette's Feast," "Eat Drink Man Woman," "Like Water for Chocolate" and "Chocolat."
Jim Wunderle owns Wunderle Sound Services and is a Springfield freelance writer and musician. He can be reached at info@wunderlesound.com.
