Not since Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp starred in Chocolat has a food movie gotten so much buzz—and Julie & Julia, premiering on August 7, may eclipse even that. Directed by Nora Ephron, of When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle fame, the movie chronicles the lives of two women: the late, great Julia Child, and food blogger Julie Powell, who set out to recreate all 524 recipes in Child’s Mastering The Art of French Cooking.
Based on Julia Child's memoir,
My Life in France, as well as Powell's
Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously, the movie will, in parallel fashion, tell the two true stories of Powell's cooking project and Julia Child's early days as a cook training at Le Cordon Bleu. Amy Adams stars as Julie Powell, and the venerable Meryl Streep, Julia Child.
Rarely has a food-centric movie gotten so much early press; ads have been running for weeks, innumerable food blogs and
mainstream media outlets running behind-the-scenes features, and early reviews filed from dozens of camps. The consensus is a generally positive one—though more than one critic felt that the "Julia" (Child) part of the tale was more compelling than the "Julie" bits were. Still, for any fans of Julia Child—or just close-up shots of beef
bourguignon—
Julia & Julia is a can't-miss.