When reality shines into the movie — Food and life in Nora Ephron’s screenplay
Nora Ephron is one of my favorite scriptwriters. She specializes in light comedy. She is witty and romantic, discussing of life always stops at where it should be, and laughing over serious topics. Her works are mostly urban romance tales, carefully woven romances for adults, especially women. Like who? Like Jane Austen.
Her work gives people a sense of literature and art. Artsy this word, now you take it to say a person each other may not be happy. It’s part of speech has been getting worse, and now the female artsy in the context is always “delicate and fragile”, or “hysterical and nervous”. But Ephron certainly wasn’t that kind of type. She is a person who discusses daily necessities while watching An Affair to Remember. She can look on coldly when she plunges into this big pool of life and swims beautifully with legs.
Also a romantic comedy, Meg Ryan’s other work is less than the three Ephron scripted film she starred in, When a Man Loves a Woman, When Harry Met Sally, You’ve Got Mail. It’s not the hardware that’s the problem. San Francisco sightseeing in When a Man Loves a Woman is no less than the seasons on Fifth Avenue in You’ve Got Mail. For looks alone, I’d prefer Hugh Jackman at the peak of his looks in Kate & Leopold.
The key is the dialogue in almost every one of Nora Ephron’s plays. There are a few long lines of dialogue in almost ever plays. For example, the discussion on friendship between the two sexes in When Harry Met Sally and the discussion on the attitude of men and women towards love movies in When a Man Loves a Woman let me remember for years. It’s a pyrotechnically-inspired piece of art that seems hopelessly impractical, but when you savor it, you get a taste of life and experience, a hard-tempered meditation on life, and a warmth from a man who has known all the loneliness. (I made this assumption because she mentioned in the book that she had worked as a freelance writer for several years, mostly staying at home.)
The heroines in her plays are always somewhere between “wigglers” and “veteran hooligans,” just as she is in this book. The play peeps into the book, the book peeps into the person, each of her heroines has her own shadow. But among all the movies, my favorite is a movie about food and memories. Julie&Julia.
Julie＆Julia are a dramatic film directed by Nora Ephron and starring Meryl Streep and Julie Powell. The film tells the story of two women whose ordinary lives are transformed by the alluring French cuisine. Before Julia Child changed the world, she was just an ordinary American woman living in France who’s greatest hobby was eating. “Why can’t I go to a professional food school and learn how to cook?” So, in the kitchen occupied by a group of French men, Julia, a stranger, began to try to make a traditional French meal. And finally she was successful and she even attempted to enlist her experience in a book titled Mastering The Art Of French Cooking.
Julie Powell, who lives in the United States, is also a frustrated. As a government employee, her job is dull and boring. But that all changed when she saw Julia Child’s Mastering The Art Of French Cooking. She was so determined to learn to cook every dish in the book that she posted a blog about her experience online and gained a legion of fans.
The film is also directed by Nora. As one of the most influential female directors in Hollywood, Nora had made many excellent film about women before shooting Juliet&Julia. This kind of subject matter is actually difficult to grasp. One is not careful will fall into a stereotype, become repeatedly describe their loneliness and magnify women’s emotional. This is a common fault of domestic romantic film. They are feminist on the surface, but in fact they are all shot for men. But Nora is much more clever, and I think she is the only one who can write a wonderful story while describing the inner world of women.
The film follows two paths of female self-fulfillment in a double-line narration that mirrors each other, without being particularly flashy, except for recorded moderate, straight-talking American humor. May’s performance was certainly commendable, and I looked for the video of Childe’s show to compare it, even the subtle expressions and tone were the same. “You are the butter to my bread, you are the breath of my life.“ Besides, the old villain Stanley Tucci’s portrayal of Paul Child, who climbs on a stool to make a kitchen rail for his wife even though he doesn’t match the size of the tall Julia, is both comic and touching.
I especially like the image of Julia in the movie. She has a zest for life and spreads it out. Even the notoriously bad-tempered French can be brought out on the good side of her, becoming friendly and lovable. A word from Julie’s husband，”Julia Child wasn’t born Julia Child either.” Julia’s transformation from an ordinary homemaker to a famous chief is portrayed half a century ago.
That’s probably what touched me about Julia. She is very happy-go-lucky, cheerful and tolerant, without the hard arm of workplace women. Her words are humorous and high-pitched, and her smile is as artful and innocent as her husband’s surname Child. She was a really romantic kind of person, always smiling like she was drunk, her arm movements were cute and innocent, and she didn’t hide whether she was happy or sad. She had a husband who loved her and supported her wholeheartedly and would be dancing for joy at her success. When someone shares your happiness, you get more out of it. She must know that fun and laughter are the most important things in the 24 hours that everyone shares. Enjoying life and enjoying cooking are in common in a sense.
More than 50 years later in Queens, New York. Already famous in the United States, she has become a little clerk Julie’s spiritual mentor. Under the advice of her husband, she decided to change her habit of giving up halfway. So she followed the Mastering The Art Of French Cooking completed 524 course in 365 days and posted on her blog. It can be said that every time she finishes a dish. She gets closer to Julia. Julia’s ebullient lifestyle also changes her subtly.
In her hands, the food became more delicious. The comments on her blog began to go from one to three digits, and she attracted more and more followers. The ordinary, worry-looking office worker gradually became more optimistic. In the end, she ended up as a grass-roots blog hero, marking a perfect end to her year-long project.
With 524 dishes in one year, the mouth-watering food has become the place where the movie Juliet&Julia interprets life with food. The movie shows the marriage life and career of two women in a time travel l way. The two story lines of Julie and Julia are interspersed like a flowing stream. Nora’s excellent narrative technique and score also make the film a feast for the eyes, and also deeply moved by two ordinary women whose lives have been changed by food.
Julia was ebullient and Julie was depressed. They are two very different people. One is like an idea and the other is more like reality. The two stories in Julie&Julia are both taken from real events, and their existence tells us that the ideal life is real. It is not only an inspirational film, but also tells every audience that love and happiness are the most indispensable ingredients in cooking. When Julie learns Julia’s recipe, she learns not only how to cook, but also how to be a better person. The growing process of Julie is like an ideal reflected into reality. When she finally can enjoy life like Julia, she sincerely thanks the person who taught her about kitchen and love.
It’s a beautiful movie in itself, and the addition of delicious food is like melting butter on a saucepan, making this light and beautiful movie fragrant.
In fact, many of us, like Julie, are confined to a fixed area of work and takeout, which leads to less and less enjoyment of the food we really enjoy. It’s not just food. Many people lose their passion for life and get by, struggling to cope with everything. The kitchen was Julie’s coping strategy and it finally allowed her to find joy outside of her ordinary life. What about our exports? It could be food. It could be something else. Whatever it is, feel it in your heart and find the small, subtle pleasure in life.
Finally, a summarize with director Nora’s words. “I hope everyone who sees the movie wants to go out and eat right away, because life is so good!”