Julie & Julia

‘I need something to doooo,’ exclaims a perfectly cast Meryl Streep in a flute-like voice which screeches through this endearing 122-minute movie. Streep plays Julia Child, the real-life author of Mastering The Art Of French Cooking. With this culinary doorstopper the Californian chef, who learned her craft while living in Paris with her doting husband, Paul (Stanley Tucci), brought French cuisine to mass America – and was loved for it. Upon arriving in Paris in 1948 (Paul took a job at the American Embassy), Child found herself restless and took up cooking to fill her time and satisfy her appetite for French food. Fast forward to Queens, New York 2002 and an equally restless Julie Powell (Amy Adams), bored by her job as a government secretary and feeling unfulfilled in contrast to her high flying friends, decides to plough her way through Child’s iconic cookbook (making a dish a day for a year) and write a blog about it. The blog was called The Julie/Julia Project, which was later turned into memoir Julie & Julia and is, you got it, the inspiration for this movie of the same name.

However, instead of focusing purely on Powell’s experience with Mastering The Art Of French Cooking, director Nora Ephron, screenwriter of When Harry Met Sally and director of nineties rom-coms Sleepless in Seattle and You’ve Got Mail, splits the storyline, following the two protagonists on their separate journeys of food discovery. It has all the hallmarks of a great rom-com, the plucky female leads, the doe-eyed husbands, equal measures of euphoria and tears (the latter mainly from Julie who throws herself onto the kitchen floor when things boil over), but refreshingly this is far from a boy meets girl love story. The women are the stars here, with Streep morphing seamlessly into Child and Adams playing out Powell’s insecurities with aplomb – you may not always like Powell’s self-obsessed character but you admire her determination…and her stomach for rich food.

By Claire Sacre

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Fish Tank

Once in a blue moon a film comes along that just grabs you and won’t let you go. You’re immersed in the characters and landscape, and you could stay there for days. Fish Tank is one of those rarities. Writer/director Andrea Arnold follows-up the excellent Red Road with another gritty, witty, disturbingly sexual drama about a 15-year-old girl called Mia (newcomer Katie Jarvis). Living on a council estate with her neglectful mother and foul-mouthed younger sister, Mia tries to escape the realities of her life through cheap booze and solo street dancing – until a new diversion comes along in the shape of Mum’s new boyfriend Connor (Michael Fassbender). Mia’s uneasy friendship with Connor is full of ambiguities – is the good guy actually the bad guy, or something inbetween? Maintaining Mia’s point of view throughout, this gripping movie communicates the snatched pleasures and confusions of teenage life with stunning intensity. Fish Tank should, in theory, be depressing – but it’s actually funny, moving and profound. Andrea Arnold has delivered the best film of the year so far: at this rate, she could well be the new Mike Leigh.

By Anna Smith

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(500) Days of Summer

Dream indie pairing Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel star in this offbeat romantic comedy. Tom is a sensitive greetings card writer who falls in love with Summer the minute he sees her. One snag: Summer doesn’t believe in love or relationships. Nevertheless, the two start dating, but Tom doesn’t know where he stands and risks the relationship by revealing his vulnerability. This reversal of the gender norm is just one quirk of this amusing, observant comedy. It flashes back and forth through the relationship in time (hence the title), beginning with the break-up. While this device is overused to the point of confusion, other inventive touches are refreshing: think unexpected musical numbers and split screen scenes divided between expectations and reality. Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel are charming both together and apart, and a Smiths-laden soundtrack seals the deal. This is our favourite romantic comedy of the summer.

By Anna Smith

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Away We Go

ELLE’s existing subscribers will be the first to see Away We Go, from Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes, at one of the special ELLE preview screenings held nationwide. This comedy-drama comes from Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes, but don’t expect another American Beauty or Revolutionary Road. A low-key road movie, it sees pregnant Verona (Maya Rudolph) and her nice-guy boyfriend Burt (John Krasinski) trying to decide where to live. They travel around the US and Canada, visiting family and friends, wondering who’d be the best influence on their child – and who’d be the most fun to hang out with. The result is a series of sweet, amusing episodes exploring different life choices. Maggie Gyllenhaal shines as the hilariously bohemian LN, while Allison Janney is a hoot as Lily, Maya’s former boss who loudly criticises her children while insisting that they can’t hear her. It’s an enjoyable indie-flavoured comedy not to be missed.

By Anna Smith

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The Ugly Truth

Ambitious, controlling girl meets irreverent, misogynist boy in this romantic comedy come battle of the sexes. With her morning show ratings in freefall, neurotic TV producer Abby (Katherine Heigl) is forced into working with cavalier TV personality Mike (Gerard Butler), a man whose views on women and relationships are seriously at odds with Abby’s idea of the perfect man. Comedy ensues as Mr. Wrong unexpectedly helps Abby in her quest for Mr. Right. It might not be groundbreaking film-making but The Ugly Truth has plenty of laughs and Heigl is typically charming and endearing in the leading lady role. Perfect viewing for a soggy Sunday afternoon.

By Hannah Swerling

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