Movie Review - Sex and the City, the movie

I feel like I just survived a really bad date...wait...I feel even worse....

There is no gentle way to say it, so I'll go right ahead - the movie was vastly disappointing, just a poor shadow of the series. Sure, there were a few bright spots, but just a few. While the series was all about the girls, and the clothes were a surprising bonus, the movie becomes a pathetic exercise in over the top fashion and product placement. And not good products at that. The Louis Vuitton bag is hideous. And Carrie's beautiful wedding dress is ruined by the bird perched on top of her head (yes really, a bird)

Harsh? Yes. As I learnt from Carrie, life is all about the heartache and the heartbreak. And Carrie broke our hearts with this one.

(PS: I just cannot type anymore. Check out more reviews here)

Top 5 SATC episodes - A woman's right to shoes

Disclaimer - Almost every fabulous woman that I know is a mom. I am full of admiration and respect for mommies, and aspire to be one someday....

And with all that being said....one of my favorite SATC episodes is "A woman's right to shoes"!!!!

Most exceptional fashion statement - What else? The fabulous silver Manolos that the episode revolves around

Favorite quotes -

"I am getting married, to myself....and oh by the way, I am registered at Manolo Blahnik" - Carrie

"Where is the hallmark card for "congratulations...you did not marry the wrong guy?" - Carrie

Central premise -

Mothers are deified in every culture in this planet (and they deserve it for sure). However, the sad downside is, women without kids are often looked down upon, their lifestyle choices are seriously questioned, somehow, their passions and feelings are considered a little less important, and to Carrie's point, there really IS no occasion in which a single/childless woman's life is celebrated.

Here is the episode's storyline (and I would love to hear your thoughts on this) - Carrie is forced to take off her expensive shoes during a friend's child's birthday party. Naturally, the shoes are stolen. Carrie expects her friend to show a little sympathy, but her friend is simply callous. She accuses Carrie of having way too much time on her hands, while she, as a mom, has a real life. An angry Carrie requests compensation from her friend (her lawyer friend Miranda tells her this is legal), but her friend "shoe-shames" her by saying that she has real responsibilities and does not have to pay for Carrie's frivolous lifestyle choices.

A heartbroken Carrie does the math, and figures out that she has spent nearly 3000 dollars celebrating her married friend's lifestyle choices, and protests the fact that as a single childless woman, nobody considers her life worth celebrating. She announces that she is getting married, to herself. She registers for a single gift - the lost shoes in the Manolo Blahnik store gift registry, and her friend finally coughs up the cash (+tax by the way) and gifts Carrie the shoes

At first, I found the concept of Carrie requesting her friend to pay for her lost shoes a little odd. Miranda (who is a lawyer) thinks its fine, and legal, as it was the friend who forced Carrie to take off her expensive shoes. If I were in such a situation, would I make my friend pay? Never. But then, my real friends would NEVER ever trivialize my lifestyle choices just because I am childless.

But, if a person I considered a friend "shoe-shamed" me and somehow considered her life a lot more important than mine.....would I really accept defeat and walk away that easily? ...and then, would I even consider her a real friend? Would you??????

The Lean Veggie - Strawberries and sunshine (and some cream ofcourse)

Its my favorite time of the year - the three wonderful months between Memorial Day and Labor day. Whichever part of the nation you may find yourself in, the days keep getting longer and longer. Drenched with brilliant sunshine, bright flowers dress up even the most dreary sidewalks. Fresh produce and farmer's markets everywhere delight even the most ardent carnivores. Heck, K even managed to purchase some delightful strawberries from the big neighborhood warehouse discount store.

I rarely eat fruit, but this recipe is decadent enough to tempt even me. I love the simplicity.
The cream complements the slight tartness of the berries. I barely added any sugar to the recipe - the richness of the cream and the natural syrup from the macerated berries were good enough by themselves.

Summer also brings with it birthdays and celebrations galore (yes, including mine!) K gifted me this wonderful SLR camera that I'm still trying to figure out. Do let me know if you have some photography tips to share.

Recipe -

1) Prepare one cup of sliced strawberries (wash them and cut the green tops off before slicing)

2) Sprinkle 1 teaspoon sugar over the berries and toss. Then cover with cling film and set aside for about 30 minutes. You will see a rich red syrup collect in the pan

3) Lightly whip a third of a cup of cream (lightly with a fork)

4) Pour the cream over the berries, add a teaspoon of honey and toss. Add a little more sugar if needed

NOTE:
Toss in sliced mango, or nectarines if you like. Any strawberries would work, but try some fresh locally grown produce if you can.

Top SATC least favorite episodes - Number 4

Episode title - The entire first season

Thats right...this much loved series actually had a rather weak first season, taking its title rather too literally. There were gimmicks galore.....characters looking at the camera and talking, Carrie's "nude" dress, unnatural dialogues like "abso-^&*^^-lutely", and all the ladies seeming a little too desperate.

Ofcourse, the biggest redeeming factor of season 1 was who else...Mr.Big (sorry, couldn't resist the big pun).

Most annoying moment - When Charlotte dumps a guy (who is miraculously perfect and the marrying kind) because their tastes in China do not match! (Episode- Bay of Married pigs)

The Fashion - Hmm.....maybe Carrie's giant fur coat or the chic sunglasses all the girls sported when driving to their formerly-wild-now-soccer-mom friend's babby shower....The clothes did not really stick to my mind, i think the style evolved in the later seasons. Remember, even the famous Carrie necklace showed up only in season 2.

Top 5 SATC Least Favorite episodes - Number 5

Episode title: I love a charade

Central premise: Can a relationship still be a relationship without the zsa zsa zsu?

Exceptional fashion statement: Carrie's green umbrella with Indian style embroidery

Best directed shot: Miranda enjoys the fragrance of lilacs, and baby Brady reaches out and grabs the flowers too (the scene signifies how the two are missing Steve)

This episode was the finale of Season 5 - also known as the least satisfying of all SATC seasons. The season had fewer episodes, due to Sarah Jessica Parker's real life pregnancy.

This episode does have some bright spots - politically incorrect Samantha refuses to get all baby friendly and bans little smelly-pants-Brady from her "A-list party", Steve and Miranda rekindle their relationship, and Miranda begins to fall in love with Steve again.

However, just when we thought wise-cracking writer Jack Berger was out of the scene as he had a girlfriend, he bumps into Carrie on the way to the Hamptons. The first of many unfunny banters begins (and continues till the two break up a painful few episodes later). I guess Michael Patrick King (the director) wanted to show how the two had an easy going, "clever" relationship, for, this was the first time Carrie was actually dating a fellow writer. But the chemistry was solely lacking between the two. And Carrie seemed way too eager to please, and for some weird reason, she overacted all through the Berger episodes, with exaggerated facial expressions and annoying gestures. I'm not sure if this was intentional - did the director want us to dislike the idea of Carrie and Berger together, or show that Carrie was not being natural, and somehow fooling herself?

Tomorrow's post is all about my favorite episodes - number 5 in my top 5 list!

(Image source: www.hbo.com)

Welcoming this decade's Big movie event

I'm going to type out a sentence that may seem crazy to some, but I genuinely mean it: Sex and the City (SATC) changed my life.

Three years ago, I was floundering a little in my personal life. I'm not sure why, but I kept moving away from the real me, and tried to fit into the stereotype of what I thought was a "good girl". Obviously, it was a bad idea, and it SO did not work. Then, one lazy weekend, my husband rented the boxed DVD set of SATC 's third season. (yea, you read right - its probably the worst kept secret in North America; men LOVE watching SATC, and most definitely NOT for the Samantha-scenes which give the series much of its notoriety and its R-rating)

It took a while for me to get hooked, but then there was no turning back. I found the message so tremendously liberating and joyful.....I realized there is a beautiful wide world out there, I realized my girlfriends were so precious to me, I discovered the fun in dressing up and being a girl, most importantly, I started being myself.

So, to celebrate this wonderful series, and welcome Sex and the city - the movie, I am going to write about my most favorite and least favorite episodes. Look forward to hearing your take on these!