So, over the weekend, we saw the hit movie “Julie & Julia” julieandjulia.com by writer/director Nora Ephron, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. Loved it!
Not only did it make us hungry and remind us of the French proverb: “A good meal must begin with hunger,” we couldn’t help but notice flowers, flowers and more flowers. Not that that was surprising. Flowers, like good food and wine, are a part of living well, cherishing simple pleasures and experiencing joie de vivre.
Ephron based the script on blogger Julie Powell’s 2005 book Julie & Julie: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen and My Life in France, by legendary chef Julia Child and Alex Prud’homme. What do a foodie scribe and a world-famous icon of the 20th century have in common? A bunch of recipes. Powell’s book was based on her blog in which she chronicled her progress in cooking every recipe from Child’s classic text, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.
Ephron does an exquisite job of telling both women’s stories and highlighting the people who helped them identify and pursue their dreams.
Though some have seen Powell’s efforts as an attempt to piggyback on Child’s fame, the movie gives you the sense that the young novice’s motivation came from admiration for Child and a need for a creative outlet. (Streep plays Julia Child and Adams plays Julie Powell.)
Flowers, such as red roses, co-starred with delightful food in the movie "Julie & Julia."
OK, so back to the flowers. They pop up over and over again, and ranked right up there with the luscious sauces and decadent desserts on the eye-candy measure. For instance:
* the flowers at the market and at the train station in Paris; Julia holding a bouquet to give to her sister
* the white daisies, cream-colored roses and huge canopy of white flowers at Julia’s sister’s wedding; her orchid corsage and husband Paul’s carnation boutonnière
* flowers in every restaurant scene in France, from the lovely, lounging tulips to extravagant mixed bouquets; peach, yellow and orange seemed a common color scheme
* the alstromeria in a pitcher in Julie’s kitchen, the multi-colored (peach, yellow, pink) roses in the scene where Julie and her husband devour a cake, and the peach roses at her 30th b’day party
* red roses at one of Julia’s dinner parties
* the single peach-colored rose Julie uses as a simple centerpiece for one of her dinners; the red and white arrangement she carries up to their rooftop celebration
This is not a comprehensive list, but I think you get the idea. So if you’re at all into food, flowers or feisty women, treat yourself and go see “Julie & Julia.”
OK, time for lunch! ;)
