Sex & The City: The Movie
[ 5 June 2008 ]
Alright, lovelies. Time for the inevitable discussion.
Sex & The City: The Movie. What did you think? Raging success? Flaming disappointment? Did you laugh? Cry? Cringe? Walk out dazed, wondering where the hell those two & a half hours went? Did you swoon over the shoes & belts? Did the product placement make you grit your teeth? Discuss.
(My opinion is in the comments — so don’t click unless you’re open to spoilers!)
Super-love & cupcakes,
Gala 
Tags: question Share this! + Email This + Del.icio.us
+ Facebook
+ Stumbleupon
+ Technorati
Okay, here’s what I thought. Brace yourselves. (You know that I rarely if ever complain about things on here, so you can tell that I take this pretty seriously! Sad but true!)
I was really disappointed by the movie, & that is a big deal coming from me, since I have been looking forward to it since the first tentative announcements that they might put one out. SJP did a lot of press saying that it was “a movie for the fans” — & it felt like that. Like they were trying to appease us, & like it wasn’t really something they were into. I felt a lack of passion, & to me that was incredibly sad.
The product placement really bothered me, I thought it was totally shameless — especially the mention of the bag rental company whose name I will now not utter on general principle! I honestly watched that scene with my mouth open. I know that these days, product placement is just a part of life, but it really rubbed me the wrong way. I felt that they were disrespecting the audience by expecting us to be so stupid that we’d just sit there & take that.
I think the degradation of the personal relationships between the actors was very evident on screen. Those of you who are die-hard fans might remember the scene at the start of ‘Escape From New York’ in Season 3. Carrie & Charlotte are in the coffee shop, & as Carrie bids Charlotte goodbye, she presses her hand over Charlotte’s face. That sounds weird but when you watch it, you can see the affection — it’s real & genuine. In terms of the relationships between the women — which, let’s face it, SATC was actually about — the movie doesn’t even come close to that. Obviously if you’re all apart for years working on different projects, your friendships are going to fall apart a bit, but I don’t know. It made me sad. Sue me for buying into the fantasy that grown women can actually be close friends for a long time!
I was also really surprised by everyone in the audience clapping & cheering. You all know I am open, positive, receptive to new things… but I was shocked by how everyone else seemed to lap it up. I found the whole thing kind of insulting, to be honest.
I really did walk out of the theatre stunned & kind of confused. It’s not that I wasted $11.65 or two & a half hours. I think I feel more like my emotional investment from the past few years just got stomped on. SATC the show was hilarious, clever, touching & charming. SATC the movie was like the boulevard of broken dreams. I didn’t have any love for the characters — it was like someone had drawn a chalk outline around a body on the sidewalk & then covered it in clothes.
On that subject: Pat Field did an amazing job. I loooooooved the styling. It was incredible. But it upstaged everything else that went on.
Oh, & the fact that two of the major jokes revolved around toilet humour & weight gain? ...Yeah. Let’s not go there.
I’m thankful that I have the DVDs. I’ve been re-watching them & loving them. I really do regard the movie as just some abstract daydream. That movie is not what I pictured for my heroine, Carrie Bradshaw, & I’m happier imagining her life in my own head.
Now it’s your turn! I know that a lot of you really loved it, so I’d like to hear your thoughts!
You’re totally right about the degradation of their friendships, and for the past few years, I’ve always thought this was the route Carrie would never go down – but all the clapping and laughing in the theater (on my part at least!) was appreciating the movie just as some abstract daydream. There is humor, there is utterly rampant shameless product placement to show the audience that they could not have afforded the film production any other way, and there was a lot of fabulous style to gape at. The way some people online talked about the movie, though… you would’ve thought that it was a late-night comedy skit making fun of the original show! So I was partially relieved.
Oh, I felt like the individual characters themselves were way out of wack, too. One line says it all: “I always knew Carrie would marry Big” (Charlotte). My face falls flat every time I hear it.
I did almost cry at the scene where Carrie checks her e-mail. It was mostly just watching her emotions go through her face, and I think the women around me were giggling, so all was not lost in the world of fans lapping up the shouldn’t-be-canon movie!
I was disappointed as well, but for different reasons. I did not like that Carrie took Big back after he utterly embarrased her by not showing up to marry her. My girlfriends and I all had discussions about the movie afterwards and I was the only one who had a problem with this.
Also my favorite relationship throughout the entire run of the show was Miranda and Steve and to have Steve cheat on Miranda was just pointless to me – marriage is already a dying ritual but geez give me hope (even if in movie form).
Other than that I loved how the women looked in the movie. The syle was so beautiful and amazing. I have always thought Samantha to be the prettiest and she looked fabulous (as did all the girls).
The movie did make me laugh and cry (which showed how much of an obsessed fan I was) and I just became a fan as of this year. On a whim I bought the entire collectors edition which contains every season, trivia, etc and I watched it every day for two months and fell in love with the show. I will buy the movie when it comes out.
Product placement – grrrrr… that pisses me off too..
Do you think the all the hype could’ve influenced your opinion..? I find that happens to me; sometimes the hype is better than the real thing!
I haven’t watch it yet, but now I don’t know if I want to..
Gala,
Your point of view is very interesting, and I agree with you quite a bit. Particularly, about the product placement – it was unnecessary and annoying, quite frankly.
Perhaps it didn’t feel like our girls because of the angle shots they took? Or the lines they read? Or how they read it?
I felt that not all the actors and actresses were at there best. I didn’t like that Carrie’s assistant was suddenly thrown in the mix. It was confusing, and the storyline didn’t go much of anywhere. It was like she was there & then she was gone – and I was left scratching my head. I did think Samantha was at her best, though. Wow – she was hysterical.
On the one hand, I thought Steve (David Eigenberg) was completely understated. I actually had the chance to meet him on the street (the evening of the premiere, here, in New York). He was walking his dogs – we spoke a bit & he signed an autograph for me. He was incredibly sweet – and if I would have known then that his character was going to be so incredible in the movie, I would have said so.
The first 3/4 of the movie felt like a ride … and the last 1/4 felt like a free fall into what the producers thought the audience would like to happen. That bugged me a bit – and I wish the end would have been a bit more developed, even if it did have the same ending, it was all so sudden.
The movie amused me. Although there were some crummy parts – I enjoyed it. It gave me some closure to the show – even if it was a bit absurd at times – I am happy I went.
I didn’t think about it too much before I saw it, so I went in with no expectations at all to be honest!
Obviously, I enjoyed all the fabulous clothes & styling & oh god, that closet. Now that you mention about product placement, I guess it was quite prominent, but that’s completely what I expect of SATC and when I think of NYC, I think designers/labels/products. asos.com have this ridiculous SATC wardrobe creation, where you can pick an outfit of Carrie’s from the movie & get your very own rip-off. Ugh. I completely disagree with that & it annoys me to high hell!
I agree with the other poster who thought Steve cheating on Miranda was pointless. I guess if that hadn’t happened, her character wouldn’t have had much of a storyline, but to me, Steve just wasn’t that kind of man! It felt a bit like they just thought of it at the last minute.
I was so happy that Charlotte fell pregnant! (I’m really getting into this. Must remember that she is not real.) That was an amazing idea from the writers there. Not such a good idea, was Samantha splitting from Smith! I know she had to come back from Hollywood, but they should’ve written it in to the storyline somehow, that he came back with her. It was such an amicable split. Very odd.
Carrie is such a strong character, that I thought it would have taken more for her to take Big back, but apparently not! The scene where she’s smashing the flowers over him & screaming, was actually really believable in my eyes.
For me, the movie had a nice balance of humour & emotion & moved quite well from TV to the big screen. Some people complained that it moved too fast, but in 2 & a half hours, it kind of has to! I’m not completely mad about it, but it didn’t disappoint me either. No doubt I’ll buy it when it comes out, just as a keep-sake!
Aimee Marie
www.aimeemarie.com
www.missaimeemarie.blogspot.co…
Ivy — Definitely the hype blew it up way too much. No movie could ever live up to that much hype. & I think that if you’re a fan you should go, just for curiousity’s sake, but honestly if I wasn’t a fan I would have been like, ‘What is this rubbish?!’
Cassaundra — I think the script was, uh, not good. Not punchy at all. The show is so much funnier & the dialogue so much more believable! A lot of it seemed like a rush job.
Aimee Marie — I was happy for Charlotte too. (Seriously, to me, they are real people!) But argh! So many disappointments :\
Another thing that bothered me about it is that I feel like it gives the people who disliked the TV series even more fuel. Those people who say, “Oh they’re just shallow & bitter & one-dimensional” — I think they actually have a point when it comes to this movie. The women were shallow & bitter & one-dimensional! That is so frustrating to me!
To be fair, I did laugh, I did cry. Just not as much as I expected. I think what I was connecting to was my memory of the characters, not what was actually going on in front of me. They just weren’t very likeable!
I have to chime in and agree with everyone- I was disappointed. It was cute I guess? But it wasn’t my SATC. Remember the good ol’ days when they used to avoid even getting ads in their shots so as to keep the integrity and not date the show? Yup, all out window. I just remember the movie ending and thinking to myself, “I’m just going to pretend the actual show’s finale was the real ending and this didn’t happen.” Eh heh! I mean, I didn’t hate it. It’s been good to talk about the show again. There were some laughable moments. And I did love the clothes! Pat Field to the rescue! So if nothing else, there were the belts and shoes. But otherwise, it just felt like a caricature of itself to me.
first impression… it was too long! there seemed to be a lot of false endings, at least two or three for me. it felt like a bunch of episodes stringed together instead of one long movie, and i felt like the girls’ story lines were really separate. i guess they usually are in the show anyway, but it felt weird to me in the movie. i thought carrie and big’s story was surprising yet predictable at the same time!
i totally agree with cassaundra — jennifer hudson’s character felt like a blip. there she is, now she’s gone, and everything is the same. she supposedly brought carrie “back to life” but overall i felt like her character was unnecessary to the movie, which was disappointing because i was looking forward to seeing her in something other than dreamgirls.
i loved charlotte in the movie, especially her scenes with big. and don’t get me started on her daughter! cutest. kid. ever.
i thought samantha and smith’s exaggerated los angeles cheesiness was pretty funny. the matching robes and champagne by the fire on new years eve? the sushi? hilarious! the break up was weird though. i understand that samantha left him because she was losing her sense of self, and i admire her for looking out for herself like that, but after being together for five years, smith kind of had a nonreaction. he was just like “okay, whatever”. and she left him, just like that. no emotions!
overall, i’d say that i liked it a lot, but it didn’t blow my mind or anything. i consider myself more of a casual fan of the show, so i didn’t go into it with very high expectations. i was more excited for the event itself. just being there in the midst of all that energy was exciting and fun for me!
ps. fun as it was, the movie doesn’t hold a candle to the series finale!
Ugh, I totally agree with Fallon! Maybe I should forward this by saying I have never really liked, eep, Carrie and Big. In fact, I hate Big and I hate how Carrie acts around him. Maybe it stems from me being a Charlotte fan, with a keen interest in Samantha, but I just never quite warmed to Carrie’s co-dependent, self-destructing relationship with Big. I started watching the show when I was really young and never got into it because I found Carrie to be so pathetic. As I got older, I ended up watching it on dvd and really loving the show, if only because I appreciated how the women interacted.
I wasn’t disappointed in general with the movie. I didn’t really notice/care about the product placement, because, to me, that was always a huge part of the show. (She dragged Burger to Prada, showed off her Manolos in every episode, died over Dior…this show was never trying to hide it’s love of brands!) and I thought, contrary to reviewers, that the thing was not too long or mundane.
My issues, broken down by woman:
Samantha: Who the @#!& dressed her?!? She’s fifty, not a time transplant from 1985 Wallstreet. Samantha is hot, she’s cool, and a smart gal. She would not be wearing such filth. Also, I was really saddened by the way they broke her and Smith apart. They messed up with who he was, I think, and I didn’t want Samantha to ‘get fat’. What was up with that? I guess people change, but it annoyed me that the writers changed who I thought Smith was.
Carrie: What an insane disappointment. Half of me thinks, well, she and he deserve each other. She isn’t very nice to other men and she lets Big treat her like crap and has since day one, so she gets what she deserves. The other half of me thinks, but isn’t Carrie supposed to be promising me that I will be smarter when i hit 40? Guess not.
Charlotte: I love her and it’s hard for her to go wrong in my mind. But I think she was so underdeveloped, so under played in this movie it made me sick. She like, had no problems, Harry and her relationship wasn’t explored. They just decided that she did get the happily ever after and that was that. I think her marriage should have had something. And okay, her kid was cute and EVERYWHERE, but I ever saw her interact with her without an audience. And where are Harry’s family? Ugh…I wanted to see so much more, since she is my FAVE.
Miranda: Okay, I was less upset about Miranda. She had a lot of air time and I liked her struggles with Steve. It was the only part of the movie that felt real and made me tear up at the end. I liked how she got involved with carrie and big, but I wish she had screamed something like “he’s a asshat! Get out while you can!” Also, apparently they got her and Samantha’s wardrobe mixed up or something because Miranda looked kinda skanky for a mom. And def. not looking as good as she could. I love a red-head, but I never felt like they dressed her like they should have, to really make her pop.
Oh well, it wasn’t too bad and I didn’t spend any money, as my boyfriend paid for my ticket and popcorn. Not a waste at all!
I actually read the entire plot on jezebel before going to see the movie, so that I could concentrate on the fashion! Despite this, I left the movie totally depressed. So many horrible, heart wrenching things happened to the girls. Everyone in the theater laughed when Charlotte yelled at Big after Carrie smashed his flowers over her head, but I thought that was a really touching part of the movie, that probably made me cry the most.
I found some of the product placement pretty annoying. I am actually less inclined to visit bag borrow or steal after hearing it mentioned five times in the movie.
I thought that the throwing paint on Samantha’s fur coat was pretty pointless. It was such a minor event that it seems horrible that they ruined four fur coats to make it. They should have used faux. At least they donated them to PETA after.
I did love the shoes! So fabulous!
When I first came out of the cinema I was overjoyed with the film but the more I’ve thought about the more things I noticed that annoyed me.
2 things you picked up on that I did too:
>The product placement, not only for the bags swapping! Okay we expect to see designer labels, Blahnik, Vuitton etc… but it really jarred!
>Charlotte’s little accident. OH MY GOD. Waaaay too Beavis & Butthead!
And even though it was over 2 hours long it felt rushed. Like they’d tried to squeeze a whole series into 155minutes. As a result, certain themes/devices were underdeveloped. Like, why are Anthony and Stanford friends now? Who was it that Steve slept with? Oh any why is Miranda’s new apartment so pokey and small and in a dodgy area when, before she met Steve, she had a gorgeous apartment!! And why is Smith now a jerk? He was adorable and caring and sweet before!
Little things, but they wouldn’t have happened in the show.
But regardless of the above, it was funny and entertaining even if it didn’t live up to the show. I think I loved it so much initially because I wanted to love it so much! And it was lovely to see where they all are a few years down the line.
danielle — I have always liked Big, I think because he seemed real: he was charming & sexy & very very flawed. I loved that about him. But in the movie he was like a cardboard cut-out…
Chic & Charming — I actually met the guy who made those fur coats at the Pat Field party. It was so weird, I was polite to him but didn’t really know what to say because all I could think was, ‘What you do is so abhorrent!’
Okay, to balance out all the grizzling, I loooooved…
+ The shoes (Carrie’s Givenchy heels, OH MY)
+ Carrie’s belt (in fact, Patricia Field is making them & will be selling them in her boutique soon!)
+ Watching Carrie clean out her closet (very cool)
+ Um, okay, basically everything about the clothing
+ The fact that Carrie had graduated to writing books — that seemed very cool & natural to me
+ The fact that Carrie’s cellphone had tape holding it together — that also seemed very natural & real
+ Stanford Stanford Stanford !
+ Charlotte’s girl’s names
+ The fact that so many people went to the cinema dressed up
+ Lots more, actually! I think I just wanted to express my feelings! Forgive me!
I thought the styling was amazing! Most of the things I didn’t like have already been discussed here. One thing I liked about the movie was how they touched on the whole idea of letting a wedding get bigger than the two people involved. Contrary to all the bridal shows going crazy and spending way too much because of traditional expectations and becoming a different person isn’t what it should be like. I’ve had a couple of my girlfriends get married and while the ceremony is beautiful it’s not really their personality at all, it’s more like what is expected of them. That is disappointing because they are creative individuals and then that day comes and it could be anyone in that dress.
I have to say that, despite some crummy bits (Charlotte’s “accident” and, yes, product placement again) I really really enjoyed this movie. I might just be really easily pleased and over emotional but I cried lots, lusted on shoes and generally came out feeling really happy and even wanting to watch it again! But I’ve never been much of a critic.
I now really want to get married in a library too…
I thought the movie was really fucking cheesy!! Like Miranda and Steve smiling and running towards each other on the bridge. HAHA! But there were some great parts too. I have to disagree about the friendship thing though, after the non-wedding when they went to Mexico and Carrie was sleeping for days and the girls would come in and try to get her to eat. That part was so real to me. If you’ve ever been in a horrible breakup and your girlfriends were by your side you can probably relate.
Also Miranda’s bush. OUTTA CONTROL!
Gala, you made the point about the relationships being lacking… the most recent Marie Claire had an article about SATC, the movie, the characters and the show, and I can’t tell you how depressing I found it. The whole tone fo the article, and the interviews, was so… well, mercenary isn’t the right word, but there was very little emotional investment. They talked about how they made decisions about the characters based on what would sell, etc. While I never believed the whole thing was smiles and cupcakes for the sake of smiles and cupcakes, that article really did a lot to burst my bubble about how the whole thing was put together.
As for the movie – there were bits I loved (the girls coming together around Carrie after Big stood her up) and bits I loathed (the wedding dress scene, which felt more like a bridal store ad than an actually fantastic moment). I have to admit, the movie left me emotionally cold, if full of admiration for the styling. I could have done with more the little moments with/between the gals (Charlotte and her daughter – wasn’t that scene with “coloring” fabulous?, the New Year’s eve with Carrie and Miranda) – that’s what really shined for me in the series, and what I missed most about the movie.
I guess I’ll be the first to disagree. I really enjoyed the movie, it’s as simple as that. I’m a longtime fan of the show, I own the series and I watch at least an episode a week. And to me, the movie quenched my thirst for more SATC.
I thought it was really funny, really true to life and most of all, it made me feel good. It managed to take me out of a miserable mood, if only for the night. It really was just what I needed.
And maybe I’m horribly uncouth, but I thought Charlotte’s moment in Mexico was hysterical. For something like that to happen to Charlotte of all people?! I had a good time giggling about that.
So anyway, I loved it.
The movie was a fun thing to go see, but as a hardcore fan I was disappointed. There were a few scenes where the girls seemed like they did in series, like the closet scene, but overall I think the movie was rather depressing. I laughed and cried, but it was hard to enjoy it when Carrie was so distraught. Still, that seemed like a real reaction to me, and it was great to dress up with my mom and best friend and chow down on some popcorn!
p.s. Carrie’s giant closet in that amazing apartment was fabulous.
I think the most simple way of describing the movie to me is eating raw sugar. You would think it’s good until you actually try it.
I really liked the series and I think that the dynamic between the characters and the level of writing involved really drew in a lot of people.
As for the movie it’s as if they stripped away the good things that gave the series a unique edge and left us with just pure sugar. I couldn’t really feel the movie as much as I could the series.
In the end it was as if I was watching magazine adverts come alive for two hours with the occasional hint that this was indeed a SATC based film.
I did like it, but I totally agree with you about the jokes and product placement…product placement bothers me so much and I don’t see how other people aren’t bothered by it…it’s gross. I did think it was funny, however, that Carrie finally got a legitimate Mac :) The movie was good, but no milestone, by any means.
Oh, btw, there’s going to be a sequel.
i actually thought the movie was very similar to the series- even the tv show had very cheesy moments-
i wasnt a big fan of the humping dog in several scenes or charlotte’s accident- but i honestly thought the movie was going to completely slaughter my love for SATC (i guess i had really low expectations)
i totally teared up when carrie was hitting big with the bouquet- and honestly when miranda tells carrie about what she told big (i have had several incidents in my life in which people have hid things for a long time from me then decide to tell me way later- or i find out from someone else so this hit close to home)
i actually really liked the fact that miranda initially stayed true to her character and rejected steve outright and stubbornly would not even try to stay with him at first-
but the fact that both miranda and carrie end up with the people who betrayed them does not surprise me-
real life does not follow logic when it comes to matters of love-
honestly, i loved the movie. cheesy- absolutely. but insulting? there are ALWAYS labels mentioned- which ended up being a weekly commercial for manolo blahnik.
the only thing that was disappointing was charlotte’s storyline.
plus i agree with the so WRONGNESS of her saying “i always knew you would marry big” bla bla
i feel like the SATC movie was more realistic about relationships than any other romantic comedy i have ever seen. that should count for something!
There were definitely faults, but I walked out feeling warmed and entertained. I don’t think they could have produced a masterpiece, the aim was basically to please and it seems they did!
Maybe you went in with a critical mind? Did you laugh or cry? I felt it was weird because rather than sitting in your pjs watching box sets with ice cream and messy hair, the big screen shots were super clear and you could tell each line and camera angle was so thought over. It wasn’t natural. But I did enjoy watching it. I’m glad you included the things you liked in the end, I loved the wardrobe scene when they brought out the dress from the opening credits! Also, where was the Samantha sex? She didn’t even get with the guy in the end, just lusted after him, which so isn’t Samantha! I thought that would have closed her story better.
I do seriously applaude how they played out Carrie’s heartbreak, from the way she hit Big with the flowers, to her face in the mirror in Mexico. Toilet humour though- sooo not classy!
Hi Gala! I really wanted to join you on Friday but couldn’t get the tickets in time. I finally went to see SATC yesterday with my friends. Here’s a picture of the 4 us (people could totally tell which movie we were there to see, haha!). I’m the one in the polka dot dress.
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y239…
Like you, I’m a huge SATC fanatic and was looking forward to the movie. And let me tell you, for the 2.5 hours, I was in sheer heaven, twitching in fashion-induced ecstasy, haha! I did notice the product placement but didn’t let it spoil my pleasure for a minute. ;)
My only disappointment was that none of my gay friends could join us – that would’ve been the ultimate SATC experience! – and that my girlfriends didn’t get dolled up as much as I’d wanted them to, seeing that they were coming directly from work. Lucky for me I work from home (I’m a recording artist)!
I’m a long-time fan of your blog and would love to hang out with you one day. If you ever need a fashionista shopping buddy to show you all the secret NYC spots, gimme a shout. :)
xo
Doe
Honestly. I loved the movie. I thought it was great! I cried so much and it also made me happy. I don’t know…sure, there was some product placement, but they always had that in that show (“I lost my Choo!” “Give me your Manolos!”)
I think it ended all very well. The only thing I didn’t like was what they did with Samantha and Smith. The Smith I know wouldn’t have acted the way he did. He would have cared that Samantha spent all day with sushi all over her. In fact, she would have never had to wait for him, because he would have been there on time. I just couldn’t believe that Smith would ever act that way. He adored her!
Gala, I SO agree with you on the potty humor/fat jokes! I was so disappointed by that. It just felt so … wrong, you know? Ah well.
At least the Vivienne Westwood gown was HEAVEN.
It was weird. I went the biggest SATC fan and came home the least. All my friends found the movie funny but I didn’t think it was enough.
Considering they had two hours they didn’t get into many stories like they do in the show. Where was Samantha? I missed her in the film, she was barely there or in LA.
The outfits were to die for! (I’m waiting for the belt to come back in stock on ASOS, they have a cheap remake). I loved the Vivienne Westwood Gown and the Eiffel Tower bag and everything clothes wise.
I would have loved it if they didn’t just go around solving problems with money, that’s how I found some of it especially with the product placement.
I laughed but never liked I did at the series, it just wasn’t the same…
P.S I agree with Trisha, what happened with Smith?
Gala~
Women CAN be friends over many years. My group of girlfriends are wonderful and have been for a decade…but one of them I’ve known since 3rd grade and went to slumber parties with years ago and she is the reason I have the other 2 girlfriends….she is our Carrie and brought us all together. There are 4 of us and we all lean on one another for support in different ways but are always there with hugs, tears, love and friendship. Our significant others know that they are first but the girls are a VERY close 2nd. (See: www.flickr.com/photos/flutterb…)
SATC reminds me of us and our dynamics and that is why I have always followed and connected with the show….although the fashion has ALWAYS been a close second! I see the faults that everyone else did but the good out weighed the bad and in the end it reminded me to give my girls a squeeze and love that I have such a special friendship.
Yup, I really liked it, but mostly because I turned off my critical mind when I went in (which is actually somewhat rare for me). I wanted a good time, I wanted to see the girls again, and I wanted some eye candy. I got all that and more.
And actually the product placement didn’t bother me. I think I’m the only person in the world who usually doesn’t notice that. I mean, if someone was like, “I rented a bag”, I would ask, “Really, how?” and then the company name would be said. So to me, it’s actually how people talk…but I definitely do see how it could bother you.
The only thing I found odd was the label OBSESSION. I mean, the show always had labels (Manolo Blahniks, esp), but I felt like in the movie it was out of control, especially in the scene when Carrie’s trying on all the wedding dresses. I felt like I was watching some crazy sort of label worship thing. It was odd.
I loved the New Year’s scene. That version of Auld Lang Syne is gorgeous, and the whole scene was just so sad.
ANNNND, Jennifer Hudson wears a blue/green dress under a black belted coat at one part…I HAVE THAT DRESS! They sold it at Forever 21 last summer. I was kind of excited. It’ll probably be the only time I see any of my clothes on Sex and the City. :)
I totally agree! I had to see it as a matter of principle, but I had a gut feeling that I wasn’t going to like it. I was right, sadly. It was like “Sex and the City Lite,” fluffy, pretty and empty. Toilet humour, really? What happened to the wit? A big disappointment.
The product placement super-bothered me, too…the friend I went with hasn’t been exposed to the show very much and I keep having to tell him ‘It is NOT that bad in the show, I SWEAR.’
That was my overall reaction, really. I am worried that people who see this movie without having seen the show will never watch the show, based on how different the movie is. And they will miss so much!
I also bawled my eyes out at the bouquet smashing scene, especially Charlotte. The way she screamed at Big and then waddled ridiculously away in her gown – that sums up her character for me. She has so many deep feelings and strength and whatnot, but stupid people don’t see it because they only see her squealing or talking about happily ever after with that dreamy look. I love her soooo much, I wanted to hug her to pieces.
Also agree with Smith changing. WTF happened to him? Were we supposed to deduce that LA and stardom turned him into a dick? He was so great in the show!!! Argh!
I was angry at the stomach-pooch joke, too. The camera zoomed in on her stomach and I was like, ‘Okay, that’s a stomach.’ Then everyone started freaking out about the supposed ‘gut’ and I just didn’t understand. It looked like a perfectly good 50-year-old stomach to me. Hell, it looked like a good 30-year-old stomach. I guess it was out of place on Samantha, who’s so image-conscious, but I’ve never been that way so I was chafed.
I didn’t mind the poop joke, because honestly I like poop jokes. I think it really would take something that ridiculous to bring someone out of a funk like Carrie’s.
I liked that Stanford and Anthony are friends. It was one thing they could have done badly but didn’t – “stick the gay people together because they’re GAY!” They’re friends. Rather grudging friends, really. I think they just realized that if they are friends with the girls they are going to be together for a long time, so they might as well try to get along.
Moment that got the biggest squeal of glee from me: when Carrie came out of her closet wearing the pink dress she wore in the opening credits of the show :) It was ever so nostalgic.
Mostly, I actually loved it. However, there were things that bothered me:
- Miranda suddenly turning into a bitch; then miraculously transforming back to a normal person again towards the end… she was always my favourite in the show and I felt the portrayal the scriptwriters gave her was unfair (e.g: “I can’t go to Mexico! I have a job!” — series Miranda would SO have said “I have a child,” too!!) And the idea that Steve would cheat on her like that, just out of the blue? It didn’t ring true with me.
— Carrie did actually marry Big. Someone higher up this thread said they didn’t like that, and I didn’t either. Carrie was never the kind of woman to suffer fools gladly. I felt it showed a weakness in her character that was never there before – I would have much prefered her to forgive him and then have them go their separate ways. But then I’m one of those annoying people who thinks she should’ve stuck with Aidan all along, so…
— The weight gain thing really, really annoyed and rather insulted me (ps. I am not overweight!). Talk about alienating heaps of the women watching?!
— Product placement, definitely. The show was always about dropping clothes-label names, but there were Apple macs, branded trucks, unrelated company names everywhere.
— The fucking cushion-humping dog!! Am I the only one who was irritated by that? It seemed like a mick-take of Samantha’s character and it was a really tasteless one at that!
— Samantha breaking up with Smith. That relationship was so touchingly drawn towards the series finale and I was sad to see it collapse for, what I thought were, crap reasons!!!
However, I liked that it was ‘for the fans.’ I liked the fact that I could go “oh yeah, I saw the episode where that first came in.” I liked the fact that the whole audience was with me on that… when Carrie threw her iconic pink cellphone into the sea, a huge gasp went up- similarly when she dyed her hair brown! & the series-title-credits outfit in the trying-on-outfits scene was a lovely touch. Just things like that made me happy. I was glad that they hadn’t used the show as a premise to make a blockbuster that would appeal to everyone, even people who hadn’t seen the show – it sounds mean, but I liked the fact that non-series-watchers would have gone “what?!” at some parts!! Plus, heaps of people dressed up beautifully to see the movie – and dressing up to the cinema only usually happens with geeks and scifi movies! – and we weren’t disappointed on the clothes front!
Best bits: – The maxi dresses they wore when eating in the hotel restaurant. Carrie’s was amazing. – Carrie’s long tie-dye dress. WHERE CAN I GET THAT?! – Charlotte’s grey pinafore, when she announces to Carrie that she’s pregnant. – Brady. SO CUTE. SO, SO CUTE. – Charlotte’s delivery of her “I curse the day you were born!” line. – Samantha feeding Carrie porridge. I thought that was such a touching moment. – The soundtrack. I even liked that weird Fergie remix of the title music in a way. – Lily and Rose… I agree, Gala! Lovely, and very Charlotte. – Jennifer Hudson; she’s a sweetie. – Miranda’s blue bridesmaid’s dress. Miranda seemed to always get slightly dull outfits (in the series, but sometimes in the movie too)... this made up for it.
OK, all of it. Rocking the boat here, but — I mostly loved it, like, 85 – 90% loved it. Not counting the product placement. Apart from that, they really did a decent job, I think!
& SJP’s acting was really fantastic.
I don’t really have much to say that hasn’t been said already but I just wanted to comment on what you wrote about people dressing up for the movie.
I work at the Angelika in Houston and ever since SATC opened our customers seem to have gotten a lot more…fabulous.
Women who would usually just wear sweats now come in cocktail dresses and as close as they can get to Christian Louboutin heels (even if they can’t always walk in them…)
It’s really interesting to see the difference between the women going to see other movies and those seeing SATC and it makes me feel a bit shlumpy in my black uniform.
Oh! One last thing that bothered me…
Lily! I’m sorry, but I sort of have a thing against kids in movies anyway. If they’re good, they’re great…but if they’re bad…oh man. And she was bad. What 3 year old is perfectly content to sit still ALL the time, hardly utter a word, and color while having four grown women gossip around her. None I know. That really, really bothered me.
And one more thing about the product placement, the more I think about it, the more I think it was part of the show. It was just spread out so not as many people noticed it.
The Birkin episode
The episode where Carrie’s computer “Sad-Macs” (actually the whole series could be an Apple commercial…but that’s ok with me as I sit here typing on my bed on my little white ibook. :) )
The Jackrabbit
Smith being the ABSOLUT hunk (That’s a huuuuge one)
There are tons more, including all those restaurants and bars and cupcake shops…
I just googled this, and a NY Mag article came up. They were in the movie a lot, so the reporter asked the company if they had paid. No, the magazine hadn’t. The set designers used it since people in NY actually use the paper a lot. It’s to make the movie more realistic.
So yes, again the product placement didn’t bug me (I didn’t even think about it until now), and I can still see how it would get under your skin…but it’s been in the show the whole time! And no matter what, in general I’d rather have characters drink from a Pepsi bottle on a tv show rather than some made up brand. I live in a world with Pepsi, and it makes more sense for characters to live in that world too.
I liked the movie as a whole, but the over the top labels left a bad taste in my mouth… As people mentioned labels were always a part of the series, but the movie just had way too much emphasis on it.
I actually liked the end of the movie better than the end of the series – I was quite disappointed when everyone was in a happy relationship at the end of the series. I much preferred Samantha being single at the end of the movie.
Okay, so there are probably a lot of SATC fans here but I’m going to just dive right in as someone who knows nothing of the show! I had no intention of seeing the film because I’ve never seen any of the series and I prefer to see things from the beginning to the end.
From my perspective, the film wasn’t memorable. The characters didn’t seem like a group of friends and from the comments here, I grasp that, in the series, they seemed closer. The styling was good but I agree that the product placement was a little aggressive. I thought the fur/paint escapade was a little bit silly but not because they essentially ruined some fur coats, but because it seemed to portray the anti-fur campaigners as less fashionable/a little beneath the SATC women. I dunno, I guess I just like to be able to think that we don’t have to wear fur to be fashionable!
The humour was lacking slightly I felt, there were one or two funny quips but it could definitely have been more amusing. Some parts were blindly obvious (like the password for the emails being ‘love’) which I didn’t like but clearly, I have no comparator! Overall, I didn’t think it needed to be as long as it was and I came out thinking ‘where did my afternoon go?’, which is not what you want to be thinking after a film! I would probably say, as someone who hasn’t seen the series, that the film actually puts me off somewhat. I guess because they came off as shallow & not very friendly. I know it was a film for the fans, but I think the biggest shame is that it wasn’t able to persuade people to become fans.
thanks gala for this post!!I have loads of things to say!!I was disappointed by:
-mostly lame humour (the charlotte ‘accident’!)
-the dialogues which were not even half as intelligent and witty as the ones in the series
-above all: carrie took back big!ok, call me cynical and negative (my girlfriends actually did!like Fallon Hester, I seemed to be the only one in my group to have a problem with this), but one of the reasons why I loved SATC is that the bottom line seemed to be how you could be as wonderful as carrie breadshaw even when the most horrible (and, sadly, real) stuff was happening to you! that you don’t need a fairy-tale happy ending to be happy, and that you didn’t have to settle down for anything but what makes you happy. so when big did what he did I was somehow glad that the movie wasn’t going down the obvious happy ending route but showing something bad that could happen in real life (ok perhaps it was a bit excessive…but some men are indeed like that!) and i was curious to see how carrie would have reacted this time. so it totally disappointed me!i mean, he screwed up big time, and she ends up marrying him?!that ruined the ‘SATC moral’ completely for me:(
-the (absent) samantha plot.
I liked:
-the miranda&steve happy ending, maybe because i’ve always been totally biased for taht couple —see, i’m not totally against happy endings:)
-the friendships: it’s true, they didn’t manage to make them look like they were this bunch of sister-like friends they are in the series, but there were a few touching moments which i liked, e.g. the one when samantha feeds carrie in bed & also when carrie runs to miranda’s place just a few secs before new year..totally expected, ok, but still touching for me:)
-the fashion!
-the face charlotte does while screaming ‘no!!!’,right after carrie smashes the buquet in big’s face. the face you’d do if your best friend was hurt, & you feel as if they did it to you.
phew!done.
PS but the evening was not badly spent after all: we dressed up all glam, with heels & minidresses, then went for drinks after the movies & watched the effect we made on cute guys!quite impressive!;)
my favorite part was when carrie confronted mr. big and hit him with the flowers shouting, “ i know youre gonna do this….” and when charlotte hugged her friend looking so fierce at big..i cried twice at that scene. my eyes feasted on their outfits.true that there are questionable parts on the film- but hey its sometimes sad that one always would try to check whats wrong with the movie that one watch that one forgets to have a good time.
I just hope SJP can still make movies with Carrie characters. . .
i have never liked SATC so i never bothered seeing the movie. all the reasons gala listed for disliking the movie are the exact reasons why i dislike the show. i think the show is just god awful & a disgrace. it pretends to be about empowering women but really it’s the some old degrading crap (shoes, weight, men, chocolate). i say stick with the golden girls (the original & way better SATC).
erin lynne — Hahaha, the Golden Girls! I named my dog Blanche for a reason… :D But I don’t think SATC pretends to be about empowering women. I don’t feel like it’s a very “deep” show, it’s entertainment after all, but I think mostly it revolves around the friendships between the women, & about growing & discovering who you are. If you watch it the whole way through, that becomes very clear — but of course if you dislike it from the offset then you’re never going to make it that far!
SATC-
inspired thoughts…
whats a NYC Gala without a cute assistant.
I am a native New Yorker- Manhattanite :)
I have lots of free time.
and i was wondering or hoping more like it, that: You would be in want of an intern.
I dont know how busy you are or arent-
but (very boldly for me) wanted to be the (i doubt im the first but here goes:) the first to submit an application-
Im a fashion school drop out with an INSANE “fashion” work history.
Anyway- im also the biggest believer in the law of attraction, i want to be better human being, im healthy, im kind! im creative and super loyal and very much in wanting of an opportunity to offer my skills and knowledge to something “good” and fair and fun and just getting to be around an amazing person who is doing her thing- in NYC, even if im just jotting down her todo list and reminding her of her appointments and ensuring NO DOUBLE bookings…i mean, an assistant, and one that treasures the opportunity, it could work.. PLUS i love biggie smalls and…you cant beat that.
-rebecca (more than just a blip on the radar)
who knows.
I thought the timeline of the plot didn’t flow smoothly at all. For example, Charlotte’s water broke and Big offered her a ride to the hospital.. in the next shot, Carrie walks into the hospital room to see Charlotte and her baby, and Harry tells her how Big stayed during the whole thing in hopes of seeing Carrie. I was really surprised that none of this was shown in the film, since it was obviously so important. It didn’t bother me so much that they omitted her going into labor and having the baby, but I think it would have been really effective to SEE Big waiting at the hospital with Charlotte. I even would have been okay with a cheesy scene in which Big and Carrie just miss each other at the hospital!
There were other parts that threw me off, like when Miranda says to Brady “What do you say at midnight?!” and hands him off to Steve. Oh, it’s suddenly New Years Eve? Okay…
I don’t buy others’ excuses about how they had to squeeze so much time into a 148 minute movie. Come on, it’s just poor screenwriting! It’s not impossible (or very hard!) to fit 1+ years into a two hour film. The transitions between different time periods were just poorly done, in my opinion.
p.s. I agree with those who listed awkward/undeveloped aspects of the movie, such as Stanford & Anthony suddenly being friends (this intrigued me- I was really curious about how they came to have a good relationship!) and Miranda having to move into a dingy apartment (sure she has to support her kid, but of course she has help from Steve, and it seems that she’s still really busy with her high-paying job that previously afforded her with a fantastic apartment AND housekeeper-turned-nanny!).
Most of the things about the movie has probably already been mentioned but I wanted to add (I didn’t notice it at least in the comments above) one thing about the product placement. The show with the bridal gowns really bothered me. It was like watching a bridal gown catalogue or something. I mean, it’s okay to show a few designers but there were like 10 or something… and it took quite some time. Also with the fashion show… It didn’t really seem that relevant to the story. Fashion shows are great and all but it took a little too long time for my taste, especially since the movie was kinda long. They could have added some juiciness to the storyline instead.
And as some others who commented I really didn’t like that Carrie went back to Big just like that. I mean, he really did humiliate her. And how angry she was and all the time she was depressed… It just seemed kind of stupid that she just went back to him because of a few e-mails, which weren’t even his own creation.
In general it was quite amusing to watch, but way more shallow than the shows.
The humour was soo different than from the show. They had to have Charlotte poop her pants to get laughs instead of having intelligent dialogue.
There seemed to be a loooott of fluff and then when the drama happened it was the same thing we’ve seen before with big.
The drama between Miranda and Steven was okay because he was the last person that I would expect to cheat but still.
In hindsight I wish they hadn’t done the movie because it just left a bittersweet taste in my mouth and I hightly doubt I’ll buy or watch this movie again.
The show will always be amazing to me though.
The ending SUCKED. Oh. My. God. I just could not believe it, no wonder Big is so smug all the time. He doesn’t have to do ANYTHING to win her back. Just type up someone else’s love letters and spend some money on her. UGH.
The fashion rocked.
And Miranda looked gorgeous.
And I did actually like the brown hair on Carrie – very Tamara Mellon. Interesting.
But I won’t be buying the dvd by a long shot.
And I LOVED the series, so this was kinda sad….
It’s so interesting to hear everyone’s perspectives! My mother saw it last night & adored it, so it just goes to show we’re all different!
I loved it, believe it or not! It was visually stunning, and delivered the message I needed, as SatC always does – that you need to keep believing. I also really identified with what Carrie went through when Big stood her up at the wedding. It was a real stage of grief, and I thought it was pretty bold of them to show her as a complete mess in such a graphic style.
I never really liked Big, and was kind of disgusted by his childish escape… but then again, I know that we often fall in love with guys who are just the same. I also agree he should have written his own love letters.
Ya know, I really liked how Carrie ended up with Big. I think they did it well so that I believed it and I thought it was a good idea.
For instance, after the scene where they meet in the street in the wedding garb, it really helps that he started to say something like, ‘I change my mind! Let’s go back there! Let’s get married!’ Of course, it was too late, but he was trying to change his mind. Imagine if he would of come out still wanting not to get married. Then I would have been dead-set against them getting back together in the end.
I know that Big was terrible for most of the show, but they really showed toward the end of the series that he had changed. The old Big wouldn’t have sent her love letters in emails. Not even one. The old big wouldn’t have kept pining. The old big wouldn’t have gone to the gals in the last episode of the series to ask their permission. And the gals wouldn’t have given it to him if they didn’t believe.
I guess I feel strongly about this. Everyone is allowed to make a mistake and be forgiven. Just look at Steve and Miranda. After Big showed that he changed, all the mistakes he made in the past were washed away, and they started anew.
Gosh, I’m a romantic.
Trisha — I actually liked that they ended up together too, but then I have always been a Big gal. (Oh, well, you know what I mean!) I mean, yes, he acted like a dick. & what he did was pretty unforgivable. But I don’t think he is a bad guy & come on, being married 3 times before or whatever is sure to leave you a little jaded. I don’t see why they had to get married at all, to be honest. Marriage isn’t an institution I have a lot of interest in ;D But it would have been weird for them not to have gotten together at the end.
For those of you who don’t like Big & never did, how did you feel about the season finale on TV? Did that make you happy or sad or what?
Hi Gala, (and all!!)
I watched it tonight with my friend Claire.
I thought it was really good.
I loved the outfits, they all looked amazing, including the men. :D
In my opinion, it went on for too long. Although seen as it was SATC, it had to I s’posse. :)
A bunch of girls kept giggling row opposite us, constantly. Even when Carrie was lying depressed on the bed, with the blinds shut, they still laughed for some reason..
My favourite part was when Charlotte had the back door trot due to those yoghurts! Hehe.
And when Samantha had Sushi on herself. :)
And that dog of hers!
I really liked Louise, I thought she was lovely.
Who did your mum go and see it with, Gala? I saw alot of older women with their husbands/partners. I’ve spoken to a few blokes, and they’ve been complaining because they’re having to take their other halves to see it. But I think all men should see this film, regardless of whether they dislike the actresses; or the whole idea of a ‘chick flick.’
It was a nice film nonetheless. A definite must-see if you have not yet!
x Lucy
yep, I was dissapointed. It would be hard to live up to the hype. The line I nearly threw up over was “and you gave me Louise Vuitton” WTF? how? totally cheesy. I also don’t think Big would do that, I would rather have seen him going to go through with it and have Carrie pull the pin when she saw what it was doing to him. That would have empowered her which is a better message. Oh well, let’s just pretend the movie never happened and watch the end of the series instead :-) Thanks for sharing Gala and everyone!
I LOVED LOVED LOVED it.
I felt that it tied up everything perfectly, but I feel that they made it out of money, not wanting a happy ending.
The things I hated about it
-Carrie re-decorating her apartment. To me, it felt like that it was no longer Carrie’s apartment
-Carrie not having her black mac :(
-Big. To me he was a plank of wood with hair. He didn’t even say Abso-fucking-lutley!
-Carries first wedding ‘suit’. What. The. F***
-Smith and Samantha breaking up. I feel like Samantha did not have a proper ending.
-Louise. It felt like she was just chucked in, well I don’t know why, but I hated her.
I loved Charlottes “I curse the day you were born.”
To me this movie is not the Ending. My ending is “An American girl in Paris Part Une and Part Deux”
The moving felt like the optional sequel, and although I loved it, it just felt like an epilogue, nothing much more.
Still I LOVED it.
I know that I’m probably the last person you expected to comment on this, of all threads :)
To me, it was a disjointed collection of wish-fulfillment fantasies. The plot felt like an afterthought, a framework upon which to hang the fashion and the fantasies – not the focus of the movie.
I’m hardly a fan of the series – I think I’ve seen maybe 5 episodes in total – but I’m sure the acting was better in the TV show as well.
I wasn’t bored, I didn’t regret the time spent (especially since I had god reasons for spending it), but it really gets a “should heve tried harder” response, from me.
Hmmmm well reading all these posts put a dampner on my happiness. I walked out of the film totally high on life and Love and Sex and The City. I loved it.
I didnt notice the product placement because thats what SATC is about! Fashion. The only thing that rubbed me the wrong way was the whole Samantha being ‘fat’. I was like ‘Um am I blind? What gut!?’ That was ‘shallow & bitter & one-dimensional’ and offensive to the majority of our population!
Samantha She was definitely the star of the show. She wasnt my favourite before the movie (Miranda was) but she is now! She lookked brilliant, she was real, inspiring, sexy and 50!! and she definitely drew me in. I loved that she left Smith. He is a great guy and all, but Samantha is an ‘I love me more’ kinda girl! She always will be and she was the only one who stayed true to herself.
Miranda I love Miranda (fellow redhead and bitch). She was objective, strong and career and family driven. She looked much better than she did at the end of the series. I loved that she left Steve and made him work to forgive him. She was inspiring. I loved that Steve cheated on her. They hadn’t had sex for 6 months!! There had to be problems.
Charlotte She is a princess and I adored her daughter Lily. She got everything she deserved! Good for her. I loved her confrontation with Big! It was classic. I loved loved that she got pregnant. But I didnt like the toilet humour.
Carrie Carrie…. Hmmm Carrie… She was never my favourite. In ALL her other relationships, she was inspiringly strong. I loved she ended up with Big because I love him. But it definitely made her character seem a little weak. I thought it would have been good if the movie ended and she was single and happy. Her clothes were amazing and her shoes! dont even get me started. But she was sickly skinny. Everyone in the theatre was yelling Eat Something! haha.
Overall, I didnt go into the theatre with any expectations, apart from extreme excitement. I looked forward to that 2 and a half hours for over 6 months. And I loved every second. I will buy the movie and I am SO happy with the ending, regardless. They are my girls! xx
I liked the movie a lot, but I am not too picky. I did notice the product placement and it was obnoxious, and I wish they had developed Jennifer Hudson’s character more. I really was bothered by Samantha’s “weight gain” though, because she still looked so fit-normal to me!
Wow, I wasn’t all that keen on seeing the movie BEFORE, but after reading all these comments, I’m not sure I will at all. I loved the series, I knew it was totally shallow and materialistic but underneath it, there was a great friendship between those four women. I loved that. It sounds as if in the movie they took all that away, though. Oh well, I shall just have to enjoy Twilight in all its cheesy vampire glory instead!
Gala, I WAS rooting for Big throughout the entire series…more or less. To be quite honest I wasn’t too impressed with any of Carrie’s boyfriends, but out of all of them, I thought that Big complemented her the most. If only they could keep up the witty banter and camaraderie they had when they were friends! For some reason, when they get into a relationship Carrie gets screwed up and overanalyzes everything, which I think is a big part of what makes her relationships fail.
I’m so sad that Smith and Samantha broke up, though! He was my favorite. That scene where he shaves his hair for her had me dancing around in fangirlish glee.
I saw it yesterday and LOVED it!
The only things that got to me were: Candice Bergman’s outfit (YUCK!) and the product placement was pathetic (Smart Water, Sky Vodka…the fashion stuff was to be expected and loved!) and completely unneeded because they knew they were going to rake in the cash regardless!
But I’m going against the grain and giving it lots and lots of praise & love. I’m now looking forward to NYC in December :)
Not as thought provoking as the show. I didn’t have any “wow, I totally agree with that!” moments, sadly.
Carrie’s wardrobe was the clincher for me. Def a plus.
When I went, the theater was full of middle aged women (even a few elderly couples.) I feel like the movie was for the older demographic, hence the clapping and cheering over poopy pants silliness. Oh well. There’s always the DVDs.
Oh Gala, it’s so dissapointing to hear! but I can see how easily this would have happened. I’m off to see it this afternoon with a few friends and I’m really bracing myself for it.
I didn’t love the show to begin with, i thought it was just about self indulgent women who are okay about screwing around, but I gave it a go and really came around to liking it!I ended up buying the whole series!
As you mentioned the relationship between the characters was evident in the series, they genuinely got along and it brought so much to their roles!
Remember when they first announced that they would be investing in a movie?
There was so much controversy about pay disputes and who was going to be the focus etc that it turned into this real downer before they even started filming.
uhg so sad!
I’m hoping it wont be so bad :P
Personally, I enjoyed the movies, but there were only a few things that felt “off” to me or irritated me about the film.
The product placement didn’t bother me at all, I’ve always kinda associated SATC with having lots of product placement going on. I loved the scene with Carrie cleaning out her closet, that was great!
Introducing an assistant for Carrie was kind of weird to me too, especially since Carrie and Louise got so close so quickly. But I don’t know, maybe they felt like they needed to have a black person in the movie so they wouldn’t be like Friends where everyone is white.
That was another thing, I thought the pace was too quick. Almost a year passes by within the two hours, it just seemed to extreme to me.
I really thought Carrie and everyone else overreacted when Big didn’t show up at the wedding. I was really mad for a bit when Carrie had just decided to break up over something so trivial like that, when they weren’t even going to make a big deal about the wedding in the first place, and they were so close that they could’ve just gone back in and gotten it over with! It just felt so stupid to me, they were doing so good and Big just got cold feet due to what Miranda had said. But it did feel kind of weird that they finally got an official happy ending.
Charlotte, I was very happy for, everything went pretty well for her and that was fine. Her accident was kind of odd to me, but I still thought it was hilarious, being that it happened to Charlotte, of all people.
Steve cheating on Miranda surprised me a bit, and I was really really hoping that someone would tell her to forgive him and get back together, so I was really happy when Carrie told her. I was kind of annoyed that they wrote in something else to make their relationship on-and-off again, but I’m glad they fixed that.
I loved Samantha in the movie, all of her lines were hilarious. The dog humping scenes were a little much at times, but otherwise it was alright. I was glad they didn’t make Samantha cheat on Smith, but I was a little unhappy with her just deciding that she can’t work through their relationship anymore. Especially when he even did make the effort to think about her, like when he brought home the chocolates, but didn’t give them to her because she ran off! I just felt that she didn’t need to break up with him. She could’ve still made time for herself or sex.
I totally agree with you Gala. I wasn’t really expecting it to be good, but I wasn’t expecting it to be as bad as it was. I knew 30 seconds into it that I was going to hate it.
Totally agree about the product placement – when she was modeling the different wedding dresses…wow. I know they were high-end names and all, but just wow. I don’t think I’ve had so many designer names shoved in my face in so short a time. I was stunned.
Another thing that really bothered me was Charlotte being pregnant at the end and being SO excited about it. Never mind the fact that it totally sends the message that being pregnant/having a child is the only thing worthwhile in a woman’s life….what about the adopted kid? Was she just a stepping stone to a “real” child? Ugh. Why couldn’t she just be satisfied with her adopted daughter? And the fact that they named them Lily and Rose – nauseating.
Once thing I noticed was that in general, the characters were totally two dimensional and just blah. I know it’s hard to let characters really come out in a short time, but they were just so flat.
It was one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen, and it totally cheapened the show for me.
I found the way they made Miranda into this totaly villian was rediculos!
I also was a little disgusted by the fact that it was PORN!!!!!! I’ve watched all of the full version show but this came no where near the level of nudity and gratuitis sex there was in this movie! I walked out of the theater outraged by the rating of this movie!! it should be an X not 18A!
all in all I felt the only story line that actully progressed was Miranda and steve. all the other characters were exactly where we left them, Samantha maybe not so happy with Smith, Charlette with the baby, and Carrie with Big, it was a complete waste of my time if theyre just going to spoon feed me the exact same stuff i just watched 1000 time’s!!! i wasn’t as pissed about it as my sister whom i went with, she sat there the WHOLE time after big left carrie at the alter and pouted. I’m going to have to go see it again just so It’s not ruined by pouty mcpouterson!
but alas i do not think i will change my opinion. it was disapointing!
Trisha — I thought that her boyfriend who wrote “short stories” & had “the Tom Cruise of families” was the hottest by far. Justin Theroux, YUM! flickr.com/photos/38009065 !!! But you know, his personality was pretty lacking ;D
I LOVED that Carrie tried on the tutu dress from the opening credits. Everyone in the cinema sighed when they saw it!
I HATED when Samantha & Smith were having sex, that there was a bed sheet sort of in-between them so that she wasn’t as exposed in the movie. It was so unnatural for Samantha to have such an insecure moment. It felt wrong.
I quite liked when Stanford and Anthony got together. I found it cute and thought it made sense because there was so much (competitive) tension between them. They looked like an odd couple but that made it even sweeter.
The product placement didn’t bother me that much. It probably would if I were to watch it a second time though.
I’m not satisfied with Samantha’s ending. It would have made perfect sense if she’d been with anyone other than Smith. In the series, he was the type of man who’s character isn’t easily influenced by money or career. He was still sweet, but they changed his core values which didn’t make sense. Yeah, money can sometimes change people – I get that. But surely not the Smith I knew from the series! It didn’t sit right with me at all.
All in all, I really enjoyed it. Probably because I went in expecting to hate it!
p.s. i LOVED that they gave big a name!!! and used it!!! LOTS!!!!
and i firmly think that they just made smith and samantha break because of all the woman who, when the show ended, were upset that samantha who started as the independent-sex-pot-sleeep-with-whom-ever-she-pleases ended in a really vanilla relationship. so they appesed those people in the very end by making her single again…. i unno the whole neighbour thing was pretty gay
Gala – Did you know that Justin Theroux played Carrie’s love interest not once, but TWICE! He played “Vaughn” (the short story writer with the awesome family) in the episode “Shortcomings” from season two &, prior to that, played “Jared” (the guy that hits on Carrie during his “fifteen minutes of fame”) in the episode “The Monogamists” from season one! I always thought that was SO weird they would cast the same actor!
Felicity — YES! I think it’s so funny! I wonder how many people noticed… probably not many. Only the hardcore. Raises hand!
Gala – It astounds me that anyone wouldn’t notice! But yes, perhaps it’s one of those things only the diehard fans pick up on. ;D
I can completely understand where you’re coming from, gala, in regards to the things you disliked about the movie.
I thought the blatant advertisement for the bag rental company [whose name i wont mention out of respect for your “home”] and the toilet humor [which i absolutely never find funny in any forum] were over the top and unnecessary.
However, I don’t agree with you in regards to the womanly bond. I felt that the way they portrayed friendship in a more REAL light, captured my heart. I could see myself in all of those situations:
From having my “Charlotte” scream @ my “Mr. Big” after leaving me at the alter; to my “Miranda” pissing me off and not speaking to her for having a lack of common sense. I don’t think all friendships are glitter and shoe shopping; though we’d all wish they were. so I respected their choice to make those decisions with the script.
Bothersome to me, was that I found that while Jennifer Hudson’s character was charming and likable, her acting was anything but. Though it may have earned her an award for Dreamgirls, I wouldn’t get my hopes up again if I were her.