There are a number of good reasons to go see “Julie & Julia:” Fans who fondly recollect Julia Child from her TV French Chef heyday will enjoy rekindling memories and getting to know more about this likeable dynamo. Meryl Streep’s deft performance reveals Julia as not only lively, but a lot more complex than the affable auntie type they might have imagined.
Foodies of all ages will also leave the theater thoroughly sated. Scenes featuring the characters cooking and lustily enjoying French food and wine are so numerous that many in the audience will want to rush home and whip up the boeuf bourguignon from her Mastering the Art of French Cooking (or at least pop open a fine bottle of Burgundy). Butter is brandished about and savored with such abandon that Land O’ Lakes executives may already be handspringing around offices at the surge in sales. (My beef stew with red wine inspired by Julia’s recipe is here .)
I went to the film mostly because I’d known Julia professionally and wanted to see if she was accurately portrayed. Streep plays her as bright, ebullient, down-to-earth, intellectually curious, dedicated to her calling, and fiercely competitive but not unkind. Which is quite consistent with what I recall.
I didn’t have the good fortune to know Julia well, and we only became acquainted after she was already America’s greatest culinary luminary. The pic at right shows her in front of her Garland stove in her Cambridge, MA home and sometimes cooking show set. I’m told she bought the stove secondhand.
We met and briefly chatted at a number of professional culinary conferences, and she never seemed evenly slightly self-absorbed. She was, in fact, the consummate colleague: gracious, approachable, more interested in learning from her compatriots than in touting her latest tome, and always, always encouraging of other cookbook authors. Instead of grandstanding or making cameo appearances, she often mingled and attended the various workshops, including a primer on cooking on TV and one on cookbook writing, both topics she, of course, should have been teaching herself. (I happened to be instructor in the cookbook writing class—she was completely unassuming but, gulp, her presence was still unnerving!)
The Grande Dame of cookbooks apparently never forgot her own early struggles to be published, and identified with others still enduring the usual indignities of the cookbook business. She was a particularly great supporter of new authors, allowing the International Association of Culinary Professionals’ annual “Best First Cookbook” award to be named the “Julia Child Award” in her honor. (The interesting peeks behind the publishing industry curtain are another reason cookbook junkies will enjoy this flick: In one particularly ironic manuscript rejection scene—which I’m sure my current-day friends at Houghton Mifflin wish had been cut—the publisher flatly informs Julia and Simone Beck that their work would not interest American housewives.)
I actually got to know Julia Child best through a quirk of alphabetical fate. Since C follows B, Baggett and Child often sat next to one another at conference book signings. Before the doors opened and the crowd ascended upon her, she usually took time to look through and compliment my latest work, once exclaiming over my cookie cookbook in that unforgettable, lilting voice, “Why, what a lovely book! You should be so pleased.” Even more revealing was her response to the excited fans queuing up for an autographed copy. She understood that what they wanted most was a moment of her undivided attention, and they got it even when the lines were long and she didn’t feel well. Yes, she was a true Grande Dame, and the movie does her proud.
That’s a shot of Julia’s stove at left. If you are interested in seeing more pics of Julia’s famous kitchen, which is now a part of a Smithsonian exhibit, go here.
The movie was so good. Meryl Streep did a beautiful job as Julia.
Of course, I've watched Julia's tv shows throught the years like so many others have done. She was special–a gift to all of us.
When I was at her exhibit in the Smithsonian several years ago, I did a short video for my great-great-niece who loves my KitchenAid Mixer. I pointed out to her that there was one just like it on Julia's counter.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Julia.
I loved the film too, and was very relieved that it did Julia justice (one just never knows how bio-pics are going to turn out). It was the most charming, enjoyable movie I've seen in a very long time. My relationship to Julia was strictly as an observer of her TV show as a child, and my affection for her derives largely from witnessing the obvious pleasure my late mom got out of Julia's philosophy, her books, and her recipes. I'm currently reading her memoir, "My Life in France," and it's like the literary equivalent of a delicious, light, frothy dessert!
Thanks so much for posting. I have no idea whether the film will be released in India. I imagine that the movie will be sold on DVD someday, so that might be a possibility for you.
It does sound like a wonderful movie, & you are lucky to have met her onmanyoccasions. Quirk of 'alphabetical fate' makes me smile! Love how fate often brings the unexpected to us! Love how you've brought Juila's charactedr to life here, and you review of the movie makes for a wonderful read. I don't think we will ever have the good fortune of having the movie released in India, not a baking country by large, but will se it one day…by hook or by crook!! I have to!
In this delightful movie, Meryl Streep channeled what I perceived was the essence of Julia: Passion. Passion for food, first in the unabashed enjoyment of it, then in midlife, defying a male-dominated field by learning and excelling in the science and art of making culinary magic.
Many would have been satisfied with that heady accomplishment, but with the zeal of a religious convert, Julia went on to share her passion for creating irresistable dishes. Starting with American readers of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, then the public television viewers of The French Chef.
When the spotlight hit that smile, the world fell in love with Julia, one viewer at a time. With her trilling voice, her earthiness, her ebullient humor, but mainly with her infectious passion for food and life. We each felt that she was our Julia.
Even my then three-year-old dauther (now the mom of two toddlers) claimed Julia for her own after hearing her spirited narration of Tubby the Tuba with the Boston Philharmonic. A whole new generation of Julia fans was born. And Julia beamed as proudly when complimented on that acting romp as when garnering yet another culinary honor.
Nancy is right, Julia seemed to thrive when she was rubbing elbows with young chefs, aspiring authors, restaurateurs, her peers. In later years she lost the love of her life (the movie beautifully portrays her marriage, a passionate partnership of course!) and her health was obviously deteriorating. But nothing straightened Julia's sagging shoulders or re-lit the gleam in her eyes like a culinary student with a question or a fan with a cookbook to be signed.
No matter what our place in life, Julia's passion inspired so many of us. Home cooks, authors, television chefs, simply enthusiastic eaters…or young Tubby the Tuba fans.
This movie very tangibly brings those wonderful memories back. So once again we can hear OUR Julia say, with passion: "Bon Appitit!"
Linda H.
I didn't mention it above, but she really got started late at the food and cookbook writing business. And, as the film indicates,she had trouble being taken seriously at first. So she really had to persevere. I wish I'd known her better, but kind of felt I did after seeing the movie. I believe that they did get the facts right.
I already thought she was a remarkable woman, but to get glimpses, like from you here in this post, just solidifies that. How amazing that she was always so gracious. That's a unique quality someone of her stature had. Dorie Greenspan also wrote a few posts about Julia Child recently. So lovely to hear more about this woman. Just have to wait until October for the movie to come out here! I will be the first in line….