After moving in together in an impossibly beautiful New York apartment, Carrie Bradshaw and Mr. Big make a rather arbitrary decision to get married. The wedding itself proves to be anything but a hasty affair–the guest list quickly blooms from 75 to 200 guests, and Carrie's simple, label-less wedding gown gives way to an enormous creation that makes her look like a gigantic cream puff. An upcoming photo spread in Vogue puts the event–which will take place at the New York Public Library–squarely in the public eye. Meanwhile, Carrie's girlfriends–Samantha, the sexpot; Charlotte, the sweet naïf; and Miranda, the rigid perfectionist–could not be happier. At least, they couldn't be happier for Carrie. Charlotte still has the unrealized hope of getting pregnant. Samantha is finding a loving, committed relationship more grueling than she could have imagined. Miranda unwittingly lets her own unhappiness–created when Steve admits to cheating on her just once–spoil Carrie's. After a heated encounter with Steve, she happens to spot Mr. Big and tells him he's crazy to get married. She's really only thinking of her own marriage. But her angry remark gets Mr. Big to thinking.
Genre(s): Comedy, Drama, Romance
Runtime: 145 minutes
Rating: 5.5/10 (39,816 votes)
Release Date: 12 May 2008
Country: USA
Languages: English
Company: New Line Cinema
Sound: Dolby Digital
MPAA: Rated R for strong sexual content, graphic nudity and language.
Director(s): Michael Patrick King
Producer(s):
Richard Brener – executive producer
Kathryn Ann Busby – executive producer
Eric M. Cyphers – producer
Jonathan Filley – line producer
Michael Patrick King – producer
John P. Melfi – producer
Sarah Jessica Parker – producer
Tiffany Hayzlett Parker – associate producer
Melinda Relyea – associate producer
Darren Star – producer
Writer(s):
Michael Patrick King – (written by)
Candace Bushnell – (book)
Darren Star – (television series creator)
Cast:
Sarah Jessica Parker – Carrie Bradshaw
Kim Cattrall – Samantha Jones
Kristin Davis – Charlotte York
Cynthia Nixon – Miranda Hobbes
Chris Noth – Mr. Big
Candice Bergen – Enid Frick
Jennifer Hudson – Louise
David Eigenberg – Steve Brady
Evan Handler – Harry Goldenblatt
Jason Lewis – Jerry 'Smith' Jerrod
Music: Tuesday Knight, Aaron Zigman
Tagline: Get Carried Away.
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Let me say this first: It is totally, utterly, entirely, completely,absolutely… just like the show. The characters are the way theyalways were. It is sentimental but not over-sentimental. That is, aslong as you care for the characters, I guess. The tearjerkers arefollowed by laughs are followed by tearjerkers are followed bylaughs… Although in the case of the movie the tearjerkers held theupper hand, which worked fine.
Now some comments about the plot. As you may know, the movie more orless starts with Carrie and Mr. Big marrying. At least that was theirplan. But Mr. Big abandons her on the day of the wedding, which pissesCarrie off so much that she won't talk to him for the next several daysor weeks or months or maybe even years? (I don't want to spoil it foryou.) But the majority of the film is about this phase in which Carrieis dead unhappy, Mr. Big tries to contact her every day, and she slowlybut surely forgets the guy. The thing is, that all this time she neverreally had a good reason to be that utterly depressed and to leave Mr.Big, because Biggie didn't dump Carrie, he just pussed out and decidedagainst the wedding. You were hard-pressed to feel for Mr. Big whatCarrie felt for him. At least I never thought: "What a pig. How couldhe?" So the ending is satisfactory to everybody, as happened whateverybody wanted to happen and came what had to come.
The same thing was the case with Miranda's plot. Her husband, Steve,did something that wasn't OK. But I could understand his reasons to doit and he regretted it deeply. Nonetheless Miranda got so sour that sheleft him until the end of the movie, naturally. So there was no bigrevelation or anything in the end that put things into a differentlight. It was just: "Yeah, finally!", and the audience doesn't leavestunned but satisfied.
So in this department the show often did a better job, but it didn'tbother me that much because overall I had a fun time with some laughsand some tears.
For everyone who still is undecided whether they should watch it ornot, I can say that when you love the show you probably won't bedisappointed. But don't expect something that is better than the show.The film works on the big screen but isn't overly movie-like, so it canjust as well be watched at home on your TV, unless of course thereisn't even the question of whether you want to see it or not and youwant to experience the film together with an audience of fellow fans.
It would be very interesting to have seen this film having had nocontact with the series (of which I was greatly enamoured). The titlecredits deal briskly with the aggregated backstories of the characters.But still there are scenes and events that might catch the first-timerunawares, with its openness on sexuality and all manner of associatedcorporeality.
Sex and the City covers more than two subject areas; of course, 'TheCity' being virtually equivalent to 'fashion'. It is extremelydifficult to come to terms with the amount of money being channelled(perhaps that should be Chanel-ed) into clothing (and elsewhere), giventheir ostensible occupations. Here's the thing though. SATC was alwaysa fantasy, Cinderella for telly, which nonetheless effectively blursthe line between dreamland and reality. Such is the nature of The City(always and only ever New York). In this way, it's a sharply observantpost-feminist affair, a big bubble of all the things a girl might want- including melodrama! – but with just enough foothold in the possible.
I liked this breezy film very much, although I think back and foreverything that I consider unarguably good I can think of something abit naff. For example, the photography is often of a standardinterchangeable with the fashion shoots with which it shares DNA, yetthere are occasional lapses into TV-spec. Nonetheless it's a jolly,emotional affair which succeeds by never trying to be anything else.6/10
Let me preface this by saying that I am a straight female who has beena fan of the SATC series since its second season. I have every episodeon DVD and have honestly seen every episode at least 5 times, includingthe commentaries by Michael Patrick King. That said, I could not bemore disappointed in the film. To say that this movie was for fans ofthe series is insulting in my opinion because where the series hadheart, depth and some intelligence, the movie had labels, poop jokesand lame choices by the characters.
First of all, yes, Carrie Bradshaw is the main character, but could theother 3 women have been treating any more cavalierly? The "plot lines",if you can call them that, for the other characters seemed to be throwninto the mix just to give them something to do while Carrie ran aroundtown, changing outfits and hair colors to the delighted shrieks of 15year old fans. I can only imagine that was the audience the film wantedto capture because expecting grown women to follow this crap isinsanity.
Secondly, the ending of the film made me completely lose respect forCarrie. I cannot imagine an emotionally healthy 41 year old womanmaking the same choice she made. I think she needs intensive therapybecause she is obviously a masochist who values the ability to purchasebrand name couture more than her own happiness. And if the ability tobuy couture is what makes her really happy, well, then, the 15 year oldtarget audience should be thrilled.
That said, I probably will see the sequel. I'm hoping they bring inmore writers from the series to add some of the emotional oomph thatthis movie painfully lacked. *sigh* I just can't seem to quit SATC.
Films made from TV shows often suffer from the problem that the samewriters are used for both formats and the writers are used to writingfor 30 minute sitcoms. What they try to do is stretch the same writingstyle to a two hour film and it falls flat.
It has happened so many times that producers must know this pitfall, soyou would think. With shows like 'Sex and the City' the problem issolved by that the program length is already an hour and there are 2part-specials as well. So writing a movie script should be straightforward. What will not happen is that a script will feel like it has anadded hour bolted on or the writers were clueless and threw some oldideas from the show together to keep the producers happy who saw thecash tills registering.
That's what's happened with this film! Taking the themes that everyoneknows from he end of the last episode of the last series: Carrie's backwith Big, marriages, adoption, splitting up; each character conformingto what their characters were last doing. There's no new ideas in thescript to justify this film. The better option would be to make a TVspecial which would have been far funnier.
This film is no more than an advertising dream for handbagmanufacturers. Being bludgeoned by images like an excess of the 1950'ssubliminal messages in movie theatres.
…to their opinions. But I just happen to think that they're crap.
This movie was excellent! Usually, one can expect to be disappointedwith iconic shows turned into movies because they err with over-the-topclichés of what the show became famous for. But in this case, the moviewas brilliantly modest on the expected dialogue, characterization andoutcomes that fans of the show may have loyally braced themselves toendure.
As a die-hard fan of the show who got hooked in my early thirties whenI moved to New York, I was relieved to see that the characters stayedtrue to the form of the women whom I came to enjoy and admire and withwhom I came to find comfort as a single career woman in New York. Theshow earned its groundbreaking place in television history because ofthe extent to which it explored and celebrated the very essence of allkinds of women — from embracing who we are, to fantasizing about whatwe oft times wish we are to, ultimately, the healthy place of lovingwho we are as much as what we aspire or just dream to be.
This movie was an extension of that brilliant notion and, technicallyspeaking, it never failed to deliver equal parts expected to surprise– fantasy to reality. From Samantha's leaving the arguably perfect (toboot much younger man) to continue to live her life at her own terms at50, to Charlotte's complete fulfillment of all her dreams includingmotherhood) come true; to Miranda's abandoning her "common-sense"convictions and taking Steve back and to Carrie's no-frillsreconciliation and "wedding" to big, we are allowed to see love andlife played out as it was meant to be: Without rules and with a healthydose of fairy tale and reality.
Hats off to the actors, director and producer of this great film (andthe series) that celebrates the many dimensions of womanhood.
I live in this beautiful country (U.S. and A.) for almost 5 years now.So I'm trying almost desperately to…catch up when it comes to theculture of this place. In this struggle I watch many different movies,since movies are main way of spreading culture here.
Well, there's not much I can say, besides this – Cynthia Nixon and CrisNoth are too good actors to be in this trash. I can almost see how theystruggle to dumb down to the level of the rest of the cast. There's nopoint of writing about anything else, the plot, the common sense – notexist in this movie. It's utterly artificial, ridiculous and weird.Perhaps I am too old, too drunk or just too different.
So, if you love God, any God, spend some time reading, go for a walk,eat a good dinner, drink some good wine, play guitar – but stay away ofthis. Bye.
I loved the series, but I'm so offended by this movie I can barely see.
Was the series always so vapid, concerned only with labels, couture,photo shoots, design, shoes? It was Vogue turned into a movie, and abad one — and were the characters always strange, bitter, shallow,gossipy, idle, pampered, indulgent, empty headed, materialistic idiots?I'm ashamed that I watched the series with the loyalty that I did,being a New Yorker and feminist. Was it always thus? Do I have aselective memory?
Charlotte eating nothing but pudding in Mexico was offensive andracist, and I cringed every time she opened her mouth. Samantha provedthat predatory older women are worth stereotyping, really — she gainedweight and that's the end of the world? Carrie was only a tad human.Big was dull, Steve was pathetic and Harry was sycophantic. I used tolove these men! Oh, and the screaming! The shrieking! Really, how oldare these women?
I guess it bothers me that so many women hold these posers up as rolemodels. I'll bet they worship the Real Housewives.
I was a fan of the TV show and it ended how it should have. This moviewas made just for the money, I guess they didn't care how it ruinedwhat we think of the 4 leading ladies.
Be warned, it is no where near as good as the TV show. First of all,all the witty, coarse sexual talk is nearly missing. Plus, Samantha hasa boyfriend through the entire film, and that just goes againsteverything she was on TV. And Miranda's guy, Steve, has become a totalwimp and Miranda is just grouchy. Charolette was still her happy selfand a lot like her TV character. While Carrie, was still with Big, andwe finally learn his name.
The main plot is Carrie is jilted at the alter by Big. She remainsdepressed throughout the film. She and her 3 girlfriends find time tostill hang out in New York. Will Carrie ever talk to Big again? Afterwatching this, do you really care?
FINAL VERDICT: The writing just wasn't as good as the TV show. And atover 2 hours, the movie is too long. Please, don't make a sequel.
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