Movie Review- SATC2

Sex and the City 2 - Sarah Jessica Parker - All The Other Girls - Max Ryan- **
I used to love SATC and watched it from day one. In the beginning it was groundbreaking and inspiring and I saw each of my friends in one of the girls. (I was always Miranda). Towards the end I fell out of love with the show, though still watched. I liked Aidan. I wanted her to choose Aleksandr. But I still watched. The first movie came out and even though I was anti Mr. Big, I still went on opening night, with 10 other girls, laughed and got a little teary eyed.

So SATC 2 was released last Thursday and even though the reviews were horrible, I still wanted to go. I just felt like after watching so religiously for so many years, I had to keep up with these girls, so I lowered my expectations and went with Erin on Friday afternoon.

The movie starts off at the wedding of the two main gay guy friends of Carrie and Charlotte. The wedding is over the top, the outfits are over-over the top. Carrie's hair looks like a bad 80s crimper went crazy. So yeah, basic Sex and the City. It's been 2 years since Carrie and Big got married. Miranda is stressed at work and still trying to be a mom. Charlotte is having a rough time being a mom and having a harder time dealing with how hard it is for her. Samantha is still having sex with anything. Carrie is at that point where she is realizing since she and Big will not have kids, this is her life. At the wedding another couple asks if they are going to have kids. She says no and the couple says "But what are you going to do? It's just going to be YOU?" and then immediately turns around and stops the conversation. Then Big buys her a TV for their anniversary (so they could snuggle in bed and watch old movies) and this throws Carrie into marriage crisis mode.

Samantha ends up being hired as the publicist for a swanky new place in Abu Dhabi and takes the girls on a trip where of course, madness ensues. Samantha oozes sex in a place where that is illegal, Charlotte freaks out because she can't talk to her husband and Carrie runs into Aidan and drama ensues. Ahh the drama. Some of the scenes with Samantha are actually hard to watch. We get it - you are 55 and like having sex, but you don't have to be rude and inconsiderate (In fact, the movie was filmed in Morocco since shooting in Dubai or Abu Dhabi was denied based on moral objections) . Erin actually covered her eyes at times. The guys in it are so one dimensional it is an insult to the actors. Carrie is upset because Big is sweet and romantic? And yet, I have to admit, I did laugh out loud.

There are parts of this movie that seem real, but mostly it just seems like it is a set up for bad jokes and puns, mostly involving Samantha. It is more than anything a chick flick and I would actually say on its own it is kinda cute. But knowing what the show used to be made me a little sad. These four girls were perfectly flawed, strong yet insecure. Their friendship got them through the ups and downs and the stories that played out were relatable to any girl. The closest thing to that is a great moment between Miranda and Charlotte where Charlotte finally breaks down and admits that being a mom is hard and she isn't handling it well. That scene reminded me of the honest conversations that used to happen on the show. In this movie the girls are caricatures of the characters they usually played and that made the whole movie seem a little pathetic. Maybe I've just grown up and the SATC girls haven't. They make fun of Miranda for planning excursions and learning the speak the language. The thing that Carrie fears most in the world is becoming an "old married couple." I actually asked Erin "what's wrong with being an old married couple?"

If you were a SATC fan, lower your expectations and go see it. You will think it is cute and you might even want to hug your friends. Just don't think too much about what it used to be or what it could have been if the writers had stayed true to what the show was great at: showing women struggling with everyday life and getting by with the help of their friends.