Sex and The City 2

The following review is by The Beauty Alchemist, famous for her fashion and make up advice and has a fantastic blog: www.thebeautyalchemist.blogspot.com.

Sex and The City 2 was eagerly awaited by the shows many fans all Spring. Last week it finally hit theaters. I've been a fan of the show from the beginning. For me it was all about it being located in NYC and the fashion. Yes, the friendships resonated too. I've been friends with my oldest/dearest friends since high school or earlier , so those bonds I know and love. We weren't too much like those girls( my fashion obsessed-ness aside) but they sure are /were fun to watch.

The racy parts, the silliness, often flew right by me as I was waiting to see what new piece of jewelry Carrie would wear each week. I was also an Aiden fan. Big often annoyed me. He didn't deserve Carrie then and always seemed a bit patronizing to her. Aiden was free, easy and less a larger than life, too stuck on himself boyfriend like Big. Big grew up in the last movie and was a far more enjoyble presence in this installment. He gets a little of his ways handed back to him and that may be a good thing. Aiden shows up in the new film and tempting as he is, by this point we know where Carrie should be. She, on the other hand, isn't quite as sure.

The sequel mostly is very much about those friendships. The deep ties that as Samantha says, are never broken . " We are soulmates ". The friends are the ones who listen, who get each other tipsy to make unburdening oneself easier , who take care of middle of the night emergencies and who sometimes have to tell each other to stand down.

The movie also though, is about marriage. What is a good marriage, what is right in a marriage and how do you keep the "sparkle" years later when the TV comes into the bedroom instead of the title's Sex. These looks at marriage , Carrie and Big especially, are not done for jokes or camp, but serious and thoughful . They make you laugh, because if you know a man, then you will get it and shake your head knowingly, but they aren't "funny". Carrie and Big have been married 2 years and like all couples have settled into their life , changed some and are also still trying to figure some things out.

The camp comes in the desert scenes. It's mostly funny but there did come a point when Samantha's lewd jokes hit a saturation point for me. Everyone in the audience , though, laughed every time.

Some reviewers have hit at this movie because in our economic times it is portraying such excess, when few have that these days. Yes, that's true. It's excess to the max and frankly I wouldn't have it any other way. It's escapism. I can't book a 5 star resort for a week or have my dearly wanted Lady Dior bag, but that doesn't make me enjoy the film any less. 10 years ago, did I have more disposable income, yes. Did I have the money for a Dior bag, still no. So some things change, some stay the same. I love seeing the fashion, the decadence on screen. Isn't that what movies are for ? Besides, Carrie ends up finding the cutest shoes in the souk in for a whole $ 20.00 . " $ 20.00 ? For shoes ?" from the woman who made Manolo Blahnik a household name.

The other reviewer complaint is the depiction of muslim women in one scene where a group of ayaba clad ladies lead Carrie & Co. into a back room and show them their full on designer wares under their robes. Many feel this is just a sad excuse for a scene and demeaning to the Muslims . Now I cannot quote anything and am far from an expert here but I do recall reading an article on Dubai when it first became the big deal of ultra riche locations and interviewed were many local women who while they could not wear designers clothes on the outside, carried the most expensive handbags , wore the chic-est shoes and were all for shopping the western designer stores. So without an actual women living there telling us her experiences, I am not sure any of us can make solid pronouncements here. Now, the scenes were Samantha flaunts herself in the souk, well I agree, that was too much. No matter your feelings towards a countries ways, you have to respect them when traveling there just as you would expect American ways to be honored here. This is one place the movie went awry.

You don't have to have seen the series or the previous movie to enjoy it, but it might help to have some background. They do a nice little montage of what's happened to the ladies years previous to get fans new and old up to speed.

Sex and The City 2 is a overall a romp and the ultimate chick flick. Do not even think about taking your guy to see this. Fun and a perfect weekend wind down with a best friend or 2 which is exactly how what I did. I left the theater smiling and fighting the urge to go shopping.