tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post2657586714674745084..comments2024-03-28T19:08:25.849-05:00Comments on Althouse: "What do you think it means if you don't like your friends?"Ann Althousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-80852604705678415632012-09-12T19:50:46.169-05:002012-09-12T19:50:46.169-05:00I hated Meryl Streep as Julia Child and I don'...I hated Meryl Streep as Julia Child and I don't particularly care for Meryl Streep's work as an actor in general. She has a gift for mimicry and accents.<br /><br />I love Julia Child and learned to cook largely by working my way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking. So I rather enjoyed the bits of the blog that I read though I didn't read the book.<br /><br />Rachelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08898687396539725109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-86310732374693391212012-09-12T11:39:06.840-05:002012-09-12T11:39:06.840-05:00I agree with Strelnikov and Saint Croix. The Amy A...I agree with Strelnikov and Saint Croix. The Amy Adams version of Julie Powell is a much less unpleasant person than the actual Powell. It certainly didn't hurt that Amy Adams is cute as a button, she softened the rough edges even more than the script did.<br /><br />The film drags every time it switches to the Julie story, because she's just not anything like as interesting as Julia Child.<br /><br />About the only complimentary thing I can say about Powell is that she's a fearless writer. She makes herself look moderately awful in her first book, but she comes off even worse in the second book. Cruel, stupid, coarse, shallow and self-centered. It is a rare writer who could sell two memoirs about herself without making any attempt to burnish her own image.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14107703953043579119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-30092730894946763952012-09-12T10:16:16.513-05:002012-09-12T10:16:16.513-05:00Good Lord. That whiny, selfish, spoiled, childish ...<i>Good Lord. That whiny, selfish, spoiled, childish character was MORE attractive than the one in the book? How is that possible?</i><br /><br />I'll put it this way: she's so awful in her <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cleaving-Story-Marriage-Meat-Obsession/dp/B005IV17EO/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1347460438&sr=1-3" rel="nofollow">second book</a>, Hollywood won't be able to make a perky movie about it. Saint Croixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17876368500159112781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-40309566301244899352012-09-12T10:00:13.539-05:002012-09-12T10:00:13.539-05:00It's been playing for about two weeks. This i...It's been playing for about two weeks. This is really two movies and would have benefited from being divided that way. That way we would have had a fantastic movie on the life of Julia Child, played to perfection by Streep, and a flop starring Adams as an annoying, self-possessed urban whiner.Strelnikovhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12520900676193170036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-61451656591123964232012-09-12T08:05:45.195-05:002012-09-12T08:05:45.195-05:00I just got done dating a woman whom; for the life ...I just got done dating a woman whom; for the life of me, I can't figure out *how* she maintains female friends. <br /><br />It might be that they tolerate *her* for the constant train wreck amusement she provides them. KJEhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12240969069138432086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-71811441004884528102012-09-12T08:01:16.511-05:002012-09-12T08:01:16.511-05:00While Obama is trying to makes friends with Glamou...While Obama is trying to makes friends with Glamour magazine and David Letterman, <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/barone-obama-could-be-the-odd-man-out-on-tax-reform/article/2507662" rel="nofollow">the adults in the room are attempting to fix this mess with real tax reform.</a> Tax reform that is not only fair, but brings in revenue to the treasury without destroying the private sector. <br />Obama's promise to you: Sky high tax rates for job providers, killing more jobs. From your pal, Obama. Joe Biden, America's Putinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05802605309593881825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-73207300679610042352012-09-12T08:00:06.764-05:002012-09-12T08:00:06.764-05:00Where's the Libya thread? I need to post &quo...Where's the Libya thread? I need to post "I blame Bush".SomeoneHasToSayIthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03648946322945404947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-16625787076700173552012-09-12T07:59:43.524-05:002012-09-12T07:59:43.524-05:00Interesting thread concerning group dynamics.
No...Interesting thread concerning group dynamics. <br /><br />Now pause and consider how this would affect combat operations in an infantry platoon.Fenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16734571593963330215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-78169861594342201102012-09-12T07:50:43.954-05:002012-09-12T07:50:43.954-05:00Pogo, I watched The Big Chill again a couple of ye...Pogo, I watched The Big Chill again a couple of years ago and was shocked at the way the boomers treated Chloe. They refused to see her as someone also grieving for their dead friend (Kevin Costner, whose role was cut our except for the corpse scenes). I don't remember if I noticed it when the movie was first released...but you'd think I would have since I was a Chloe-dating-a-boomer myself at the time.prairie windhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13602315347389233974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-18380717359390928782012-09-12T07:39:53.583-05:002012-09-12T07:39:53.583-05:00the gratuitous line by Julie’s boss who said that ...<i>the gratuitous line by Julie’s boss who said that if he’d been a Republican, he’d have fired her when she called in fake-sick one day.</i><br /><br />I read My Life in France and loved so much of it--Julia's willingness to try new food, new experiences. And then there was the part when her parents come to visit and her father refuses to try the food Julia loves. (It's been awhile since I read it; going on memory.) Julia hates her father because he is not like her. She's a Democrat; he's a Republican. She's adventurous; he likes what he likes. He lives in the suburbs; she loves city life. Julia is so cruel about her father that I stopped reading the book. I admire what she did for cooking and I still enjoy watching her shows...but I can't forget her total lack of compassion for her father and her willingness to "out" him as an idiot in her book.<br />prairie windhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13602315347389233974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-51049794338683530382012-09-12T07:26:59.947-05:002012-09-12T07:26:59.947-05:00Julie is a great example of everything wrong with ...Julie is a great example of everything wrong with modern women. Selfish, self-absorbed, vulgar, unfaithful, unsupportive, whiny, entitled... The list goes on and on.<br /><br />I don't know anything about Child, but I am not suprised she did not approve of Julie.Dan in Phillyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13574977723796957609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-77451000938571423682012-09-12T06:53:29.220-05:002012-09-12T06:53:29.220-05:00The Julie character reminded me of Chloe in The Bi...The Julie character reminded me of Chloe in <i>The Big Chill</i> (Meg Tilly). She was the too-young girlfriend of the boomer friend that died, whose funeral centered the movie.<br /><br />She was supposed to be my age (at the time) and was, compared to the rest of the cast, a moron, an airhead, a self-centered ditz.<br /><br />I found it infuriating. Same with Julie, who cannot compete with the seriousness and life's work of Julia Child.<br /><br />I thought it was an unintentionally derisive comment on our age, a pale imitation or even a parody of Child's, and so appreciated the film for that alone.KCFleminghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00124201866124646626noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-13759880525197531692012-09-12T06:48:47.421-05:002012-09-12T06:48:47.421-05:00The key word here is "friends," which to...The key word here is "friends," which to me implies the "group of friends."<br /><br />If you have ever seen a group of women come together, or at the point of the group dissipation, there is a lot of non-verbal communication going on. Overly dramatic hugs, and from ten feet away you can't make out a single word. Because it isn't words that are being used, but bubbly cooing sounds, similar to the babble one might say to a baby.<br /><br />With expectations that high, how is it possible that actuality could measure up? Perhaps you are hugging the bitch who complained too much about the difficulty of finding the right color blouse to match her fashion. Or the mean backstabbing of someone not present, in which fake sympathy is used to enjoy the demise of some other woman:<br /><br />"W1: Oh, poor Urna, she gained so much weight after the baby. <br /><br />W2:I know, and she used to be so skinny (not so thin, but skinny, see). <br /><br />W3: You know, I heard her husband can't stand the sight of her anymore.<br /><br />All: Aww."<br /><br />Meanwhile, secretly delighting that their husbands no longer glance at her.<br /><br />Compare that with a female friend, in which the real issues, not the fake superficial ones are discussed, and I think you will find a whole different level of friendship.Dantehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07393170116669470751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-71475102683499069022012-09-12T06:35:29.472-05:002012-09-12T06:35:29.472-05:00I rather enjoyed Streep's portrayal. I fully ...I rather enjoyed Streep's portrayal. I fully agree with Pallidan that she played it for laughs most of the time, but she did get some of Child's strength of character on the screen, and she did not have the time to be as subtle as Child. Humor was a great teaching tool of Julia's and an important part of her screen presence. (Remember, we got to watch her for, what, a couple of hundred hours.)<br /><br />I did not like the movie overall, because I found the Julie character shallow and unsympathetic. I never read the book or blog, so I won't transfer the judgement to the actual person being portrayed. But if that was supposed to be a sympathetic portrait.... Bob_Rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14013147654544140102noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-73056072327338401002012-09-12T05:30:16.420-05:002012-09-12T05:30:16.420-05:00Men are much more selective in using the word frie...Men are much more selective in using the word friend, I've realized. When I talk with women and a story comes up, any person who doesn't get a name is "My friend from X." A guy will say: "This guy/girl from work." Even when the point of the story is "this person I'm talking about is a jerk," expect to hear the woman refer to someone as their friend, while a guy will be able to say someone I kind of know.<br /><br />I don't know if that is just something I've noticed or if it is true across the board.<br /><br />But hey, those differences between men and women.Matt Sablanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15885240752820005149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-87278136924927319192012-09-12T04:37:04.722-05:002012-09-12T04:37:04.722-05:00If you did a movie like that centering on Rachael ...If you did a movie like that centering on Rachael Ray you'd have to chatter incessantly for twenty minutes straight. <br /><br />"... and now I'm walking to the refrigerator and now I'm opening it up and I'm lookinginsideand thelightcameon andIreachedinand gotsomebasilandsomemint andthenigothechickenthat wasthawing andthenIturnedon thestove and theniwalkedover tothecabinetandgot somespice andnow I'mchoppinguptheonion andsettingitaside andnowI'mturningonthe stovetomediumhigh. Mygrandpahated basilbutheloved mintsoinhisgarden hegrewabundh of mintbutnevergrewany basilsothisoneyear wetooksomebasil seedsandsprinkled theminhismitpatch and hewasall wtf? Whoputbasilinmymint?"Chip Ahoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12597726289890879627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-67834122666918895352012-09-12T04:30:23.222-05:002012-09-12T04:30:23.222-05:00That video you made was not clear to me at first b...That video you made was not clear to me at first but now I see, you mean the difference between bobbling your head around and acting like an airhead ditz, and being a six foot plus two inches tall solid woman. That comparison showed it seems more like Streep doing Aykroyd doing Child. Chip Ahoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12597726289890879627noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-12704455882163789272012-09-12T03:58:38.759-05:002012-09-12T03:58:38.759-05:00Palladian: Outstanding.
MayBee: Exceptional.
Tha...Palladian: Outstanding.<br /><br />MayBee: Exceptional.<br /><br />Thanks, both of you.rcommalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00301180339680504471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-30632458630586087462012-09-12T03:45:08.299-05:002012-09-12T03:45:08.299-05:00Palladian- perfectly written.
Anybody familiar wi...Palladian- perfectly written.<br /><br />Anybody familiar with Julia Child's work would see what Julie did was an insult, not a tribute.MayBeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11966319657113124861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-84505402876192370922012-09-12T03:30:39.307-05:002012-09-12T03:30:39.307-05:00I recall Palladian hated Meryl Streep's portra...<i>I recall Palladian hated Meryl Streep's portrayal of his idol Julia Child.<br /><br />I believe he even went and made a verbal comment.. not sure about that part.</i><br /><br />I did hate Streep's performance as Julia Child, but mostly because I hate the entire premise of the film and Julie Powell's silly blog stunt and book. I hate it because it demeans and trivializes Julia Child's legacy as a consumate educator and serious student of French classical cuisine. Julia Child was able, without "dumbing it down", to synthesize and translate the complexity of Escoffier and his antecedents in a uniquely American manner. She spent her professional life helping the "average" American cook respect and simultaneously make sense of a legacy that was essentially out of reach until she and her collaborators (especially Simone Beck) came along.<br /><br />Julie Powell took advantage of that legacy and of Child's life work to make a quick buck and to attach herself and her tiresomely pedestrian biographical concerns to something that she didn't really care about and didn't honestly earn. Her "project" cheapened the magnitude of Julia Child's accomplishments and Streep's performance made a caricature of her mannerisms as if that was the entirety of her appeal. Julia Child was used a vehicle for and a footnote to Powell's inconsequential personal narrative.<br /><br />The only redeeming aspect of Powell's fame and the film's success are the viewers who think "Gee, this is stupid... but I'm interested in Julia Child's work, apart from this nonsense!"<br /><br />Judith Jones, Child's friend and her brilliant editor for most of Child's career, commented in Publisher's Weekly:<br /><br /><i>"Julia said, 'I don't think [Powell is] a serious cook.' ... Flinging around four-letter words when cooking isn't attractive, to me or Julia," "[Julia] didn't want to endorse it. What came through on [Powell's] blog was somebody who was doing it almost for the sake of a stunt."</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNfSJIyFMVw" rel="nofollow">Here's the video comparison I made, of Streep's performance versus the real Julia Child</a>. Compare the difference between Streep's reaction to the potato pancake flopping on the stove to Child's reaction. Streep plays it as a mistake; Julia plays it with a smile and turns it into a lesson. The problem with Streep's performance, and with Powell's book, is summarized by this contrast between the fiction of Streep and Powell, and the wonderful reality of Julia Child.Palladianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01105490715666718993noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-61392597208444838422012-09-12T02:49:07.882-05:002012-09-12T02:49:07.882-05:00I can't stand the Julie character in that movi...I can't stand the Julie character in that movie. She keeps whining about how hard the cooking and blogging is, when it is a completely optional exercise. The comparison between her circumstances and her whining vs Julia's circumstances and work ethic and lack of whining is amazing.<br /><br />IRL, Julie ended up having an affair and divorcing that nice husband.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Appetite-Life-Noel-Riley-Fitch/dp/0385493835/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347436002&sr=8-1&keywords=apetite+for+life" rel="nofollow">Here's</a> a great biography of Julia Child, who really did seem to like her friends.MayBeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11966319657113124861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-74949496887481421602012-09-12T01:11:53.962-05:002012-09-12T01:11:53.962-05:00What would Althouse do if she found Needy jerking ...What would Althouse do if she found Needy jerking off to video of the Madison protests he videotaped?<br /><br />My sense is she would not feel so great.Titushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06593014816206957874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-58083226831034222882012-09-12T01:08:26.263-05:002012-09-12T01:08:26.263-05:00I wondered how many relationships that Romanian do...I wondered how many relationships that Romanian doing pull ups ruined.Titushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06593014816206957874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-77016965161636324582012-09-12T01:07:33.481-05:002012-09-12T01:07:33.481-05:00His excuse was I was sleeping.
I was like you can...His excuse was I was sleeping.<br /><br />I was like you can chiz on me while I am sleeping to no avail.Titushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06593014816206957874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-18702137957741774242012-09-12T01:06:14.483-05:002012-09-12T01:06:14.483-05:00Hello? My husband was jerky jerkying while I was ...Hello? My husband was jerky jerkying while I was in the next room.<br /><br />How would you feel?<br /><br />Fuck Julie and Julia.<br /><br />What about me and my feelings?<br /><br />I made him pull up the video he was jerky jerkying to so I could ask what got him hard.<br /><br />It was some fucking guy from Romania doing pull ups.<br /><br />I feel so abused.<br /><br />tits.Titushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06593014816206957874noreply@blogger.com