Sexe à New York

It has been a while since I watched the original series so when the movie started I found it cute and nice seeing these characters that I liked back together again.

And there interactions at the start are the movie keep it entertaining but when you head into the plot that's where things come off the rails.

I don't understand the plot and I think that is an issue. I won't go into spoilers but it just seems so strange that they decided that this is what they would do.

I also find that this movie doesn't work as these characters have already reached their original ending if you get what I mean.

Charlotte has a baby, Carrie and Big are together, Miranda has her family and Samantha sound someone she could be with. This all happens at the end of the show because that is the end of the story for these characters. This can sometimes seem forced for lack of a better word.

The jokes are also very 90s cheesy sitcom jokes too. But some people like that.

So I would say watch it if you are a fan of the show but be prepared to be disappointed by some decisions, I think you'll enjoy it for the most part.

Since any opinion on this movie has to be tempered by sex and viewing history let me just make it clear up front that I am a man and, while I don't dislike the series, I didn't ever get into it beyond watching (and enjoying) the odd episode that someone else was watching in the same room as I was sitting. Please feel free to dismiss/accept my opinions accordingly in light of this information. My first proper reaction to the Sex & the City movie was to baulk at the running time, which struck me as pretty excessive for what it was. I was right on this as the film is longer than it probably deserves to be but at the same time it never dragged as badly as I expected. The characters are older now and, after the series ended, all partnered up to a certain degree and "happy" in their relationships. Carrie and Big have settled into a new flat and this has made Carrie think about commitment and legal connections – a path that leads to them deciding to get married. While Big gets nervous, Carrie goes planning crazy, Miranda sows the seeds of problems in her own marriage, Charlotte plays happy families and Samantha has it all except one thing.

This plot setup creates the focus of the film – less on the free-wheeling sex and modern relationships of the series and more on the pitfalls of a mature relationship. This offered more substance to carry the film from my point of view but unfortunately this was not to be the case here. For too much of the film the material is superficial and sentimental with "love" not ever being all that real and instead smacking of easy steps in the writing that focused on events rather than the characters. Fans may say that the show was never about great depths and, in my limited experience, I agree – it was witty, light and bubbly. The problem is that, the occasional moment aside, the film just isn't that way – understandably perhaps given the narrative demands of the platform and the running time. Problem is, without the witty swiftness of the series, something else is required and this is why the substance was important – and why the film is damaged by the lack of depth on this occasion.

This doesn't make a bad film but it does severely limit it to being "average" in the main content. What doesn't help at this time of recession (and the film was released during this period) is just how endlessly capitalist the whole thing. The audience needs to care for these characters and that is a little difficult when money is no object for them, retail therapy solves everything and so much dialogue is about expensive items. To top all that, given how easy it is to get product placement into a film about shopping why on earth did we have to have such clumsy and obvious product placement (the iPhone being the worst example). The cast do their usual shtick and all look good and play comfortably with their characters. Some reviews have criticised the four actresses but the material is to blame rather than them. The male cast are mainly just narrative devices and, with the exception of Eigenberg and possibly Noth.

The Sex and the City film is an average film with lots of problems. Generally this opinion is dismissed if it comes from a male non-fan but I cannot imagine that fans of the series are totally happy with this either. It doesn't manage to capture the spirit of the series but nor does it manage to replace it with anything else of note in regards depth or substance. It is glossy and professional enough to distract but if the plan was to continue the series through the occasional film then this is a pretty poor way to start off.

I thought, this is a sure-fire winner - the series was brilliant: funny, romantic, insightful, and we were left wanting more - ergo... great movie. What I got instead was sappy, uninspired writing; I actually rolled my eyes a couple of times, and I love chick flicks! These characters would never utter some of those lines. After developing such strong characters over the course of the series, someone fell asleep behind the wheel and completely short changed the viewers.

Also, the movie is messy, trying to cram way too much into the alloted time, ending up with shallow plots all the way through. The only character plot line I believed was Samantha's. I missed the men in this movie, someone sucked the very life out of them. And finally, Jennifer Hudson's role could be neatly snipped out of the movie without it making a difference. I love her, but the role as written is way too cliché'd for even a fine actor like herself to make any sense out of.

Saving graces: Kim Cattrall's performance and delivery, the fashion and the moments between the girls.

The queens of NYC are back in spectacular fashion. Is it Oscar worthy? No, but it doesn't need to be. The storyline is on brand for the emotional chaos that was the series, I would expect nothing less. I love the display of friendship and kindness that the women show to each other in this film.

Let me preface this review by saying I have never seen any of the show or had any previous knowledge of this franchise. While this is not a film I would normally watch, my wife wanted to watch this and I was skeptical going in. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was easy to jump in, 10 years of storytelling missed, and still easily got invested in each character. With a simple love story plot, my only complaint is that it is dragged out and begins to feel like multiple TV episodes stitched together, rather than a full film. All of the actresses are very well into their character and the bond they have feels genuine and they make it a delightful time. Did it convince me to go back and catch up? No, but it was a fun 2 1/2 hours spent and can easily be enjoyed by fans and newbies.