Movie Review: Sex and the City 2

Usually, I try not to read movie reviews for a film that I want to see before I see it, but for Sex and the City 2 there was so much hype that I couldn't avoid it. And truth be told, I was SO excited about this film that part of me wanted to hear what my friends were saying so that I could get even more pumped to watch my favorite foursome romp around exotic locales once more. Unfortunately, the word around town was that the movie was actually a huge let down, and now I wonder if everyone else's disappointment tainted my experience.

Overall, I really didn't enjoy the movie, despite being a HUGE fan of Sex and the City (I own all six seasons on DVD and I own the first film - I also routinely enjoy telling friends that yes, I am "a Charlotte"). Somehow it seemed to me like the writers hurried into this film as if someone was pressuring them to get it done quickly -- the screenplay was bad, the jokes were cheesy, the plot -- well, there was no plot -- and even the tiny threads of a storyline that they did tried to weave together piled cliche upon cliche instead of defying expectations as the television series did. It felt like a two and a half hour fashion show mashed together with the women "ooh"ing and "aah"ing over everything in sight. And seriously, what was with the totally random wedding in the beginning and the random characters thrown in for two seconds (i.e. Smith, Aidan, Stanford, Steve, Harry, Samantha's random lovers -- they all got 2 seconds of screen time and hardly contributed to the storyline. Even Aidan's "temptation" arc felt forced.).

Was there anything I did like about the movie? Sure! Charlotte's daughter Lily was precious -- I very seriously want to adopt a daughter from Asia someday and I hope that when she's five she's as adorable as this little actress. I also thought the 80s flashbacks in the beginning were funny (OMG on Miranda's haircut) and Charlotte's blue jumper/gown with the beaded neckline was to die for (see below). Other than that, I felt that it was a waste of money and time that could have been better spent watching five episode re-runs or the first film. Now, of course, if you are a Sex and the City fan, no poor review is going to deter you from heading to the theater with your girlfriends and seeing it for yourself, so I won't try to dissuade you from going altogether. Rather, just temper your expectations and understand that the charm of the characters is long gone without the city as their playground.

Image from www.sexandthecitymovie.com/closet