"Sex And The City" Review, Part 2 (I Know, I Know)

Part two of my surprisingly long review of the SATC movie. BEWARE: there are some spoilers.

So, your girl J.Hud.....I'm not quite sure what to say about Miss Jennifer in this film. Basically, she has a cute bit part as Carrie's assistant, a woman who came to NYC in her early 20's looking for, you guessed it, love and labels. Now, some folks had a problem with Carrie having a Black assistant. As a woman in her early 20's in NYC with a bullshit job and a lot of dreams, I don't necessarily find fault with that. In fact, I would imagine that the four leads of SATC probably would have clocked in some years as someone's assistant before achieving the professional success they had when we met them. In an interview, SJP stated that Hudson's character served two purposes: to include the Black female audience who had been loyal to the show, but neglected in casting and to depict a woman in her early 20's who was much like Carrie when she had first arrived in NYC. I can actually ride with that.

I approve everything but the boots. Wrong, wrong, dead wrong.

Herein lies the problem: Hudson's character was from St. Louis, and she was appropriately mildly-country (or, in other words, she spoke in her natural semi-country far-South Side of Chicago dialect). When you juxtapose this with the super sophisticated style of the four heroines and add in the fact that she was playing a doting assistant who puts Carrie's life back in order, she's left open for the 'Mammy' comparisons. I personally wouldn't go that far as to put the scarlet 'M' on her chest, but a lot of other folks have. Also, her makeup should have been way better. Also also, she really needs to crank out a stellar CD and/or stick to movie roles where she is playing a 'down home' girl in the company of 'down home' folks. At least she looked cute.....

Yeah, this probably won't happen again.

One more thing: I felt like this character was added after shooting started. Her story was not adequately developed at ALL! She moves to NYC for a career and 'to find love'. What career was it that she was looking for? And what about NYC says 'love'? I guess it didn't matter, because the second her sorry ex-boyfriend wanted to reconcile, SHE MOVED BACK TO ST. LOUIS! WTF? I was all confused about that and left curious as to what exactly it is she planned to do with her life. I'm guessing hair.

This Carrie Bradshaw character that every other chick out here wants to be...I'm not so much a fan. She had her endearing moments, but for the most part I found her to be vapid, materialistic, immature and shallow. Sure, she's a free-spirit and no, I guess there wouldn't be a movie if she weren't a goofy as all get out. But there were times I wanted to jump through the movie screen and smack some sense in to her, along with Miranda's old ice-water-in-her-veins ass. Like, come ON! No, you can't spring a wedding of 200 people on a man who is private and iffy about marriage. And you can't go six months without having sex with your husband and expect everything to be okay. Gee freaking whiz, someone should give ME a column somewhere if women can't figure these things out.

Everyone was so happy when Carrie and Big got married at the end. Why? It was cute and all, but all that I learned was that this man can leave her, fuck her over as many times as he sees fit, be non-committal and deny her the sort of wedding she wanted, and she will take him back. I don't necessarily chalk their nuptials up in the 'win' column. But she was 100 years old, so she probably was smart to marry who she could. At least he was rich....

Of course when we left the theatre, we had the classic "Which character are you?" discussion. I gave the same answer I did when I was asked this in high school, which makes me chuckle. Honestly, I see shades of all four ladies in me. I have Charlotte's desire for a perfect marriage and family (with a hint of her prissy deep down inside) and Miranda's no-nonsense, independent spirit. I definitely have a hint, just a hint, of Samantha's "I want him, I'm gonna do him, and I don't care what you say about it" and a whole heap of Carrie's free-spirtitedness. I manage to have all this, and more, whilst being pretty and without being self-absorbed and selfish*. More evidence that I, minus my occasional over-eagerness, am the perfect woman. These chicks are ash and I am lotion.

So there you go, way more than I ever thought I'd say about Sex And The City.

Good night and good luck,
Sister Toldja

*I think being selfish and not-nurturing in relationships is a privilige that White women have, because they have more than three fellas to choose from. Whereas with me, I'm too busy thinking "If I fuck this up, I may die alone" to worry about some stupid shit.