As a celebration/mourning exercise commemorating the first day of my last year of high school, I went to see Eat Pray Love at that rip-off wonder known as 'Northpark'. ($10.50 for a ticket? Seriously?)
I am a total SUCKER for romances (unless they were written by Sparks, Nicholas or Steele, Danielle or Meyer, Stephanie). And this was a romance, but without an overabundance of Romance. In fact, Liz Gilbert makes an effort to NOT be romantically involved during her year of world travel. This memoir movie, starring Julia Roberts (who, despite her unpopularity with critics nowadays, still captures the true spirit of her characters while allowing other actors to shine), starts with a woman, newly divorced and affair-ed, who FALLS IN LOVE WITH HER LIFE! She realizes that it is not her marriage that she needs to save, nor her relationship with her boyfriend, but for her own life! Call it selfish, call it unrealistic, call it idealistic, but call it courage. We all need a shot glass of courage every day.
Here are my top five favorite things about this end of the summer flick:
5. The scenery. Especially Bali. Oceans. Mountains. Paradise.
And Italy. The scene in Naples [seems] to capture the city (and pizza!) perfectly. Even the girl who flashed Liz the finger.
And India. Even the scene with the poor children reaching through the windows was completely breathtaking. The architecture is so different from America's straight up and down buildings.
4. The actresses. I adore Julia Roberts. She grows on you a bit. But just watching her versatility, from Pretty Woman to Mona Lisa Smile to Notting Hill to Ocean's to this! She creates the character, but lets everyone else do their stuff too.
Viola Davis as the best friend. A small part, but one that really stood out. Her marriage, unlike Liz's, is perfect. She is married to a fat, balding white guy. She's a gorgeous and curvy black woman. They have a beautiful baby.
The wife of the fortune teller in Bali. Dear LORD. The whole audience laughed every time she appeared, because she always had some smartass remark about Liz finding a man at any cost. Why was it funny? I have no idea.
3. The FOOD. Italy, here I come! Pasta, pizza, gelato. Thre three major food groups!
2. The clothes! Perfect wardrobe for Ms. Roberts, alternating from posh Euro-touristy to saris in India and long, flowing dresses and cute straw hats in Bali.
1. THE ACTORS! Richard Jenkins (Richard the stereotypical Texan) STOLE the movie. That is the ONE thing I am on par with the critics for. His name for Liz was 'Groceries' because she ate so much. He always wore the same funky pair of glasses. And he's a Texan in an Indian ashram. There IS a story behind that.
Billy Crudup is hilarious as Liz's ex. Even in divorce proceedings, he 'made up' a song to convince her to stay with him. At their wedding, he switched out their song for a disco one, then promptly danced along.
James Franco is hot.
Javier Bardem is not hot. But he is alluring. And I envy Julia Roberts and Javier's new wife, Penelope Cruz. And he is probably one of the best actors alive today. Just sayin'.
Go see this movie. It's not overly deep. It's not special-effects stunning. But it will make you aim higher, especially for those of us heading off to college soon. When you consider studying abroad, maybe don't go to a normal place like London or Paris, but somewhere with a non-tourist dominated culture. When you are thinking of marriage, maybe consider whether that person will let you change at all. When you are getting a job, maybe consider if you WANT the job. Not need. WANT. Why waste half your life making money that you will eventually be too old to spend and enjoy anyways? Think about it. Eat Pray Love. That's all you really need, my friends.
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