Customer Reviews

Julie & Julia (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

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There aren't many mainstream movies about cooking. There are even less movies about the lives celebrity chefs and bloggers who are inspired by them - but that basically sums up the plot of Julie & Julia, the latest comedy/drama from director Nora Ephron. The film tells two parallel stories: firstly that of the life of chef Julia Child (Meryl Streep), who became America's first celebrity chef in the 1950s when she wrote her groundbreaking French cookbook 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking'; and that of Julie Powell (Amy Adams), whose quest to cook all 524 recipe's in Child's cookbook, and her blog about her experiences, made her famous within the modern New York foodie crowd. It's a quirky little film, but a critically acclaimed one nonetheless, with Streep's performance as Child receiving notable praise.

The score for Julie & Julia is by French composer Alexandre Desplat, who continues to stake his claim as the busiest composer in Hollywood. Julie & Julia is the third of his five planned scores for 2009 and, like Cheri and Coco Avant Chanel, is wholly lovely. It's also the first score from Desplat I have heard which is unashamedly, unapologetically, stereotypically French - it has all the orchestrations one associates with French music, most notably the prominent use of accordions to carry the melody. I know many people who detest accordions with a passion, but for a story rooted so firmly in French tradition - albeit a culinary one - the associations are wholly appropriate in this instance, and make for enjoyable listening.

Another thing Julie & Julia has in spades is a sense of cheerfulness. Although Desplat has written beautiful romantic music before, on numerous occasions, I don't remember him ever writing anything this upbeat, this sunny. The two main themes - one for Julia Child, one for Julie Powell, one presented after the other in the score's first two cues - are both lovely, with the former being a vivacious string-led waltz (natch), and the latter having a subtle synth pulse, gentle electric guitars and a light drum kit beat to give it a more modern New York spin.

It's really the lightness and sense of fun which sets Julie & Julia apart from other scores in Desplat's recent output. Of course all the familiar Desplatisms are present - the prominent use of percussive woodwinds, the crispness and clarity of the orchestrations, the precision of the timing and tone - but I don't remember his music ever being this jovial before. It would be easy to dismiss cues like "The Original French Chef Theme", "What Should I Do", "Eggs" or "The New York Times" as little more than fluffy Hollywood caper music, and to be fair there are times when one can almost hear a composer like John Debney, Marc Shaiman or David Newman writing something in this style. However, the thing that elevates this score above standard romantic comedy fare is the sense of refinement and class in Desplat's writing. There's just no getting around it - Desplat's beautiful use of the orchestra and the clarity of his performances raise this score beyond the norm.

Often, the themes for the two Julias intertwine, notably in cues such as "Starting Out" and the more pompous "Leaving Paris". Desplat allows the two separate, defined sets of orchestrations to combine, clearly illustrating how one woman is inspiring the other across decades and recipes: electric guitars and accordion, waltzing strings and drum kit. Granted, it's hardly a groundbreaking approach, but the net result is pleasant and effective. Elsewhere, Desplat's knack for simple, attractive, delicate melody writing shines through in cues such as "A String of Pearls", "Burning the Stew", and the wistful "My Husband Left Me" and "Julia Hates Me", which are just lovely.

A couple of songs round out the album's running time, notably the Talking Heads classic "Psycho Killer" (which should probably be re-titled Lobster Killer in this instance), Doris Day crooning the Frank Loesser classic "A Bushel and a Peck" from Guys and Dolls, and Charles Aznavour conveying the epitome of seductive Gallic masculinity through his enjoyably camp "Mes Emmerdes".

In the bigger scheme of things, Julie & Julia is an inconsequential work. It's by no means a highlight of Desplat's career - it's not even his best score of 2009 - but it's yet another example of Desplat's seemingly endless knack for writing enjoyable score after enjoyable score. I appreciate that, in praising yet another Desplat score, I'm beginning to sound like a broken record, predictably positive from beginning to end. To be frank, though, I don't care. The man's music captivates me in a way that no other composer's music has done since James Horner was in his prime from the late 1980s through the mid 1990s, and long may his hot streak continue.

I was taken more with the relationship between Julia and her husband - played so gently by the wonderful Stanley Tucci (I have never seen him in a movie yet where I didn't think he was terrific). His character was supportive and loving -much like I would hope he was to her in real life. Meryl Streep is perfect in everything. Is there a role that she can't play? I saw "Doubt" and "Mama Mia" back to back - she has to be the best actress of our generation. But what really got me was Margaret Whiting singing "Time After Time." My dad was a Big Band fan and he actually played a sax in a band in Boston during the late 30's and early 40's. He was particularly fond of the song styling of Margaret Whiting and Jo Stafford. Listening to that song brought back warm memories of my parents dancing in the kitchen. The lyrics and music are lovely. I am going to dedicate the song to my wonderful husband. I have tried to buy a CD with that particular song on it, to no avail.

This score, which probably should not be billed as a soundtrack, includes almost all the music from the movie, and definitely all the themes. The only complaint is that there's this wonderful uptick in the score when Julie exits the subway in Lower Manhattan very early in the movie, and while the movement it's embedded in is here, that particular moment isn't. This is understandable, as this film adapts a few nice themes to suit different moments in the film. My favorite just wasn't one of them.

There seem to be two categories of negative reviews, aside from people who bought the score thinking they were buying the dvd: those who think it all sounds alike, and Child snobs who are somewhat insulted that Julie's themes are even included. These individuals should feel free to express themselves on the review page for the film itself, but it's really not pertinent to the soundtrack. As for it all sounding similar, I would simply add that it's a score, which is designed to evenly carry the film across its shifts, and that's what it accomplishes.

I love this soundtrack...I could listen to it over and over...especially "Time after Time" sung by Margaret Whiting. I will admit that I do skip track 8...Psycho Killer because I find it irritating but otherwise this is perfection.

If you have seen the movie and if you like cooking you definitely need to have this soundtrack! My husband and I regularly listen to it while cooking and enjoying our delicious meals. It's a shame that the article is not available in Germany but thanks to the www, we got it here at amazon.com.

I dearly love this movie and was SO happy to see that a Soundtrack was released for it! I was not disappointed, it's a wonderful soundtrack!

Julia's theme is great, and so is Time after Time, and A Bushel and a Peck. Really captures the period and the instrumentals for Julia give a sense of her being in France. I didn't much care for the French song Mes Emmerdes -- it seems like there are so many better choices. It seemed to add nothing to the movie. Julie's themes are okay. Though I liked a String of Pearls. The biggest problem with the soundtrack is the repetition. There are only the above few tunes, repeated over and over in the twenty or so tracks. But it is enjoyable and the first soundtrack in some time that this previously rabid soundtrack collector has been driven to purchase.

Matt is right. This is such a happy, pleasant cd to listen to. The music is fun and really sets the mood for the movie. I just love Mes Emmerdes. It's so....french! If you want to just feel good, buy this cd. You'll enjoy it! And, to the other reviewer, I don't think Julie's part was boring at all. I think it was a realistic portrayal of someone trying to cook those recipes. She was a bit whiny, but, to each his own.

This is a pleasant, sweet soundtrack! If you want something happy go lucky and sorta beautiful, check this one out!
I would invite you to visit my blog to get my full review on Julie and Julia, the soundtrack!
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Alexandre Desplat's score for Julie & Julia is another exercise in boredom. Fresh off of his insipid effort with "New Moon", Desplat returns with an even less memorable score for this film. Two thumbs down.