Sex and the City 2: A Party without PC

This was originally posted on May 31, 2010.

Sex and the City 2 begins like every day should: with glamor and gays. The first 20 or so minutes of the film are devoted to a gay wedding, making politically incorrect statements about marriage and homosexuals. But the lack of political correctness only worsens when the girls make it to the Middle East, ignoring one cultural tradition after another. If an anthropologist were to view this film, they would have a heart attack. Lucky for most SATC fans, we're not anthropologists.

In the sequel to the hugely successful film debut of the popular TV series, Sex and the City 2 carries the girls from one side of the world to another. Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall) flies Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), and Charlotte (Kristin Davis, who hosts some of the best one-liners of the film) to Abu Dhabi to take advantage of an all-expenses-paid PR trip. They're immediately immersed in glamorous, fashionable conquests in the Middle East, all accompanied with drama. Carrie runs into ex-boyfriend Aidan, Miranda struggles with unemployment, Charlotte fusses over motherhood, and Samantha deals with her sex drive at 52.

One critic after another agrees that Sex and the City 2 is a complete and utter dud. Cinematical's Eric Snider reviewed the film, dripping in sarcasm, primarily upset with (besides the entire thing) the running time, 146 minutes: "There's nothing wrong with Sex and the City 2 that couldn't be fixed by shaving 45 minutes off the running time and replacing Carrie Bradshaw with a character who isn't spoiled and unlikable." For many, this running time is of no importance. The first film, Sex and the City, also ran at a whopping two-and-a-half hours, but I feel that both films succeed in creating and engrossing the audience into a great story. Sure, it doesn't follow your standard screenplay development, but it will engross you into the world of New York and Abu Dhabi.

The Hollywood Reporter takes a less sarcastic approach to their review, citing creator/writer/producer/director Michael Patrick King's script as unbalanced: "Carrie's minor marital problems are given way too much attention, whereas the intriguing
dilemmas of Miranda and Charlotte are downplayed." One of the popular themes of SATC 2 is the idea that marriage isn't always conventional. Not only does the film start out with a gay marriage, but Carrie and Big begin to make their own rules, like Big's proposal of taking a two-day hiatus each week. The struggle between the simple, conventional ideas of marriage are something that make the film so interesting. Taking a scissor to the reel of this storyline would dilute the material to almost nothing. As for Miranda and Charlotte, I do agree that their storylines are downplayed, but this is perhaps due to the random outing to the Middle East, where occupations and children are nowhere to be found. There is one delightful, emotional scene between the two beauties that brings a familiar discussion to mother's ears everywhere.

Roger Ebert scathes the film in his review, spitting out one sarcastic sentence after another. His primary complaint seems to be the sexy fashion of the film: "Carrie and Samantha also display the maximum possible boobage, oblivious to Arab ideas about women's modesty. There's more cleavage in this film than at a pro wrestler's wedding." Indeed, much of the wardrobe in the film promotes "boobage" over modesty, but this isn't the issue. The issue is much to do with the conflicting lines in the script, where Miranda constantly badgers Samantha for showing her cleavage and legs. Yet, when the gang goes on a camel ride in the desert, Carrie seems to have more cleavage than dress.

My biggest complaint for this glamorous, cleavage-obsessed film is the lack of drama. The first film, I believed was successful in its dramatic moments and most rewarding during the times of tears and anger (specifically the Valentine's Day dinner between Carrie and Miranda). Sex and the City 2 has its drama but not to the same degree: we are blinded by the lavish surroundings of the girls in Abu Dhabi (although, little secret, these scenes were film in Morrocco) and flashed with one glittering jewel (or man's package) after another.

There are many statements from the girls that are so overtly politically incorrect one may pause to decide whether to laugh or cringe. But, if anybody has been paying attention to the advertisements, this is about having a ball. This is not the same film as the first Sex and the City or the same content as the HBO television show. This is supposed to be a party, and it is a flamboyant one at that. So enjoy it. This movie is for the gays and gals, not the heterosexual, middle-aged men who review it (note: I am nowhere near that category).