I'm Not a Film Major, But...

Far be it from me to tell a woman how to live her life or how to act. I've seen plenty of men do this and many a guy write a column about it and they all end up looking silly and caveman-ish. So, ladies, you'll receive no judgment from me here today.

Anyway, I've been scratching my head at something I read in The New Yorker today. It's an incredibly witty film review of "Sex and the City" by Anthony Lane, but it also poses some interesting questions.

In all honesty, the show and the movie have never really been my thing, but if you enjoy it, nothing wrong with that either. TV is for entertainment.

Nevertheless, Lane remarks that the film sends some mixed messages as Carrie remarks that her friend fills the void in her marriage by having her husband buy her expensive things, all the while Mr. Big is also wooing Carrie by purchasing expensive closets and other such items for her. Lane then wonders if the film is giving some bad advice:

"At least, you could argue, Miranda has a job, as a lawyer. But the film pays it zero attention, and the other women expect her to drop it and fly to Mexico without demur. (And she does.) Worse still is the sneering cut as the scene shifts from Carrie, carefree and childless in the New York Public Library, to the face of Miranda’s young son, smeared with spaghetti sauce. In short, to anyone facing the quandaries of being a working mother, the movie sends a vicious memo: Don’t be a mother. And don’t work. Is this really where we have ended up—with this superannuated fantasy posing as a slice of modern life? On TV, “Sex and the City” was never as insulting as “Desperate Housewives,” which strikes me as catastrophically retrograde, but, almost sixty years after “All About Eve,” which also featured four major female roles, there is a deep sadness in the sight of Carrie and friends defining themselves not as Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, Celeste Holm, and Thelma Ritter did—by their talents, their hats, and the swordplay of their wits—but purely by their ability to snare and keep a man. Believe me, ladies, we’re not worth it."

Now, I did not see this movie, so I do not know if this is true. However, I'm wondering if Lane is right or over-exaggerating the film's influence.

I, like, many other men, really enjoy watching "Entourage," which has often been dubbed the "Sex and the City" for men. It has four guys who are close friends, spend a lot of money and date a lot. So, yeah, it's pretty similar. Still, while I don't speak for all men, I would say that I realize this as "all in good fun." This is not how I would spend my entire life. All the same, I love this show. It's fun and entertaining.

So, I would assume, that for women, this is also true of "Sex and the City." It's entertaining to see fun-loving people do all the things you'd like to do at least once, but are less likely to get around to. Then again, I could be wrong and maybe this is exactly the lifestyle that many women want. Of course, though, just as not all men are the same, neither are all women. So it isn't really safe to generalize.

Anyway, to all my female friends out there, just out of curiosity and for fun, what do you make of Lane's comments?