Julie vs. Julia

Julie vs. Julia (R; 93 mins.)

In this well-paced horror offering, young housewife Julie Powell (Amy Adams) decides to cook every recipe in popular celebrity chef Julia Child's (Meryl Streep) book and write a blog about it. Soon Powell is forced to defend her family and home against the furious Child, who doesn't understand--nor want to understand--what a blog is. Child's husband Paul (Stanley Tucci) attempts to explain the technology to her, but she remains unclear on how a blog is different from a normal website.

Streep's portrayal of the maniacal Child is uncanny, and it has been reported that she insisted on remaining in character on set, and even through post-production when she was no longer involved in anything related to the film. Indeed, at times Streep's character almost suffers for its accuracy, as in one climactic scene where the unhinged Child forces Powell's husband (Chris Messina) to eat a bouillabaisse she has prepared despite his terrified protests that he is not hungry. The scene builds a sinister mood that is undercut when Child warbles "bon appétit!" in her distinctive, high-pitched voice. Regardless, the film is adept at inching the suspense ever upward, and audiences will startle along with Powell as she wonders if every 6'2" curly-haired woman she encounters could be the hulking chef bent on destroying her family.

Cleaver-related violence; adult situations.