The new hot release of Sex and the City 2 leaves me with two key thoughts. First, I clearly don’t make enough money! And second, sex in the city is clearly no different than sex in the suburbs…or anywhere else in the U.S. for that matter. Every one is going through it and this movie confirms it.

Appreciate it or not, we are all judged everywhere, with everything we do, and every decision we make. Society has created this box and if you and your lifestyle decisions do not fit into this box, then you are instantly judged by others from the outside looking in. The twists and turns that the main characters, Carrie, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda all experienced were very closely related to what many women all across the U.S. experience. As I take you step by step through this movie, I’d like to focus on the judgments that were made within. In the end I would love to know if you are of a similar opinion.

My first thought as the movie opened was, “can we all really set our own rules in marriage, or is it all pre-written for us to obey?”  When Stanford and Anthony had their gay wedding and yet decided to continue to see other people on the side, Charlotte’s expression clearly indicated deep, negative judgment. This expression veered its ugly self again the moment that Carrie announced that she and her hubby, Big, decided to allow two days off for “space” in their marriage. Although both relational decisions were seemingly controversial—aren’t we humans? With the divorce rate being so high, isn’t it about time that we begin to do things a little differently—or at least ask, “How do we make this work.” If one way appears to work better for one relationship, why not give it a shot. Sometimes, cookie cutter rules are not meant for everyone. Other cultures make their own rules, such as the butler in Abu Dhabi who decided to travel between his job there and India every three months in order to see his wife. If it’s clearly working for others on other continents, why can’t we try it out? While trying to convince her girlfriends that her marriage was not failing, Carrie quotes, “We’re trying to figure out what works best for us as a couple and not what society says…we’re trying to make our own rules.” We [as a society] have a tendency to shy away from being open minded because we believe that we’ve already been taught right from wrong…but I digress…as there is so much more to this movie that I need to discuss.

Another moment that really resonated with me was when Carrie and Big shared with a fan of their decision to not have children. It’s almost as if there was an instant deep rooted resentment to this couple for the decision they made. Luckily, Carrie and Big recognized it for what it was and decided to brush this judgment off and move along with their life, just the two of them. Along with their engraved quote on the back of Big’s vintage Rolex confirming, “Me and you, just us two,” both Carrie and Big began planning their future, without children. It happens every single day, regardless of where you live in the world. It’s amazing that making the conscious decision to not have children is still not as widely accepted...at least without someone judging you for it. Moving on…

As we all know, Carrie was an author—a bestseller. Any artist can recognize the pain in others judging your work…especially if it ends in negative judgment. Being an author myself, this really jumped out to me. Dealing with the stresses of being an artist and receiving unflattering reviews can really throw you off and make you question your profession—entirely. You know that we are sensitive by nature. It’s a tough world out there, but like Carrie did, you must keep moving on. Or, what about Miranda, who was a successful lawyer. She was being judged and undermined because of her gender. It’s unbelievable that this still happens today. There are men to which we work with who still don’t want our voices to be heard. I agree with Miranda’s ultimate decision to leave her job. No one wants to spend all of their time at a job that makes them feel like less of a person, simply because of their preconceived notions of them. Who needs that?

What about those times where we judge ourselves. That has to be the hardest, right? We keep thinking that we should be superwoman, the model woman, or at least the faultless woman. We all make mistakes. In this manner, each of the characters walked right into their own self-judgment. Miranda did all she could to be superwoman—balancing her career and being a mother and wife. She started to question herself as a mother in wondering if she was a bad mother or not. Charlotte tried to be the model woman; perfection in motherhood meant everything to her. How dare Charlotte get tired of her children, she thought as she hid away in the pantry to conceal herself from the cries and screams of her two little girls. Carrie tried to be the faultless woman, the one who allowed nothing to get in between her love and loyalty to Big—at least until she bumped into her former flame, Aidan. And let’s not forget the sultry, tantalizing Samantha who also falls into the faultless category. For a second in the movie she actually felt embarrassed for her outwardly sexual nature—but at least she got over it quickly. It’s amazing as women how hard we can be on ourselves at times. It seems as if we have a tendency to judge ourselves harder than anyone else. We all fall short. It’s a necessary evil. We can’t do it all, so we take it one day at a time.

In all, my only issue with this movie was the overall happily ever after theme that consistently followed each character. With each decision made, there was an almost natural—it will work its way out for the best. How often does it happen in “real life” that one’s husband will give a black diamond to his wife after she kisses her ex-boyfriend, or in another scenario, one could go to another country and leave their passport at a market and go back and find it there moments before their flight is leaving? How often do you see a happy scenario occur where a gorgeous, busty and braless nanny is left at home with a drooling husband and in the end she happens to be lesbian so there was nothing to really be concerned over? That didn’t seem too realistic. Maybe this movie should have been three hours long to allow there to be realistic consequences for decisions with a later happy ending like in the first Sex & the City movie.

With all of the above taken into account, this was an excellent movie concept. It was complete with elements such as: keeping the spark in relationships, balancing motherhood and career, overall challenges of motherhood, utter honesty and feedback in friendships, keeping secrets from the ones you love, forgiveness, trust, sacrifice, and so, so, so much more. Most women can truly understand and appreciate what each character was up against—I know that I could.  I was pleased and have already recommended it to others to see.   Sex & the City 2 was an overall jam-packed, excitingly controversial movie. I loved it and can’t wait to add it to my dvd collection.

Tell me, did you like the movie???