Julie & Julia, Stanley Tuccimeryl streep, julia childJulie & Julia, cookingJulie & Julia, Amy Adams

As much as 500 Days of Summer was *not* a love story, Julie & Julia's cup runneth over with love.

(Photos from Julie & Julia)

The movie Julie & Julia is the compilation of the stories of two women. Nora Ephron adapted the books Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously by Julie Powell and My Life in France by Julia Child to craft the Julie & Julia screenplay, which was a rich mix of many of life's familiar threads: love, angst, dreams, friendship, marriage, hard work, dedication, anxiety, fearlessness, hope, creativity, and more — all, of course, deliciously immersed in good food and cooking and sharing at the table.

At the start of the movie, both Julia and Julie are seeking. Seeking passion, seeking something to set their souls on fire, and throughout the movie, they both find projects that do just that. Julia Child, living in Paris and passionate about French food, enrolls in French cooking classes (in a class made up of only French-speaking men) and ultimately sets out to teach other American women how to take on French cooking by writing a cookbook. Julie Powell, decades later, is feeling lost and uninspired and decides to combine her passion for cooking and writing, by starting a blog about making her way through Julia Child's cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

While these stories are unfolding, we also get to see the two women's marriages. Their marriages are supportive, encouraging, loyal, and delicious in so many ways — and not without hard times. It's nice to see the positive relationships alongside the stories of two women's journey to self-discovery. And It's wonderful how one woman's realized passion (Julia Child's cookbook) becomes the springboard for another woman's inspired quest.

The performances are great with Meryl Streep as the larger than life Julia Child and Stanley Tucci playing Julia's lovable husband Paul (marry me, Stanley!). I always love Amy Adams and she brings a richness and an earnestness to Julie's character, which could have easily been bland.

I went to see this movie after a dinner out with my girlfriends. It made me smile and laugh, it made me feel inspired, and it *almost* made me want to cook.