Sex and the City: Exactly What I Expected

I was lucky enough to see a sneak preview of Sex and the City last night. I was totally amused by it. It made me laugh, it made me cry (just for a second) and it made me really miss being in college. I spent hours upon hours watching that show with Stephanie while recovering from hangovers or drinking wine and feeling bad for our single selves. And for a minute, it was like no time had passed since then. The writing was excellent, the characters are all the same, and overall I give it an A. It was exactly what I expected. While I don't totally relate to everything they deal with, there are bits and pieces that seem oddly familiar to my life.

Here are my thoughts on the best and worst parts about the movie. Spoiler alert: if you haven't seen it yet, don't read this!

The Good

1. Big and Carrie get married. We all knew it was coming. We all wanted them to be together. Even though it turned out to be at the very end and took place in a courtroom, this leaves room for a sequel that could go in many different directions. The girl in me was happy that they finally tied the knot, and even though it was somewhat predictable, it gives me some closure on the series.

2. The fashion! I was drooling on myself the entire time. Just the Vogue wedding dress scene alone made me want to drop thousands of dollars on an expensive gown and get married ASAP. Patricia Fields did not disappoint.

3. I cried. Even though it was just for a second, I was so overcome with emotion during the scene where Carrie hits Big with her wedding bouquet and screams "I knew you were going to do this to me!" I still get chills thinking about that scene. You can truly feel her pain and heartache, and even more when Charlotte throws her arms around Carrie and protects her from Big in the middle of the street. I really hurt for her. Then I reminded myself it's all made up and Sarah Jessica Parker is happily married to Matthew Broderick.

4. Charlotte gets pregnant. I don't think they paid enough attention to this. She announces she's pregnant and then all of a sudden she's a whale and her water is breaking on the street while she's yelling at Big.

5. The writing. These writers are so clever. TV and screenplay writers these days come a dime a dozen, but there aren't very many good ones. This story was well written and predictable without being too annoying.

The Bad

1. Big and Carrie get married. So he jilts you at the alter in your Vivienne Westwood gown and you go back to him later? So much for female empowerment. Maybe it's just because I'm hard-nosed and stubborn, but I found it so lame that it took little to no cowering from Big to get Carrie back. Yeah, so he emailed you a bunch of famous love letters. Big deal, no pun intended. I secretly wanted her to walk away from him and still be single and fabulous. After all, isn't that was the show was all about?

2. Samantha is different. She's with Smith in LA, and she's somewhat annoying, clingy and complains about her relationship. This is a total 180 from the Samantha Jones I loved during the series. While she still has her moments, particularly with Dante, her naked next door neighbor, I hated to see her man-eating ways missing from the film. Her one-liners are still classic. "I feel the same way about marriage that you do about Botox: painful and unnecessary."

3. Steve cheats on Miranda. I found this storyline hard to believe. Even though Steve and Miranda hadn't had sex in 6 months, the Steve I remember would have never cheated on Miranda. Miranda felt a little cliche this time around, and she is my favorite character - working mother who is too busy to have sex with her husband. Yawn.

4. Jennifer Hudson/Louise from St. Louis. While she is cute and likable, her character felt forced. Why does Carrie need an assistant? How could she possibly pay anyone, considering her income? And of course Louise ends up moving back to St. Louis for her man, Will. WTF? Late 90's SATC would have never written that in.

5. Aidan was missing. I expected to see him at some point. He played such a huge role in the series, and I thought maybe at least Carrie would run into him along the lines. I did notice, however, that Aidan's chair is still in her apartment, even after she completely redecorates.

There is so much more I could say about this film. It may not be a classic to some, but it's forever a cult classic to the millions that watched the show. I will definitely see it again in the theater, and buy the DVD and watch it many times at home. But what I really want to know is: when is the sequel?