Nora Ephron

At her best, screenwriter Nora Ephron turns out biting, sharply observed scripts that foreground strong, interesting characters. She has also, more unusually for a woman in Hollywood, made a commercially successful transition to directing, helming of comedies that includes two of the key rom-coms of the 1990s.

Samantha Cook, The Rough Guide to Chick Flicks, 2006.

Previously I promised you a post on Nora Ephron the hot shot director of Julie & Julia. Ms Ephron wears many hats; director, producer, screenwriter, novelist, journalist, author and blogger. Her beauties are rom-coms such as When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail and more recently Julie & Julia. Recently Nora has been named as one of the most successful creative women in Hollywood and is touted to be in the running for an Oscar nomination for Julie & Julia. Nora Ephron was born in New York City in 1941, the eldest of four daughters and grew up in Beverly Hills where she graduated from the glittery Beverly Hills High. Films were always in Nora’s blood as both her parents were screenwriters. Her sisters, Delia and Amy also went down the screenwriting route and her sister Hallie is a journalist, book reviewer and author. Her links to the literary world continued with her husbands ie hubby no 1 was writer, Dan Greenburg, hubby no 2 was journalist, Carl Bernstein of the Watergate scandal and current hubby is screenwriter, Nicholas Pileggi.

After graduating at Wellesley College in 1962, Nora did a stint as an intern at the White House for President John F. Kennedy. She was head hunted by the New York Post where she worked as a reporter for five years. She went onto writing a column on women’s issues in Esquire and collaborated with Bernstein on the script for All the President’s Men and although the script was not used this brought Nora’s illustrious talents to the forefront. Her first play was Silkwood which starred Meryl Streep and then she went on to write Heartburn which was based on former husband, Carl Bernstein’s affair with British politician Margaret Joy.  She hit pay dirt in 1989 with When Harry Met Sally in which she earned an associate director credit. This is My Life was her first directorial debut but it was Sleepless in Seattle that really made her in Tinsel Town, the film raked it in at the box office. Since Sleepless in Seattle, she has worked on numerous projects such as Michael starring John Travolta and Andie McDowell, Bewitched starring Nicole Kidman and of course, You've Got Mail which reunited Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. The secret of Nora Ephron's success is that she makes films that speak to women rather than at them which is a rarity in Hollywood.

Nora Ephron now resides in New York City with her husband.

Julie & Julia

I really am on a food tip aren't I what with Magnolia Bakery and stuff. This film was being promoted heavily in the UK before I headed to the States but to be honest I never really paid much attention. All I knew was that it starred Meryl Streep and was about famous cook, Julia Childs. However, I decided to watch it on an impulse last week when I was in Atlanta. Well it was that or I Can Do Bad All By Myself but I was really not in the mood for a Tyler Perry movie; I admire the man and like his work but that night I was not feeling it. As soon as the credits started I knew I had made the right choice, for a start it was produced by Nora Ephron who I adore (more on her in another blog) and who brought us Sleepless in Seattle and You Got Mail. Ephron's films contain a magical air that makes you leave the cinema feeling all gooey inside. Julie & Julia is the story of Julie Powell played by Amy Adams, a failed writer in a dead end job who has given up on her dream. She comes across a copy of a cookbook by the famous Julia Child played by Meryl Streep and decides to set herself the task of following all 524 recipes. With the encouragement of her husband she sets up a blog to document her experiences and pretty soon gains a huge following. The film also takes us back to the 40s in Paris and shows Julia Child's journey in becoming one of the greatest cooks of her time. As both women set about reaching their goals and pushing themselves to breaking point they go through a journey that transforms their lives.

This is a really gorgeous film which not only tells the story of two remarkable women but also harbours a lot of values in it. It demonstrates that cooking is not just something that women have to do in sufferance to put food on the table but is an activity that brings a lot of joy. More importantly it teaches you that you should never ever give up on your dream and that you should always believe in yourself. I totally related to Julie Powell as a frustrated writer in a dead end job; been there done that and bought the tshirt. Amy Adams plays this feisty character with a lot of charm and zest and as for Meryl Streep, every time I see that woman in something she never fails to amaze me with her range and depth. Julie & Julia is a fantastic movie about hope and passion. Nora Ephron has made a great job of entwining the memoirs by Julia Childs, My Life in France together with the one by Julie Powell, Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously together.

You can check out Julie Powell's blog here.