Sex and the City 2

Friendship, fashion, fun and frolics, our Sex and the City ladies return with a sequel that boasts everything we loved about the original HBO series. Despite fighting their own personal battles, the four New Yorkers unite to do what they do best in New York and beyond: have fun.

Two years after the wedding of Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Big (Chris Noth), the two are happily married, living life the way they want to live it. However, Carrie seems to miss the glamour of her previous single life and wants to reinstate the “sparkle” into her marriage. Charlotte (Kristin Davis), struggling with the pressure of motherhood, is in turmoil over the prospect of her husband cheating with the Irish nanny. Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) is juggling a busy work life and feels she’s missing out on time with her son, and Samantha (Kim Cattrall) is going through every woman’s worse fear: menopause.

Despite their inner demons, the girls jet off to idyllic Abu Dhabi, where they must comply with the laws of not showing too much skin in public and where public displays of affection between men and women is punishable by imprisonment, a law found most difficult to abide by for Samantha, as ever the man-eater we all know and love.

Although it is not as fresh or as light-hearted as the first movie, what the sequel does is to inspire empathy with the characters. Women of all ages can identify with what these women are going through and this heightens the film’s sense of realism.

Mostly situated in Abu Dhabi, the big bright lights of New York and its scenery are missing in this instalment of the franchise. Also because of the local laws, Director Michael Patrick King has had to reign in on the scenes of a more sexual nature prolific to the series.

There are a number of cameos featured in SATC2; the most noteworthy being that of Liza Minnelli, whose rendition of Beyoncé’s Single Ladies is nothing less than disturbing for both the eyes and the ears. Strutting around in just a shirt, tights and knee-high boots suggests she should leave the provocative dances to those who are both young and fit enough to do so.

With convincing performances from the four lead actresses, the film doesn’t fail to deliver what we all loved about the original series. Although it does seem to be a more media-provoked and revenue-driven endeavour than a natural step to take in the show’s overall journey, the film still gives us the joy and laughter we felt then. Boasting fashions from haute couture to vintage, the film has not lapsed in its ability to get the audience gushing at the dresses, shoes, and accessories of the four fashionistas, a main staple in the Sex and the City franchise.

Overall, it embodies everything we love about Sex and the City, but something seems to be lacking in this sequel. Whether or not it’s down to the fact that it spends most of its time away from New York, which is emblematic to the show’s diet, it just seems to have run its course. They should keep Sex and the City under wraps from now on, for another film may ruin everything that has been so brilliant about it. It’s better to keep it short and sweet than to drag it out and taint everything that has made Sex and the City a fantastic phenomenon of the early 21st century.

By Elise Martin