I can hold my hands up and say that I am not a bandwagon SATC fan. I was there from the start. I saw the pilot advertised on Channel Four and thought I'd give it a go. I had never been a huge fan of American comedies (Frasier is 'quite good' and Friends is 'ok' IMH) but decided to give it a go anyway. I can't remember how C4 chose to trail and brand the programme but however they went about it it appealed to me as a 22 year old woman (sigh, so young...). From the start I was totally captivated and enraptured by it. The sheer glamour! The amazing outfits! The cocktails! Exposing how ridiculous men can be! Great - bring it on! chuck in some glorious location shots of NYC, some hilarious one liners, the odd bit of eye candy along the way and they got me...
By the time SATC aired it's 5th series in the UK (2003) I was suddenly single and thrown into the chaotic, thrilling, chaotic, frustrating and sometimes quite lonely world of singledom and playing the dating game. Whilst in the past the programme had always amused and entertained me I now found that I could really empathise and identify with some of the situations that happened in the show. I was rapidly finding out for myself how inconsistent men could be and experiencing first hand the mine field that is dating (that's a whole other blog). I even found my own Mr Big who made me act irrationally and out of character and whom I lost not only my heart but my head to for a while.
Once the show finished in early 2004 I had to have something to get my fix so looked into getting the complete box set. This was available supposedly as limited edition at Christmas 2004. I missed the boat and was desperate to get hold of one. In the end I tracked one down on Amazon, it was second hand but never been opened. I am not going to disclose what I paid for it. When I think of it I am quite ashamed. I just had to have it. Of course it soon got reissued and you can pick it up for about £40 now. Oh...and at the time I didn't even own a DVD player. Yes, true fan/addict delete as applicable...
I think what I notice more and more when I watch repeats and my beloved DVDs is how spot on the show is about the nature of women's friendships. Our best friend can be our hero one day and villain the next. We are pleased for her yet sometimes jealous and resentful too. There will be inevitable moments of schadenfreude. We will judge them, worry about them, forget to call them, sometimes put men before them, but also we will always be there for them and God help any man that hurts them and lets them down. I think the relationship that got this spot on was the one portrayed by Carrie and Miranda, especially how angry Miranda gets every time Carrie gives Big another chance. I love the scene in the last ever episode when the girls meet Big at a restaurant in order to get him to go to Paris and "go get our girl". The three women are sat down at a table already talking about Carrie and how concerned they are. Enter Big, he is greeted by a genuine and warm smile from Charlotte and then cut to Miranda and Samantha who are shooting him "that look"! the one that me and my girlfriends reserve and employ when we see some low-life out and about in town who has hurt one of our ladies!
And the outfits! I have always been slightly experimental with my look but I think since SATC it has made me give even less of a f*** about wearing what everyone else is and has certainly influenced my wardrobe, even if I have to be more Primark than Prada. Whilst watching the repeats I mentally note items I will try and source online or on the high street. Of course I am more like SJP with a thyroid condition so unfortunately I can not get away with a lot of the outfits she wore in the show. But God damn I wish I could, especially those metallic gold boots! yowzer!
There's an article in this month's Glamour magazine by the journalist Zoe Williams slating the film for its' pure and unadulterated consumerism and also hinting that it was 'women bashing'. Relax, Zoe IT'S A FILM! and are you not au fait with the concept of SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF. This is escapism! it's not supposed to be a cutting edge documentary on feminism or on the economy. Yes if we took some of the messages and themes in the series and the film too seriously I can see how things could be misconstrued and distorted. But also, da da da...revelation... just because you are a strong woman and a feminist this does not make you immune to having relationship problems and dilemmas and sometimes you are going to need to share these with your girlfriends, we can't spend all our time dissecting highbrow topics. Sometimes we do need to talk incessantly about men, sex and relationships to try and make sense of this crazy world... It's cheaper and more accessible than therapy, non?
And as for the spending... if these were four women on the dole (or whatever the New York equivalent is...) and they were all blowing their loot on cocktails and designer shoes then yes we could sit back and tut and judge but hello? bar Charlotte these women work for a living and are high earners. What they choose to spend their hard earned cash on is their look out...is that not empowering enough for you Zoe?
Oh dear I am getting a bit riled now, maybe I need to swig a Cosmopolitan? either that or calm my nerves by purchasing the latest pair of Jimmy Choos...
