YOU KNOW YOU?RE IN Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha?s world when the words, ?love? and ?sex,? are mentioned with equal reverence. In the lovable quartet?s decadent reality, it isn?t impossible to see Penelope Cruz sharing a flirtatious moment with Mr. Big.
Or, you?ll witness the never-say-die Samantha getting into an unflattering fashion showdown with teen queen, Miley Cyrus. And, what could be more surreal than watching Liza Minnelli shaking her derriere as she performs Beyoncé?s ?Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)? with two lookalikes?
Treatment
In ?Sex and the City 2,? fashion, friendship and estrogen-fueled fantasy coalesce two years after Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Big (Chris Noth) finally say ?I do.? But, not everything is rosy at the home front: Carrie is worried that her relationship with Big?who?s now so contented with his life that he?s become a couch potato?has lost its spark. She wants to bring the excitement back!
So, when an Arab sheik asks Samantha (Kim Cattrall) to devise a PR campaign for his business empire, she takes her friends with her on a weeklong, all-expense-paid vacation to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, where niqab-clad women are covered from head to foot-and public displays of amorous attention are outlawed.
It doesn?t take long for Samantha?s raging hormones to get the better of her, especially after meeting the dashing Rikard (Max Ryan).
Carrie?s troubles also mount when she runs into former flame, Aidan (John Corbett), who reminds her of the heady thrills of flirtation and dating. But, is the momentary excitement of her romantic indiscretions worth more than her less-than-electrifying marriage?
More than enough
We all need a dose of fun and fantasy from time to time, and director Michael Patrick King provides viewers with more than enough of them in this sequel. He spices up exhilarating images of palatial architecture, exotic sand dunes and high fashion with cutting-edge adult humor that takes a swipe at a conservative (and, sometimes, stiflingly repressive) culture far away from the feisty foursome?s politically-correct surroundings.
The girls? chemistry and cheeky candor are still the franchise?s biggest assets. Parker?s character gets the brunt of the film?s bloated running time, but it?s Cattrall who keeps the comedic punches coming.
Unfortunately, ?Sex and The City 2? squeezes in too many thematic aspirations in a distended narrative (it clocks in at two hours and 26 minutes) that sorely lacks focus. As a result, the movie?s storytelling sometimes rambles, so its eager cast struggles to keep up with its ambition. The girls? Middle Eastern adventure is entertaining, yes, but it fails to go beyond titillation.
Intelligence
And, it?s hard to relate to the troubles she and her gal pals get entangled in, especially when some of those ?inconveniences? are self-inflicted. True, a foreign land?s social and cultural traditions can be suffocating and stifling to strangers.
But, it?s arrogant to think that any country should adjust to the hedonistic whims and easygoing standards of the liberal world?because not every city in the world is New York.
Besides, aren?t the girls too naïve?and yet too old?to think that even the world outside the Big Apple is their oyster? As they say: When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
