Female Middle-aged Dreamworld

I like food, I like cooking, and I own a copy of Julia Child's "The Way to Cook". So I decided to see Julie Julia. It was a nice movie about the search for women's search for meaning as they near middle age. What struck me though was the portrayal of the male characters in the movie.

I'm no stranger to the romantic comedy, or Rom-Com as my sister says, and I understand that there's supposed to be a male character in there somewhere for the typical formula to work. Usually the male characters are handsome, successful, sensitive, and have some kind of emotional baggage attached to them that the female lead has to help him work through before their relationship can begin.

"Julie Julia" differed in this regard. Both characters were already in a stable relationship. But these men were crazy. They're supportive and caring and emotionally connected and they have almost no problems expressing their thoughts and feelings. The one point of conflict was when one male character tried to complain that he felt he was losing emotional intimacy with Julie. Perhaps its simply my own understanding of what it means to be considered male in Western society, but I had a hard time believing these representations.

It was like some middle aged female fantasy. Music videos are : adolescent male :: Julie Julia : middle aged female.