‘Sex’ pleases with romance and humor

With films as anticipated as “Sex and the City: The Movie” the question is not whether or not the actual film is decent but whether or not it delivers. As an answer to the prayers of single girls everywhere, writer, producer and director Michael Patrick King has blown the dust off the famed television show to find that, thankfully, there is still some sparkle left to modern fairytale.

But is it enough to carry a movie? Rumors abounded about the film’s plot which was nowhere near as protected as its macho cash-cow counterpart, “Indiana Jones IV.” Likely story lines included dream sequences, deaths and stork deliveries. Fortunately only one of thepossible plot points bogarted its way into an otherwise standard continuation of the HBO series. The feat is both surprising and satisfying. By it’s very nature, the movie has every right to be over-the-top, and it is, at times. Ultimately, though, “Sex” is just as it should be: clever, confident, and not too complicated.

The story picks up with our girls four years older and four years deeper into the relationships they sustained when the show ended in 2004. Samantha now lives in Malibu with her model-turned-actor and boyfriend-turned-client Smith Jerrod (Jason Lewis). The ex-sex enthusiast, Samantha wilts under the harsh heat of monogamy as she pines for the hunk next door. Back in the big city, moody Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) struggles to balance her family and her law firm. Meanwhile, Charlotte (Kristin Davis) seems to have her happy ending, enjoying her Park Avenue apartment, her husband, Harry (Evan Handler), and their adopted daughter, Lilly.

And of course, there’s Carrie. To say that her relationship with Big didn’t pan out as planned would not in any way be a spoiler; their unending issues are what drove the 10-year-old series and it is subsequently back in the driver’s seat for the film.

Will Carrie and Big ever achieve marital bliss? Can Miranda juggle her family and her law firm? After four years, has Samantha actually succumbed to full-fledged monogamy? Sure, you already know the answers, but that’s not going to stop you from watching.

Jennifer Hudson pops in as the token (in more than one sense) to Carrie’s lovelorn love story. For “Dreamgirls” fans, it may be disappointing to see the Oscar winner go from musical extrodinare to Mammy incarnate in less than a year, but her 20-something open-eyed and open-hearted optimism was meant to breathe a bit of fresh air onto the tale of 40-something Carrie who may be older, but apparently is none the wiser. It doesn’t really work, but the effort is appreciated and duly noted.

Other than that, the film functions exactly as the series has. The one-liners are still zingers. The heartbreaks are still painful. The clothes are still jaw-dropping (if not sometimes eyebrow-raising). And amongst all the men and Manolos, the friendship of these four women is still real, honest, and wholly believable— thus the series’ true appeal.

“Sex and City: The Movie” may feel like a cruise down memory lane, but the audience will ultimately rejoice coming along for the familiar yet fun ride.