BOTTOM LINE: A very faithful translation of the TV show to the silver screen, whilst still working very well on a level for people who have never watched the show. It scores points for being a decent romantic comedy with themes and unique characters (just like the show), but it loses points for overstaying its welcome at two and a half hours.

THE GOOD: "Sex and the City" is a surprisingly fresh and unique romantic comedy; it works so well because of its strong character and quirky delivery which breaks it away from your stock-standard formulaic films in this genre. The film begins very slickly with a funky soundtrack and smart editing to introduce the four lead girls for the benefit of any one who hasn't seen the TV show, and for the most part this emphasis on slick, sassy, funny and unique qualities is maintained throughout the film. Aside from a dull half hour in the middle, the film is not boring, and manages to engross you in the lives of these four women as they go in search for love in the Big Apple. Although Carrie (Parker) is the lead, all four girls manage to get solid storylines, even Charlotte (Davis) who I didn't particularly like in the TV show for her princess-like qualities but manages to be funny and endearing in this film. Miranda (Nixon) probably has the most dramatic storyline as she deals with her husband's infidelity (even better than the drawcard of Mr Big's and Carrie's wedding). Samantha (Cattrall) is absolutely hilarious in this film in her quest to satisfy her sex-starved cravings, and even Mr Big (Noth) lends a certain gravity to the piece as the only real major male character in the film. Carrie (Parker) is okay, but then I never really liked her character that much, even from the TV show, so I couldn't really sympathise with her plight. Overall, fans of the show will absolutely love this film, and even non-fans might be surprised that it's decent entertainment.

THE BAD: The film is too long. Way too long. Clocking in at two and a half hours, the film overstays its welcome and plays more like a half season of episodes strung together rather than a film. The mid-section is where you feel it start to drag where you know they should be starting to wrap things up but the story meanders a bit longer to give more screen time to the four leads. I'm guessing that they thought this was going to be the only film so they've tried to cram in as much as possible to give the fans as much as they can without going overboard, but I think they went a little overboard. It's a difficult juggling act when you have to give four strong characters solid storylines to justify their existence in the film, but I think it could have been done with much less screen time. Perhaps the Jennifer Hudson scenes could have been trimmed down a bit, or maybe the Carrie storyline should have moved closer to its inevitable and predictable climax sooner. Or maybe the low brow fart jokes or dog-humping scenes could have been omitted. Who knows, but there's about a half hour of fat in this film that should have been taken out, but I'm sure the fans couldn't care less and would've wanted more.