Let us give thanks for Nancy Meyers (Part I)
a quick Thanksgiving week-ranking of my favorite cinematic kitchens from the oeuvre of Nancy Meyers
Here we are on the Monday before Thanksgiving, and though I have a fridge full of food for Thursday, I still am in shock that it’s already time to cook for friends in my small apartment kitchen again. While everyone brings something to the table, my fiancé and I provide the big items: turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie (plus P makes sambar rice, which is a delicious, spicy South Indian lentil dish that complements all the other traditional Thanksgiving dishes really nicely). If I had even a smidge more space, I’d probably cook more on the day. I love hosting people, lighting candles, letting the oven warm the apartment and fill it with delicious smells.
Of course the queen of onscreen kitchens is Nancy Meyers. And yes, it’s beyond cliché to mention and honestly reductive to only focus on the aesthetic design choices of her films. Her design choices are simply an offshoot of her overall writing and directorial style, which harkens back to many of the women’s pictures of the ‘40s and ‘50s. Like many of her male peers, Nancy has a deep love for and knowledge of classic Hollywood films—specifically studio comedies—and her films not only sparkle with the same kind of warm, screwball energy, they’re packed with references to many of the films she loves:
And while Nancy’s aesthetics often feel aspirational rather than realistic for a lot of us, they also create an immersive environment for not just the actors but the audience in the same way as a Wes Anderson or—dare I say—Merchant Ivory movie. There’s a lot of layers to the design choices that instantly put you into the world and mood she’s trying to create. And while her aesthetic choices have inspired the “Coastal Grandmother” TikTok trend, I think of them as warm and elegant without being ostentatious, which is to say, you feel the undercurrent of money without also feeling bad about it.
And yes, her cinematic kitchens are standouts in this regard. But despite some recurring themes (she LOVES an island!), each one is distinct, telling us a lot about all the idiosyncrasies of her main characters (which is what good production design does!). As I sit here diving into planning my own wedding, I find myself turning to Nancy’s films for inspiration into creating environments that reflect the people who live and love in them. What do our surroundings say about us? The kitchen is the beating heart of the home, and for Nancy’s characters, it’s where we really see who they are at their essence.
Here’s Part I of my kitchen rankings:
7. The Holiday (2006)
Maybe controversial to put this one at the bottom of my list, but the two kitchens in Meyers’ holiday home-swap comedy feel a little derivative of kitchens from some of her other films (i.e. Something’s Gotta Give and Baby Boom). Still, I love the whimsy of the English cottage kitchen with its light blue cabinets, rustic décor, and cozy fireplace. And I like the big lanterns and wide, long table of the Los Angeles mansion. Both feel like they match their counterparts (Kate Winslet’s English wedding columnist and Cameron Diaz’s Hollywood movie trailer producer) beautifully, which really works when they switch homes and are fish out of water.
6. Baby Boom (1987)
Technically, this movie was directed by her husband at the time, Charles Shyer, but Nancy’s fingerprints are all over it. The movie feels both a little dated (the soundtrack oh my GOD is the worst 80s synth schmaltz I’ve ever heard) and also still strangely relevant (the gender politics surrounding childcare), but the Vermont design choices are still excellent. As I said, I think Kate Winslet’s cottage in the Holiday owes a lot to Diane Keaton’s farmhouse-style kitchen, which ALSO features light blue cabinetry, rustic furniture, and a cozy fireplace. I love the round mirror and 1800s-style oil lamp on the wall and how she’s hung the pots and pans, but there’s also slightly more modern details like that white/cream-colored subway tile on the counters. This place screams “I want to be seduced by a hot Vermont local played by Sam Shepard.”
5. The Intern (2015)
Speaking of subway tile, Anne Hathaway’s busy CEO/Brooklyn mom in The Intern has a kitchen full of it. This kitchen absolutely says “wealthy but hip Brooklyn mom” with its trendy open-shelving, stainless steel appliances, and industrial looking lamps. It’s like an upgrade of Diane Keaton’s working mom kitchen in Baby Boom. However, unlike Baby Boom, the gender politics of this movie don’t quite work for me since I find it odd that Robert DeNiro’s character (the titular intern) winds up teaching Anne Hathaway’s character a very basic feminist lesson in managing work/home life. He does it in a very charming way, but the optics—unlike the aesthetics of the movie—aren’t great.
4. The Parent Trap (1998)
Okay, FIRST of all:
Truly ALWAYS The Parent Trap. In fact, my two best girlfriends and I have a rule that we must text each other to alert one another whenever The Parent Trap is airing on cable. Nancy did not come to play, she came to slay. What other “kids movie” spends time having its hot, adult leads discuss vintage wines in a wine cellar while also flirting shamelessly? I’m only realizing now 20+ years later how much I learned about wine as a 10 year-old watching this over and over again in 1998 lmao. Anyway, we only get a peek into the kitchen at Parker Knoll in Napa, but it absolutely feels just perfect for the rural Northern California setting. Once again, there is blue cabinetry and marble countertops that look lovely with the lighter wood throughout the house. This is a space that feels relaxed and social. I love the metal, mini wine rack for displaying the family label. I wish we got to see more but look how happy Lindsay Lohan is in this kitchen. It’s clearly a great spot to hang out, especially when you have company as good as Lisa Ann Walter’s Chessy.
Stay tuned for Part II coming later this week. Which kitchen would you like to cook your Thanksgiving meal in?
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