I don't know how she does it, really.

Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear, and Christina Hendricks are part of the cast of I don't know how she does it.

A spoiler warning is in effect! If you like this, you can get more of my articles when you subscribe to my account.

Summary

Kate is a driven career woman, wife and mother. She juggles multiple responsibilities as she tries to achieve all but succeeds in most. 

Takeaway

Kate (Sarah Jessica Parker) went on a date with Jack(Pierce Brosnan), spent long hours at work, and missed important moments with her kids and husband. She rejected Jack who professed his love for her but she said that it's wonderful he feels that way and she hopes he finds someone who will mean as much to him as Richard(Greg Kinnear) does to her.

She said she made a terrible mess of things but is hopeful that she still has a place with Richard because that's where she belongs. Kate rushes to her family. She says to Richard, 'I know I drive you crazy but I love you, an amazing amount. And I am so sorry about everything'. She normally makes lists to lay out and prioritize her tasks. Richard adopts this and he lets her know. She looks at his list and sees 'Me and Kate' written on it and he says, 'Yeah. That's number one'. After she says things will still be a mess and that's her guarantee, he says, 'Yeah, it will. It'll be our mess. Right?' and she nods.

Side-note

Allison (Christina Hendricks) said, 'At work when you act like one of the boys, they call you abrasive and difficult. So you act like a woman, and they say you're emotional and difficult. So difficult is really just the word for anything that isn't a man'. She said this to speak on the office culture and how Kate was tested for being a mother who had and wanted to attend things for her family.

Her stability is threatened and her credit is stolen by people like Bunce (Seth Meyers). This is in line with Allison's other statement saying, 'A man announces that he's going to leave the office to be with a child, and he is hailed as a selfless, doting, paternal role model. A woman announces that she's going to leave the office to be with a child on it's sick bed and she is damned as disorganized, irresponsible, and showing insufficient commitment'.

Faves

Allison (Christina Hendricks).

...

Kate is a professional trying to make waves in a male-dominated industry. She tries to balance that and her family duties as best as she can. Despite the date with Jack and his love for her, he ends up with Allison. Kate still works with him but draws bolder lines to avoid any confusion after pairing him with her friend. Despite her efforts, she feels lacking in both areas. She had said, 'I never thought I would be one of those people that dread birthdays, but it just feels like it's a reminder that I'm not where I want to be'.

Eventually, she succeeded professionally. She got the fund and got to work on it with her name on it. She also made the sacrifice of putting her foot down to her boss, Clark (Kelsey Grammer). She spoke about her efforts, her love for her job and her desire to spend time more with her family. She was granted some time off. She put her family first because there will always be another deal but not another first haircut and she said so as she apologized to Richard. Richard seeing all she does says, 'She's a juggler' when asked about her job.

Allison is a single mother and Kate's dear friend. She spoke about how she and Kate bonded immediately saying, 'A working mother needs solidarity and we know where we rank in likeability. Just below felon and just above shoplifter'. They hate and/or fear 'The Momsters'. That is what they call Wendy(Busy Philipps) and Janine(Sarah Shahi). Kate thought of Wendy as the 'chief poobah in charge of terrifying working mothers with her domestic prowess' and described Janine saying she's 'fitter than a navy SEAL, tougher too'. Wendy says to Allison and Kate, 'Well, I am just so jealous of you girls. You get to wear high heels and look nice all day, and we just frump around at the park'. Janine says, 'Kate, I don't know how you do it. Wendy and I, we always say that'.

After which they say, 'Brush your hair' and 'Did you see what she was wearing?' in their absence. Allison was dreading this conversation as she saw them approaching. She said, 'Oh, shit. There they are' as if wanting to avoid them as quickly as possible.

There's judgment for their choices as Kate brings an altered department store pie made to look homemade and Allison brings something worse which Kate counted on. Meanwhile, the Momsters seemingly baked theirs and Janine asked them to taste her's. In the next scene, Wendy said, 'You know, for me, when I decided to have kids, I wanted to be the one to raise them. But women make different choices in their lives and uh, I don't judge. I try not to…judge'. However, both types of mothers still utilize assistance from other sources regardless of their professions.

I found Kate interesting when compared to Judith from Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor (article coming eventually). She rejects the rich guy, unlike Judith. However, Kate is pretty comfortable in life, she has kids, loves her job and loves her position compared to Judith. So she's seen as having more to lose. Kate was not fully unsatisfied but she was often unsatisfactory.

If you enjoyed this, for more of my articles:

• you can check through the Geeks category on my profile or the "…and some movies" list on my Medium account
• subscribe to my account and/or subscribe to my mailing list
• visit my linktree and/or my Twitter account