It has elements of truth. Julie Powell's blog and Julia Child's life form the basis, but creative liberties may have been taken to make it more engaging for the audience.
No, Julia and Julie isn't a true story. Usually, such works are a creation of the author's imagination or draw from a combination of fictional concepts and loose inspirations.
One main theme is self - discovery. Julie discovers more about herself through her cooking project. Another is passion for cooking. Both Julie and Julia are passionate about food. And there's also the theme of perseverance. Julie has to keep going through all the difficulties in cooking every recipe.
Well, it makes the movie and the book really inspiring. Since it's based on a true story, it shows that ordinary people like Julie can achieve extraordinary things. It also gives a peek into the life of Julia Child which was also based on real events, and that's really interesting for food lovers and those interested in biographical stories.