NEW YORK -- There are no Wookies in the Sex and the City movie -- no Vulcans with pointy ears or hobbits with oversize feet or aging archaeologists fond of bullwhips and fedoras. Heck, there probably isn't a single computer-generated special effect in it, although it's a safe bet its overwhelmingly female target audience will be oohing and aahing through it anyway.

Considering the mania that has surrounded the movie since it began filming in Manhattan last year with as much secrecy as anyone can muster in the streets of New York, you'd think Sex and the City, which opens Friday, was directed by George Lucas or Steven Spielberg. Instead, the movie was written and directed by Michael Patrick King, who served the same duties for six seasons during Sex and the City's run as an HBO series.

As pretty much every woman in the civilized world knows by now (along with many of their boyfriends, and legions of gay men), the show was inspired by Candace Bushnell's newspaper columns about single women looking for love in the Big Apple and centered on four single friends: Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Bushnell's alter-ego, a columnist whose on-again, off-again affair with the jet-setting Mr. Big (Chris Noth) gave the show its narrative spine; Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), a tightly wound lawyer; Charlotte York (Kristin Davis), a prim and proper WASP from a wealthy family, and Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall), a high-powered publicist whose connections were outdone only by her libido.

It was the contrast of the four women's personalities -- along with the show's frank approach to sexuality and its often uproarious humor -- that connected so strongly with audiences, which grew in number even after the series ended its 94-episode, seven-year run via syndication on TBS and DVD sales.

''The four protagonists of Sex and the City are very different, but at some point in our lives most women have either been one of those characters or aspired to be like them,'' says Yvonne McCormack Lyons, founder and director of the Miami Women's International Film Festival. ``They represent things that we can relate to. Even if we're not the Kim Cattrall character, we see that it's OK to be a woman and enjoy your sexuality and be empowered by it instead of embarrassed. The show breaks down the traditional stereotypes that say all women have to be a certain way.''

When the series ended, Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha all attained happy endings of their own. But if the central theme of the show was women's search for love and a meaningful relationship during their 30s (and early 40s), the movie asks the question ''What now?'' when you've finally found what you were looking for and have hit your 40s (and early 50s).

As the trailers have revealed, the film centers on the impending nuptials of Carrie and Mr. Big, who have been living together for several years now. Meanwhile, Miranda discovers her husband Steve (David Eigenberg) may have cheated, Samantha develops a crush on a neighbor, and Charlotte delves into the joys of motherhood.

During a recent press day in Manhattan, The Miami Herald met with Parker, Cattrall, Davis, Nixon, Noth and director King to talk about the $65-million film, why it took so long to get made, the enduring appeal of the show and all those pesky rumors about the plot, which has been kept top secret.

Herald: When the show ended four years ago, buzz about a movie spin-off sprang up immediately, but then it fell through. Were you worried that too much time had elapsed?

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