MOVIE - MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING - Review Rating $$$$$ $$$1/2 (OUT OF 10)
STARRING - NIA VARDALOS, LAINIE KAZAN, MICHAEL CONSTANTINE, GIA CARIDES, JOHN CORBETT, IAN GOMEZ, BRUCE GRAY, LOUIS MANDYLOR AND ANDREA MARTIN.
This romance / comedy is based on the life, of Nia Vardalos, who makes her big screen acting debut. She had previously produced and starred in her own one woman play on the same subject.
You do not have to be Greek to enjoy this movie. North America saw several massive waves of immigration, by many cultural groups, during the 20th century. The themes, that run through the film, are in many ways universal. The struggle to be true to yourself and the wishes of your parents, simultaneously, is one shared by most children regardless of heritage. The struggle to be proud of your heritage and fit into the culture of your adopted country is a struggle well known to all immigrants. Though the subject has been canvassed before Nia Vardalos injects it with a fresh perspective and insightful humour.
Michael Constantine gives an excellent performance as the patriarch of the family. Andrea Martin, of Second City / SCTV fame, is perfect as Aunt Vuola. Another Canadian actor, Bruce Grey, does a fine job in his supporting role as father of the groom.
The only possible fault with the film is the resolution of the conflict between being true to your past while achieving your potential. Though her family ultimately embraces her non-greek fiancé the cost is high. He gets baptized in the Greek Orthodox Church, married there, and generally acquiesces to Greek tradition in anyway required. The bride's freedom, being allowed to marry outside of her ethnic group, is similarly tempered by the realization that this was accomplished by a complete surrender to the rest of her parent's values. Her father's admission that "we're all fruits", meant to imply we should all try to get along, in actuality serves to remind us that some fruits are tastier than others.
In this summer, of poor quality mega-blockbusters, My Big Fat Greek Wedding is a refreshing, humorous break from 'pulp-fiction' dribble.
For more info on this film and it's production history, see:
http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hp&cf=prev&id=1808405215
Hollywood Reporter
Alternative Reviews:
http://www.rollingstone.com/mv_reviews/review.asp?mid=2043937
http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/ebert_reviews/2002/04/041902.html
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/MyBigFatGreekWedding-1113661/
Official Website:
http://movies.yahoo.com/greekwedding/
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2003
David Schwartz.
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