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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
FANTASTIC MOVIE!!!, Feb 22 2004
Definitely an outstanding comedy and one of my personal favorites, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, brings to the screen the story of Toula Portokalos, a 30-year old Greek-American from Chicago, played superbly by Nia Vardalos. She falls in love with Ian, (played by John Corbett-and a wonderful performance it is) and that is when their problems begin as Ian goes through the culture shock that comes with marrying into a Greek family. All the actors, no exceptions, give it their 100% and it shows! Very well written, very well presented, the movie is without a doubt a major hit world wide! Needless to say people here in Greece are so proud over the success of the movie!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Give me a word....any word., Jul 31 2006
Toula (Nia Vardalos) is a thirty something, single American Greek girl, and, in the eyes of her family, rapidly becoming over the hill. She herself is bored with her monotonous life, with nothing to do other than work as a waitress in her family's restaurant. One day a man walks into her restaurant and Tula's life is about to change forever. The instant attraction she feels seems to somehow give her the push she needs to climb out of her rut, and she promptly enrols on a college course, learns how to use make up and dress well and, best of all, gets a new job in her Aunts travel agency.
It is while she is working there that the stranger, Ian, reappears in her life. What follows is a heart-warming tale of two people falling in love whilst trying to overcome their differing ethnic backgrounds. Tula's family are determined she should marry a 'nice Greek boy' whilst Ian's, (John Corbett), family are very uptight, middle class and horrified by Tula's outgoing, lively, loud and, above all, large family.
The show stealer is Michael Constantine as Mr Portokalos, who believes everyone secretly wants to be Greek and whose favourite occupation is to tell people the origins of words ...of course, in his eyes they all stem from the Greek language, even kimono! His other favourite pastime is using Windex cleaner for everything from cleaning to treating wounds, and recommending the same to anyone who will listen. Constantine plays this role with real humour but also pathos.
The downside of the DVD is the complete lack of extras; it doesn't even have subtitles, which is very annoying when you're hard of hearing. That apart, this is a very funny, yet touching film, that is suitable for all the family to watch.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Heart Warming and Humorous, Jul 17 2006
Nia Vardalas stars as Toula, the plain unadorned 30 year old single, "unmarried" daughter of a Greek family who have successfully assimilated into American life. They are the owners of "Dancing Zorba's" a popular neighborhood Greek Restaurant in Chicago. Like Greeks everywhere, the cultural values are instilled into the offspring early in life and the extended family is *most* important ... it is central to their lives. This film is a light-hearted comedy which exaggerates some of the amusing moments about a good obedient daughter who is trying to meet the expectations of her Greek immigrant parents and who is also trying to be independent and make a life for herself.
While fulfilling her parents wishes and living within the cultural milieu of the family, Toula dreams of some independence ... she realizes she can contribute something more than being a seating hostess and cashier at the family restaurant. She recalls being in grammar school when she was the only dark brown haired girl, sitting alone eating her packed lunch, home-made "moussaka". At the next table a group of blond haired girls were laughing and asked her what she was eating, Toula told them. Afterwards, one had mocked her food, calling it "moose kaka", making all the girls giggle. At that age Toula felt she was an outsider ... now as a young adult, she wants to spread her wings, take a course at the local university, prove her self-worth and that she is intelligent, not so different from everyone else. She receives the support of her mother and Aunt who convince her dad that she would be a valuable asset at her Aunt's travel agency ... he agrees and they exchange family employees, her male cousin will work at Dancing Zorbas, while Toula will work at the travel agency. After this point in the film, Toula blossoms from a "plain Jane" into an attractive young lady who begins expressing her own interests apart from the family circle. While working at the agency ... a young man walks past the window and waves to her. She recalls he was a customer at Dancing Zorba's, when she was plainly dressed, awkward and shy, while serving him coffee. Now, she is both embarrassed and flatterred by his amusing antics as he tries to capture her attention when working. His ploy works ... they meet and date. Toula makes excuses to the family that she is taking a pottery class in the evening so that she can see Ian Miller, who is a grammar school teacher and vegetarian. He comes from a family that is best described as W.A.S.P.
The film has a superb build up of comedy and suspense as Toula and Ian become more serious. They learn about their unique differences but appreciate each other even more and consider them assets. One of the climaxes in the film is when Toula's female cousin catches her kissing Ian at the travel agency ... The cousin mentions the family knows Toula is dating a non-Greek because an Aunt saw them together and spread the news like wild fire. Ian learns protocol and asks Gus Portokalas, Toula's dad, for permission to date his daughter. Gus refuses because Ian is not Greek. Eventually, the families meet and iron out their differences as both Toula and Ian fall further in love ... The manner in which the couple win over Toula's dad and family is the stuff of great comedy. Both families gradually accept that Toula and Ian are meant for each other and will get married ... but only *after* Ian agrees to convert to the Greek Orthodox so he can marry within her church. Anyone familiar with Greeks who live in the USA will recognize the amusing characters, typical behavior and values that are so realisticlly portrayed in this film. The cast of characters is perfect. This film will appeal to a large audience of different age groups who enjoy comedy and romance.
Erika Borsos (pepper flower)
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