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Frumpy-looking and plumpish Toula (Nia Vardalos) Portokalos (in Greek meaning orange) is 30, not
yet married and the concern of her family and relatives. She refuses the suggestion that she return to Greece to find a Greek husband. Instead, she decides to stop
working in her family's Dancing Zorba Restaurant and take some college computer courses.
Her father Gus (Michael Constantine) objects because he wants that like a true Greek woman, she should already "get married and have babies." With her mother Maria's (Laine Kagan) support, Toula gets to do what she wants, including working in her auntie's travel agency. She may have put the idea of getting married out of her mind, but unexpected things have a way of happening. At the agency, she comes face to face with Ian (John Corbett), Miller (in Greek meaning Apple) whom she met at the restaurant and was struck by his appearance. This time, their encounter draws them to each other. Soon enough he asks her to marry him. How will she tell her very Greek-tradition bound family, especially her father that she wants to marry a not-at-all-Greek man? How she does it and what happens is the rest of the story.
The movie is interestingly visual.
The shots are well composed and directed especially where ensemble acting is called for. The cast is very well chosen; the actors and actresses aptly fit their roles. The acting of the whole cast (especially Nia Vardalos, John Corbett, Michael Constantine and Lanie Kazan) is so natural that the scenes appear more real than reel. In addition the music and the Greek melodies help create the right ambiance. The comedy comes naturally from situations, or even added on, like that of Gus with a Windex spray bottle always at hand to cure anyone who has some skin ailments.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding projects
the fidelity of the Portokalos members and extended families in keeping their Greek customs and traditions.
One exception to this is Nia's telling her father that she's at school when she's at Ian's place. Premarital sex is as unacceptable to the Greeks as it is wrong in Filipino tradition. Those who are not Greek in the audience are given the opportunity to pleasantly laugh and have fun watching the unfamiliar acts of spitting to ward off bad luck; or where the Orthodox Greek baptism requires dunking Ian into a pool of water; that everything has to be done in the Greek way. There are no unkind, sarcastic or nasty jokes. The various mistakes, fumbles and missteps that the Portokalos family members make are what could take place in the same situation of families of other cultures. The amusement elicited is not meant to criticize or to put down. The use of "Fat" in the title is to humorously indicate the size of the Portokalos family, the elaborate wedding and the big celebration. The film is an opportunity to see the Greek customs shown to be different but wholesome, which unify families and provide material as well as emotional support to the family members. Like in all cultures the value of family is clear in this film. Some cultures may have ways or beliefs that may be "weird" to us, but this provides an interesting diversity and can be enriching. If Nia's father objected to her marrying a non-Greek, he makes up for it by saying that though "Portokalos" means "orange" and "Miller" means "apple," they are both "fruits" anyway. Love can blossom between people of different cultures.
(Date reviewed: December 5, 2002)
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