Hollywood likes stories of David beating Goliaths, knowing that they are rare and that they represents something that audience wants. Those stories occasionally happen in real life and on even rarer occasions they happen in Hollywood when low budget independent production ends up beating big studio blockbusters. That was the case with My Big Fat Greek Wedding, 2002 romantic comedy directed by Joel Zwick.
Film is based on one-woman play by Nia Vardalos, comedienne and film’s scriptwriter, who had found inspiration in her own Greek family. Vardalos also appears as its main star, playing Fotoula “Toula” Portokalos, 30-year old Chicago woman who is slowly realising that she may never achieve what her big traditionalist Greek American family expects from her – marrying nice Greek man, bear him plenty of Greek boys and spend the rest of her life cooking for them. Reason might be in her less than glamorous look and lack of self-confidence. But things begin to change when she leaves job at her father’s restaurant and starts going to college. There she meets Ian Miller (played by John Corbett), a good-looking English professor with whom she starts dating. When they decide to marry, a problem arises because Ian is non-Greek, so Toula must use all of her diplomatic skills to make him acceptable to her family.
The title itself tells how would plot get resolved, so that makes My Big Fat Greek Wedding indistinguishable from so many Hollywood romantic comedies with content that would be easily guessed even by audience with special needs. It isn’t that very different from standards Hollywood corniness even when it comes to the lack of proper chemistry between two leads. John Corbett, actor best known for his work in popular television series Northern Exposure, was hired mostly on the account of his looks and here plays incredibly passive character. His scenes with Nia Vardalos are the least interesting part of the film. On the other hand, Vardalos compensates that with her own talent for comedy and by being aided by small cadre of actors of mostly Greek descent, with Australian actress Gia Carides being the best known.
The best asset of the film is humour. Vardalos has found the perfect balance between making fun of her ethnic community while at the same time displaying genuine fondness and faithfulness to its traditions. Combination of liberal mindset that preaches transcending ethnic and religious differences on one, and conservative mindset that celebrates family as the foundation of modern society on the other hand, is the main reason why so many different sets of audience found something to like in My Fat Greek Wedding. Perhaps the only risk Vardalos have taken was to cast herself in the main role, since her looks is hardly within the parameters of leading lady in Hollywood romantic comedies. But she bravely played that role, making it look convincing that Toula would end up married to man who actually looks like Hollywood leading man. Although some viewers might see My Big Fat Greek Wedding as just another example of Hollywood corniness, while others might find it as ethnological study posing as romantic comedy, they are likely to be minority. They were definitely minority in 2002, when the film, despite almost complete absence of traditional marketing, smashed box office. Its success led to short-lived TV series My Big Fat Greek Life in 2003, as well as sequels My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 in 2016 and My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 in 2023.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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