My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016)

Genre

Comedy | Romance

Director

Kirk Jones

Country

USA

Cast

Nia Vardalos, John Corbett, Elena Kampouris, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine, Andrea Martin, Ian Gomez, Gerry Mendicino, Alex Wolff, John Stamos, Rita Wilson, Joey Fatone, Gia Carides, Louis Mandylor, Bess Meisler, Ashleigh Rains, Rob Riggle, Mark Margolis

Storyline

Toula (Nia Vardalos) and Ian's (John Corbett) daughter Paris (Elena Kampouris) is getting ready to graduate high school which means she'll be soon leaving for college. As if that wasn't cause of enough distress, Toula's parents find out they were never officially married, so another wedding big, fat, Greek wedding is in the works.

Opinion

It really surprises me that it took Hollywood so long, but after 14 years here it is the long "awaited" sequel to "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". Not that I didn't like the first, but was it really necessary?

Anyway, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" is a decent comedy that is nothing like its predecessor but still delivers some good laughs.

The film's main problem is that being a sequel it doesn't have the freshness and originality of the first film, but the simple - maybe too thin - plot still is supported and made interesting by the family conflicts. There are too many subplots involved though. 

The characters are pretty much the same of the original, and are also played by the same actors which is a real joy for someone who has some real love for the first film, and even though the character development isn't great, the filmmakers took some time to update us one the lives of all the characters, not the main ones only. 

And yes, the Greek family is still huge and loud, and fun to watch, but most of the jokes and gags are either recycled from the first film or in the trailer. But I gotta say they still are funny.

But after all "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" isn't trying to be anything big, it is just a feel good movie, and great for when you want to switch off for a while.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)

Genre

Comedy | Romance

Director

Joel Zwick

Country

Canada | USA

Cast

Nia Vardalos, John Corbett, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine, Andrea Martin, Christina Paraskevopoulos, Gerry Mendicino, Louis Mandylor, Gia Carides, Joey Fatone, Stavroula Logothettis, Ian Gomez, Bruce Gray, Fiona Reid, Bess Meisler, Jayne Eastwood, Arielle Sugarman

Storyline

30-year-old Toula Portokalos (Nia Vardalos) is still single and living with her parents. After convincing her father (Michael Constantine) to go to university, she meets and fall in love with Ian Miller (John Corbett). There's only one problem: he is not Greek, and she is supposed to marry a Greek man.

Opinion

I've watched this film a lot when I was younger. Way too many times. I've also picked it weeks ago for a Thursday Movie Picks post, and I said it was a decent comedy. But I was wrong, because "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is a nice, entertaining and hilarious comedy. So much better than I remembered.

The best thing about this film is probably its simplicity. It does not have a complex or twisted plot, it is just a simple love story that develops in a quite predictable way, but it is made engaging and interesting by the (big Greek) family conflict.

Than there's the main character, Toula. The great thing about her is that you don't need to be Greek to empathize with her. She is just a woman in her thirties, she has not that kind of beauty almost all the rom-coms characters have - she is kinda like Bridget Jones but without all the vulgarities -, and it's really easy to relate to having a relationship with someone your parents don't approve.

Sure, the Greek characters are stereotypical and exaggerated, but that's what makes the film so hilarious. And it's plenty of memorable scenes, like when the family ladies convince Gus, Toula's father, that working in her aunt's travel agency was his idea, or when all the ladies are getting ready for the wedding. And the best part is that this fil suits all ages.

Nia Vardalos gives a good performances as Toula, the ugly duckling - in my opinion, she is not ugly at all though. Lainie Kazan and Michael Constantine also give good performances as Toula's parents.

The Best Man (1999)

Genre

Comedy | Drama

Director

Malcolm D. Lee

Country

USA

Cast

Taye Diggs, Nia Long, Morris Chestnut, Harold Perrineau, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan, Melissa De Sousa, Monica Calhoun, Regina Hall, Jim Moody, Jarrod Bunch, Victoria Dillard

Storyline

Harper (Taye Diggs) is an author whose first novel is soon to be published, just as he's been asked to the Best Man at the wedding of his friends Lance (Morris Chestnut) and Mia (Monica Calhoun). He is suffering a worse case of publication-day jitters than most authors, and with good reason: much of his book has been drawn from real life, and he's afraid that his friends and family will spot the sometimes unflattering literary versions of themselves.

Opinion

The only reason I ended up watching this film is because The Best Man Holiday - film I've been wanting to see for the past two years - is its sequel, and I thought it was the right thing to do. And I gotta say it, it was a surprise, one of the good ones.

Smooth, and with a well assembled cast, The Best Man is a two hour ride of pure enjoyment.

Malcolm D. Lee, Spike Lee's little cousin, made quite a debut and nailed both the direction and the writing.

The story is a little predictable - both in the conflict and in its resolution -, and a little sexist, if I may add, but the pacing makes it very pleasing to follow. It is a story of faith, honesty, love, lust and redemption, but unfortunately it fails to really address the issues of infidelity and dishonesty: the ending basically killed the film. I was expecting some kind of talk between the bride and the groom. It is unthinkable that he pretends like nothing happened. It's okay for him to forgive her, but I was hoping for some more depth.

The characters have very distinct personalities, yet their connections are quite believable. They all are interesting with their thing - Quentin being the most complex and funny one - , and I must applaud Malcolm D. Lee for writing black characters that are all successful, and independent.

Last but not least a wonderfully assembled all-black cast. Taye Diggs did a wonderful job as Harper, Morris Chestnut was excellent as the groom-to-be, gorgeous Nia Long did a great job as Jordan, and Terrence Howard steals every scene he's in with his charm. All the rest of the cast also did a good job.