14 years ago, a little movie came out of nowhere that would prove that a funny, engaging narrative and human characters is the key to film success.
That movie was My Big Fat Greek Wedding. When Greek-American Toula (Nia Vardalos) meets WASP-y Ian (John Corbett), it is a relationship that is fated to last. But not before her very Greek family gives him the rundown.
Fast forward to 2016, and we have revisited the characters in My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2. Toula and Ian are dealing with the realities of life as the parents of a teenage daughter/soon to be college student, Paris (Elena Kampouris). Like many parents with growing children, they subconsciously neglect themselves in favor of their daughter. Next door, Toula’s parents, Gus (Michael Constantine) and Maria (Lainie Kazan) are getting older.
The plot of the film revolves around two narratives: Toula and Ian dealing with the fact that their daughter is no longer a little girl and the unsigned marriage certificate of Maria and Gus. Like many women in middle age, Toula is balancing raising her child, keeping her marriage afloat and taking care of her aging parents. The humor in the film comes from the subplot of the fact that the priest who married Gus and Maria never signed the wedding certificate, which means the marriage was not fully legalized.
Writing a sequel, especially a sequel to a film that no one expected to be successful, is not an easy thing to do. But screenwriter/star Nia Vardalos’s approach was smart. She waited until life gave her the experience and the spark that would become this screenplay. Fans of the original film will not be disappointed. The charm, the humor, the universality of the original film was carried over to the sequel.
I highly recommend it.
Writergurlny 