by Lisa H. (Tue Dec 01, 2009)
Like Toula Portokalos I often think of myself as the geek
who, by merely putting on some cover up and perming her hair, bloomed into a
beautiful woman.
I think of myself that way, but the transformation never actually happened.
Maybe that is why I love ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding' so much. It allows me to
dream big.
I don't have to dream of finding a husband, since I've hooked a good one and I
don't plan to throw him back. But like Toula I have dreams beyond being a wife
and mother and I'm not letting anything, even a crazy, neurotic family, hold me
back.
When the movie begins, Toula (portrayed by Nia Vardalos, who also wrote the
screenplay) is a 30-year-old single woman living with her parents. Her
sister is married with two kids and a third on the way, fulfilling every Greek
parent's dream of having a daughter who marries another Greek and gives birth
to Greek babies. Toula, plain looking with straight hair and large rimmed
glasses has never married and turns the family upside down when instead of
continuing to work in her parents Greek restaurant, she decides she wants to go
to college to earn a business degree.
Her father is probably the most overbearing, yet endearing of all her family
members. He is convinced Windex Window Cleaner can heal anything, from a cut,
to a burn, to a pimple. I like that idea because I'm the same way with Vicks VapoRub.
The stuff, commonly used in the United States as a way to open up a stuffed
nose and chest, is actually an ointment for sore muscles. I've also been given
the strange advice, several times actually, to place it on the bottom of my
feet and then put socks on, to rid myself of an annoying cough. I tried it once
and all I got was slippery, sweaty feet. Mr. Portokalos and I? We could totally
hang and compare home remedies. Like, if he was real, of course.
Anyhow, Toula is a bit embarrassed by her large Greek family. When she meets
Ian Miller (John Corbett of ‘Sex and the City' fame) she experiences a stark
contrast between her crazy family and his uptight, wealthy, and pure-Caucasian
parents. Ian's parents are so baffled by Toula's last name of Portokalos (which
incidentally means ‘orange' in Greek) they begin debating if they ever knew
anyone who was Greek, finally deciding that no, the girl they knew was from
Guatemala. Because those countries and cultures are so similar and all.
When Ian finally meets Toula's family he does not receive the welcome Toula,
or movie watchers, had hoped for. In fact, Ian is kicked out of the
house because, not only is he not Greek, but he also never asked Toula's father
for permission to date her. Did I mention she's 30? Yeah, um . . . and Daddy
Portokalos seems to have forgotten they're not in Greece anymore. This is
America, Pops. We don't arrange marriages here. Unless the guy is really rich
and the girl is really poor and some TV network promises them their own reality
show.
‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding' is full of culture, tears, romance and my favourites
- sarcasm and irreverent humor. It has everything a warm-blooded woman wants,
even a scene with John Corbett half naked (if you like the skinny, slightly
flabby, almost bare chested type. And luckily I do).
Every time the ending credits begin to roll in this movie I sigh with
contentment, no matter how many times I've watched it that week (or day,
depending on how rough of a work day it's been. It's a kind of therapy for me).
When it was first released I forced my husband to go to the cinema to watch it
with me and then I forced my mother-in-law and mother to go with me again
a couple of weeks later. All three of them seemed to enjoy the movie right
along with me. However my mother-in-law no longer speaks to me. I believe her
silent treatment is unrelated to the movie, but if you would like your
mother-in-law to stop speaking to you, you can purchase the movie on DVD, give
it to her for Christmas and see what happens.
