Rating: 
Summary: an additional comment socio-anthropological
Review: In the Orthodox tradition the church music is strictly vocal. Although the ecclesiastic Organ (Hydraulis) is an invention of the ancient world, the Orthodox Church seldom used it, as it relies on the congregation and the psaltes for communal hymn singing, without accompaniment by any man- made musical instruments of any kind. It is very improbable therefore that at any Greek church wedding there would be a performance of Felix Mendelssohn's Wedding March, played on the Organ, as in this film. The procedure of the father and bride to the altar, where the bride is delivered to the bridegroom, and the hand kiss of the bride's father by the bridegroom seems an improvisation inspired by cinematic precedence and not by reality, too.
In many cultures, women wear black garments, mourning the family deaths, as does the protagonist's grandmother, who also wears a black kerchief in all her appearances--including the wedding of the grand daughter.
This is a gross mistake, as it is absolutely impossible for the same family to celebrate a merry wedding and keep the signs of mourning at the same time. Older Greek women from the countryside, who happen to wear mourning black, will lighten up the colour of their garments if they attend a wedding, and certainly wear no black kerchief -- an ominous sign at any wedding... The grand mother would happily end her mourning to celebrate the marriage of a grand daughter, or, if the mourning occasion was too recent and she was unable to end it, she would not attend...
Rating: 
Summary: A big fat greek dissapointment
Review: After reading some ecstatic reviews of this film, I'd expected something a lot more amusing than this rather tedious, sentimental tale. The heroine's family are supposedly keen to get her married off, so why didn't they encourage her to smarten herself up before she reached the age of thirty, I wonder. Also that rather tired cliche of the girl who looks very dowdy, then after five minutes of hairdressing and makeup is transformed into a radiant beauty, hasn't that rather been done to death? And whatever are we to make of herincrediby tiresome father, whining on about the superiority of the Greeks to everyone else all the time? I mean, doesn't everyone in America have guns? Why didn't someone shoot the silly old coot long before the start of the film? The story of uptight WASP family versus warmhearted ethnic family has laready been done in 'Fools Rush in', a much more amusing film. And the film ends, depressingly, with the heroine dragging her own reluctant daughter off to Greek school when the poor child wants to join the Brownies. Whatever happened to America the great melting pot?
Rating: 
Summary: Mediocre, well-timed comedy
Review: Worth a rental, but not much more than that. Being of Greek descent, I found a lot of the movie resonated with me on a personal level, and it accomplished what it set out to do; entertain. I'm equally certain that the play it was based on had a bit more depth (as well as drama) to it. There are so many other places the film could have gone with its theme--the Academy Awards, for one thing--but instead they went for the cheap laughs and stock humour. There's nothing that any Greek will find offensive about "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" except at how ordinary it truly is. Culture-clash, Andrea Martin reprising her 'ethnic' schtick from SCTV, just about 100 minutes in length, a couple of boob sight-gags; shake well, chill, and serve. Its success was rooted in word-of-mouth and just plain perfect timing. Throw a romantic comedy into the works when there's no alternative but sci-fi, tired horror pics, sequels, art-house films, etc., and you've got a good chance at making some serious money. Its heart is in the right place, but it reaches for a star instead of the moon, and doesn't even reach orbit.
Rating: 
Summary: I LOVED it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: This was one of the most funniest movies I have seen in a while !
Rating:
Summary: Fun but forgettable
Review: The movie is pleasant enough but if it wasn't for a wonderful performance by Nia Vardalos this movie would have fallen like an Angel cake. It never moves past the stereotypes it presents of a large, extended Greek family and the unlucky child to find herself living in the shadow of it. A dream man (John Corbett) appears and soon Toula is remaking her life, much to the chagrin of her patronizing father. Michael Constatine turns in an amusing performance as the confused father of the bride, trying to figure out why his daughter would marry outside the Greek community, shown in all its kitschy glory. There are some funny running gags like the heal-all Windex, but the movie barely manages to keep one step of itself, falling back on all too-typical Hollywood trappings to maintain its momentum. This movie left me wishing to see Zorba the Greek again.
Rating:
Summary: what is so great about this movie
Review: I rented this movie hoping to die laughing from what I'd heard about it. This movie is awful. There is no plot or character development, not to mention that for some reason the guy falls in love with her after seeing her in the shop. But why, it looked like they only gone out a few times. The family is absolutely irratating and one demensional. Im a black woman so i dont know any greek people, this does not give me a good impression of their culture. Do all greek people try to force their children into a crapy life where they are unhappy with no career goals, only allow them to marry other greeks and talk constantly about the greek routes of words? I hope not. I cant see how anyone in their right mind found this movie entertaining, it really made no sense or had any point. And what is with the Windex???
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: This movie clicks with nearly every immigrant or child or an immigrant or friend of a child of an immigrant. The references and humor cross all cultural lines. Definitely worth renting, but you may just end up wanting to buy it because there are so many great scenes.
Rating:
Summary: IT'S GREEK TO ME...
Review: This is a warmly funny, down to earth, one note comedy in which I was somewhat disappointed. The reality of it simply did not live up to its media hype. Still, I found this fairly formulaic, romantic comedy to be enjoyable, light-hearted fare to be taken at face value. The film centers around Toula Portokalos (Nia Vardalos), who comes from a fiercely ethno-centric, clannish, Greek family whose Greekness is the end-all, be-all of their lives. Toula is an over thirty, plain Jane, who lives at home with her overly protective mother, Maria (Lainie Kazan), and father, Gus (Michael Constantine), as well as her brother, Nick (Louis Mandylor). She works in her family's coffee shop where she seems to be sleep-walking through life. One day a handsome man, Ian Miller (John Corbett), enters the coffee shop with a friend, and she is smitten. Shortly thereafter, Toula embarks on a life changing course. She takes college courses. She undergoes a complete physical makeover, from the way she dresses to the way she carries herself. She even changes jobs, working at her aunt's travel agency. There, she chances to see her dream man again. They meet. They date. They fall in love. She does all this behind her family's back, as Ian is not Greek. When her family finds out, all hell breaks loose, as her parents parade a host of Greek losers for Toula in hopes that she will not break with tradition. Needless to say, Toula and Ian stick together despite family opposition, hers and his. His family finds her family appalling. Her family finds his family strait-laced and humorless. Never the twain shall meet. Still, the marriage will go on, and Toula's family completely commandeers the wedding, as they will have it done no other way than their way, that is to say, the Greek way. There are many funny, priceless moments throughout the film. Gus, the father, is particularly funny with his belief that all words are of Greek origin and his belief that a spritz of Windex will cure anything. Maria, the mother, also has her zany moments. Nia Vardalos, who is Greek, wrote the script, and she is right on the money. Living in New York, I have had many Greek friends over the years, and many Greeks of the older generation are as ethno-centric as those portrayed in the movie. There was a ring of truth in many of the jokes that hit home. As an actress, however, she leaves a lot to be desired. I found her to be unappealing and somewhat wooden in the role of Toula. The film is an over-hyped, cute, one note comedy that will not prevail over time. The film was recently put to the test when it became a sit-com of the same name with the original movie cast, with the exception of John Corbett (who had his own series "Lucky"). Needless to say, the sit-com did not last out the season. One note comedies rarely do. Still, this film is worth a rental, as it will certainly provide some laughs.
Rating:
Summary: It has some funny parts
Review: Not my kind of movie. Its an ok movie, it has its funny parts and its not so funny but boring part. Its a good movie for people that like that sort of thing.
Rating:
Summary: Somewhat predictable, but loads of fun
Review: "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is family-clash comedy at its best, with wacky, over-the-top characterizations and absurdist situations. Toula, a woman of Greek heritage who feels that something in her life must change, finds her salvation in Ian, a WASPish school teacher. However, love does not conquer all since Ian's repressed parents find Toula and her family garish and overwhelming, and Toula's overly emotional family finds Ian and his family too, well, non-Greek. As the title suggests, the real focus of this film is on Toula and her family, with their huge family "impromptu" gatherings, lamb on a spit in the front yard, and their superstitious rituals. All these idiosyncrasies provide hilarious scenes that build on one another, culminating in Toula and Ian's improbable wedding. The success of this movie arises partly out of low expectations, as it was a sleeper that only after months of word-of-mouth praise became a blockbuster. The premise and ultimate plot progression is formulaic - a more or less typical romantic comedy. Viewers won't find anything groundbreaking in comedy here. Its strength lies in the individual caricatures of Toula's family and the charm of outwardly ordinary Nia Vardalos, who plays Toula. Toula's reactions to her family's commandeering of her wedding are priceless in their exaggeration. The film concludes as one would expect, although the ride to get there has been fun and full of laughs. I will never again pick up a bottle of Windex without smiling. If you don't expect too much of this film, you'll love it. I recommend it for an evening of amusing entertainment when you don't feel like watching anything demanding. While I would expect women to enjoy it more than men, I've found many male friends who highly recommend it - maybe because it reminds them of the trials with their own in-laws. Fans of "Meet the Parents" and "The Birdcage" will probably like this movie as well.
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