If you loved the first one, and the fact that Windex could cure everything, then – Opa! – you’ll love this sequel. And more amazing, all the elderly relatives that you loved too, are back and still alive. Even Gus (Michael Constantine) hasn’t lost his wit and determination. Gus, the family patriarch hasn’t changed…he’s now whining to Tula (Nia Vardolos) that she and her husband, Ian (John Corbett) really should see to it that their seventeen year old daughter, Paris (Elena Kampouris) finds a husband.
But before he speaks up, Gus might want to speak for himself. Turns out that his fifty year marriage to his wife, Maria (Lainie Kazan) is a farce. Years ago the Priest forgot to sign their marriage license. Sadly this is something the squirt of Windex can’t fix.
Of course Gus still has a way of believing that everything can be traced back to the Greeks – and how they invented it – including his blood ties to Alexander the Great. But as life changes – Tula’s Travel agency closed in recession – it’s nice to see that the family diner, Zorbas the Greek, still thrives.
If it’s a retread of the first film (2002) you’re fearing, imaging it as a lame attempt to milk out the cash of the first very successful comedy, you won’t find it here. Like a sitcom whose hook of characters we come to anticipate (and how they’ll respond) this film has all of that and more. It shows life at a new level, a next generation – adding double the fun. The comedy flows with non-stop belly laughs…”telephone, telegram, tell a Greek” because family wants to put their noses in everyone’s business. And isn’t that all of our families? When the wedding does take place at the film’s end, there won’t be a dry eye in the house.
The beauty in this darling and delightful film is its ability to tap into the annoyance of blood relatives. Get the Windex out. Be prepared for my Big Fat Greek Wedding 3. Opah! 4 tiaras