Limelight My Big Fat Greek Wedding By Lubna Abdel Aziz Once in a long while, Hollywood turns upside down, hirdie-girdie, head over heels, presenting an image that is the antithesis of everything that is Hollywood. You could even call it UnHollywood. So unfamiliar, so unrecognisable, so uncharacteristically Hollywood, it rivets, dazzles and astounds by presenting us with a precious gem that deeply moves some otherwise dormant chords deep within us. We smile, laugh, cheer, rejoice and we nod at each other in general agreement, we bask in the memory of its joys for days, we take our parents, children, cousins, aunts, friends, we tell our neighbours, colleagues, acquaintances and associates. Suddenly this little gem, hardly seen or heard of, deprived of the multi-million dollar promotion and the mega- star media appearances, reduces this vast universe into a small village. Suddenly a small insignificant, little ethnic story becomes an overnight classic production. Dressed in traditional Greek costume, with a perfect Greek cast, celebrating melodious Greek music and dance, food, beauty, truth, and love sweet love, this mix of family loyalty, tradition and joie de vivre catapulted itself by sheer force of a word-of-mouth campaign, into an incredible box office miracle. The gem, rare and coveted, is My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which is neither big nor fat, costing a reported $3 million, with no major studio or super stars to back it. Surely it is not Titanic or Harry Potter whose take at the box office was close to a billion dollars each, but many millions were spent on their production, publicity campaign and promotion. Released without much fanfare My Big Fat Greek Wedding -- which could be any other ethnic wedding -- My Big Fat Indian, Armenian, Egyptian, Mexican, Irish Wedding -- was released in the US last April in a handful of theatres, leaving audiences howling with delight as they recognised traits of their own family customs and traditions. With a heart as big as the Parthenon, a taste as good as ouzo, a sound as sparkling as the bizouki and a beat as invigorating as the syrtaki, My Big Fat Greek Wedding has the strongest legs of any summer release. It is one of the highest grossing independent films ever made. With more than 20 weeks in theatres it has now surpassed the $100 million mark, the definition of a Hollywood blockbuster, and shows no signs of letting. The story is probably one you have heard before and often. Toula, a shy, mousy, bespectacled 30-year-old, considered a spinster by her Greek family, is trapped as a hostess in her parents' diner, appropriately named The Dancing Zorba. Her stubborn Greek father (Michael Constantine), believes that a Greek woman's role in the world is to settle down with a nice Greek boy, breed lots of Greek children, cook tons of spanakopita and feed every Greek in sight for the rest of her Greek life. But when Toula meets non-Greek Episcopalian, Ian Miller, her life takes a different turn. She tosses away her glasses, combs her hair, puts on makeup, enrolls in a community college computer course and starts to take control of her own life. She has her mother's blessings, but what to do about Papa! How can she convince him that Ian is right for her, he who considers any non-Greek a "xenos", a foreigner, and worse -- Ian is a long-haired vegetarian. Director Joel Zwick, of television fame, presents a joyful, down to earth look at one woman's attempt to preserve her Greek Orthodox traditions, while carving out her own individuality. Hilarious comedy ensues, setting one vivacious, garish, Greek family against one reserved, conservative, Wasp-ish Episcopalian family. Both must reconcile their differences for the sake of their children's happiness. Toula narrates her agonies and ecstasies, inviting us into her world so familiar and so comfortable, reaffirming the notion that any wedding is not just between husband and wife, but is a bond between two families. Director Zwick excels in presenting the wedding scene, the beautiful banquet, the family guests all dressed up in their Sunday best, decked with ribbons and bunches of flowers, all on pleasure bent, dancing away shoulder to shoulder with heated visages, as if the world were about to come to an end. Bride and groom exchange salutes to the general satisfaction amid choruses of opahs, oohs and ahs. The furtive glances of young girls brought up in typical Greek fashion seem less decent than they should be. In spite of the loud raucous voices making such brutal assaults on our ears, the merriment of every guest, both infectious and enviable is laced with charming delicacy, making it all so easily digestible. The lucky producer is no other than Tom (Midas) Hanks, who seems to turn everything he touches into gold. Together with his Greek-American wife, Rita Wilson, Hanks attended a performance of comedienne/writer Nia Vardalos' one-woman show. Vardalos, married to a non-Greek actor, Ian Gomez, must have lived through the same chaos herself at her own wedding. Tom and Rita (nicknamed god and goddess of Hollywood) who themselves went through their own big fat Greek wedding, enjoyed the show so much, their Playtone Studio decided to produce it into a feature film. The writer, Vardalos who also stars, transformed the script from a one-woman show to an exuberant full length feature film and found a role and a place for all her quirky eccentric Greek characters. She displays such passion for her Greek heritage and such understanding of her own restraints and her efforts to explore her potential, while maintaining her Greekness. It is the story of how one woman makes the appropriate compromises and still preserves her individuality while fulfilling her dream. The cast is mostly Greek, a hilarious bunch, thoroughly convincing and thoroughly mad! It is not the first time that a small independent film has sprung out of nowhere and gone on to make millions. Heading the list is The Blair Witch Project (1999), a small movie-making effort of a couple of young students, shot in 16mm, which cost $40,000 and brought in a staggering $140 million. Other ethnic wedding films include Ang Lee's Wedding Banquet, about a gay Taiwanese-American man who marries a young Chinese woman to satisfy his parents. Mira Nair's renowned Monsoon Wedding is about an arranged Indian marriage. Britain's The Full Monty (1997) and Italy's Il Postino (1995), are examples of small "sleepers" that went on to become box office hits and Oscar contenders. It remains to be seen whether My Big Fat Greek Wedding will make an appearance at Oscar time. For now it is content to be one of the highest grossing independent films, spreading pleasure galore not only among America's six million Greeks, but among millions more. It is a tasty Greek meal starting with savory dolmades and ending with the buttery flakes of the delicate baklava. Its strong sense of intricacies of ethnicity is reminiscent of uniquely national themes that carry a vast international appeal. Like Moonstruck (1987), My Big Fat Greek Wedding is one of the rarest of films, an ensemble piece that plays like a symphony with its unique ethnic humour, which seldom misfires. Big, loud, meddlesome families may be an embarrassment, but we all have them and where would we be without them. There is a lesson to take home spoken by Toula's brother at the Wedding: "The family will always be a big part of who you are, but don't let it limit who you become!" Amen! The tradition of such UnHollywood productions is alive and well, and Hollywood deserves a salute for allowing them to be produced, to be released and to prosper. Perhaps, it is money that makes the world go round, but it is love that makes it sing. Opa!
