The original My Big Fat Greek Wedding was the surprise hit of 2002, charming audiences with romance, heartfelt drama and offbeat comedy.
This tasty brew felt like it was on the turn when writer-star Nia Vardalos reheated it for a 2016 sequel. Now, it feels as stale as last week’s moussaka.
Patriarch Gus Portokalos has recently died. Apparently, his final wish was for his old schoolmates to read the fascinating diary he started writing when he emigrated to Boston.
But with his wife Maria (Lainie Kazan) suffering from dementia, it falls on Toula (Vardalos) to find a way to honour his unlikely request.
Conveniently, the Portokalos clan then receives an invite to an expat reunion from the mayor of Gus’s village. So Toula marshals her entire extended family on a trip to the island village where he grew up, taking the diary with her.
Along the way, Vardalos keeps reminding us of her characters’ identifying quirks. Toula’s Aunt Frieda (Maria Vacratsis) is relentlessly superstitious, her Aunt Voula (Andrea Martin) is tirelessly conceited, and her brother Nick (Louis Mandylor) is ridiculously vain.
Whether that makes them loveably relatable or intensely annoying could be the subject of a post-movie debate.
Vardalos keeps us guessing about this instalment’s climactic wedding. Early contenders are Toula’s teenage daughter Paris (Elena Kampouris) and her recently dumped boyfriend Aristotle (Elias Kacavas), who has been hired as Aunt Voula’s travel assistant (apparently an actual thing).
But, when they arrive on the island, there’s another star-crossed love story involving a handsome Greek lad and a winsome Syrian refugee.
The gorgeous Corfu and Athens locations and the bouncy Greek-influenced score may make you hanker for a beach-kissed summer holiday.
But, if you have a loud extended family, you may want to leave them at home.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3, Cert 12A, In Cinemas now
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