Since my wife has endured so many of the movies that I wanted to see (mostly having the words ninja, vampire or cheerleader in the title), it was finally her turn to pick a movie, and she selected My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Despite it’s lack of gunfire, explosions, criminal masterminds or supermodels, I must admit that it is a great movie with many fine performances and some sharp writing. It represents an interesting view into a world which is quickly disappearing from the American landscape: the unashamedly ethnic family. Michael Constantine does an especially fine job as the slightly eccentric patriarch of the family, Gus Portakalos. His performance seems effortless, and conveys the kind of rich warmth that one would hope the head of a large family would possess. Lainie Kazan does an equally fine job as his wife Maria. Nia Vardalos plays their thirty year old husbandless daughter Toula, who undergoes an ugly duckling to beautiful swan transition, and falls in love with Ian Miller (he’s not Greek, and played by John Corbett).

This movie conveys a rich sense of family and love, where the idiosyncrasies of family members are celebrated rather than mocked. I found it to be a very pleasant Sunday afternoon diversion.

If it only had a couple of ninjas, it would be perfect…