My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 is out in theaters now, with Nia Vardalos stepping into the director role for the first time. The franchise is definitely a victim of diminishing returns, as the comedic bits that landed so well in the first film have lost some of their luster that no amount of Windex could restore. Unlike in the first two films, Toula (Vardalos), Ian (John Corbett), and other family members are leaving Chicago, this time to visit their father’s hometown in Greece. Toula was tasked with returning her father’s journal to his childhood friends at the town’s reunion – but nothing ever worked out as expected.
The biggest problem with this film is the scenes all feel so disconnected and interchangeable. In many ways, it resembles s sketch comedy show more than it does a cohesive comedic story. Audiences generally expect moments to lead to one another with some cause-and-effect type relationship. That exists at times – but, there are so many moments within the film that clearly take place before or after other moments, that the way in which they are presented seems to disrupt that flow. Themes are left unexplored or tossed aside, without them really being able to land in an impactful way. The prime example is a scene focused around Paris (Elena Kampouris), the daughter of Ian and Toula.
Paris finds herself at a beach. There are many well-placed props, ala Austin Powers, covering up the privates of the other beachgoers. At first, Paris is oblivious to the fact, but she gradually realizes that she’s found a nude beach. She embraces this, and confidently strides towards the water while shedding the clothes she has on before diving in. Thematically, the scene should have a huge impact on the character, but it falls a little flat. The joke at the end is funny, but ultimately, has no larger impact on what should have been a pivotal scene.
Conclusively, this is how My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 feels across the board. There may be a few moments that’ll get a few laughs from the crowd, but that really is all the film seems to be content with. For me, the biggest issue is that the first film feels so focused on Toula and Ian, but both sequels seem to put their relationship on the back burner. It always feels a little bit neglected by Toula, and yet there just isn’t any real focus on them or how they could repair things. In fact, Ian is always portrayed to be considered boring to the members of the family (as well as me). It makes the investment in the few story beats dedicated to the central romance of the franchise less impactful. Yet, somehow, there is enough charm and basic admiration for family that make it impossible to hate these films.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 is in theaters everywhere as of September 8th.
Rating: Not a Total Waste of Time
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