Do You Hate "Big Fat Greek Wedding"?

Started by SoNowThen, May 12, 2003, 06:19:22 PM

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SoNowThen

May 12, 2003, 06:19:22 PM
... I do. And I haven't even seen it. Why do I hate it, you ask? Because people say to me (thinking I only watch "indie" films): oh, you'll love it, it's exactly what you want to make -- an independent film that's really well done. And I can't bring myself to tell them that they wouldn't know "well done" if it bit them in the ass. Then there's the classic "it's the best movie ever made" probably because it's supposed to be The Most Successful Film Of All Time, even though I'm pretty damn sure Easy Rider still holds that (it made something like 15 times what it cost). Then I watch previews of it, and it looks like bad made-for-tv shit. But then people like my Aunt say "oh it's soooooo true, it's so funny & true, that's EXACTLY what happened at my friends' wedding". So if I made a movie about a groom who gets drunk and fucks a stripper right before his wedding night, would it be her favorite movie because it's soooo funny and true? Arrrrrghhh. Please tell me that some of you guys are with me on this, or am I the only one in North America to not be won over by the cuteness pap that is Nia Varda-whateverthefuck.
Those who say that the totalitarian state of the Soviet Union was not "real" Marxism also cannot admit that one simple feature of Marxism makes totalitarianism necessary:  the rejection of civil society. Since civil society is the sphere of private activity, its abolition and replacement by political society means that nothing private remains. That is already the essence of totalitarianism; and the moralistic practice of the trendy Left, which regards everything as political and sometimes reveals its hostility to free speech, does nothing to contradict this implication.

When those who hated capital and consumption (and Jews) in the 20th century murdered some hundred million people, and the poster children for the struggle against international capitalism and America are now fanatical Islamic terrorists, this puts recent enthusiasts in an awkward position. Most of them are too dense and shameless to appreciate it, and far too many are taken in by the moralistic and paternalistic rhetoric of the Left.

xerxes

#1
May 12, 2003, 06:30:37 PM
i haven't seen it... and don't really plan on seeing it.

did this movie kill your father or something???

cowboykurtis

#2
May 12, 2003, 06:37:29 PM
Quote from: xerxesi haven't seen it... and don't really plan on seeing it.

did this movie kill your father or something???

dido
...your excuses are your own...

godardian

#3
May 12, 2003, 06:37:52 PM
Quote from: SoNowThen... I do. And I haven't even seen it. Why do I hate it, you ask? Because people say to me (thinking I only watch "indie" films): oh, you'll love it, it's exactly what you want to make -- an independent film that's really well done.

...it's not the worst movie ever, but it feels like it is because of exactly what you're talking about here. It's TV stuff. It's faintly amusing, but nothing approaching even the neighborhood of special.

People don't want special. They want to be reassured and numbed. Hence, they are able to feel excitement over something that really has nothing to offer you can't get better and funnier from Friends.

And don't even get me started on the people who feel good about loving the movie because of its "exotic," "ethnic" heartwarm. Give any of these people Jeffrey Eugenides's Middlesex- a real exploration of a Greek family over several generations with the terrible history and all- and they will be appalled at the lack of cuteness, if they ever even bother to read.

Don't bother seeing it.
""Money doesn't come into it. It never has. I do what I do because it's all that I am." - Morrissey

"Lacan stressed more and more in his work the power and organizing principle of the symbolic, understood as the networks, social, cultural, and linguistic, into which a child is born. These precede the birth of a child, which is why Lacan can say that language is there from before the actual moment of birth. It is there in the social structures which are at play in the family and, of course, in the ideals, goals, and histories of the parents. This world of language can hardly be grasped by the newborn and yet it will act on the whole of the child's existence."

Stay informed on protecting your freedom of speech and civil rights.

Pedro

#4
May 12, 2003, 07:11:30 PM
I think that the movie's terrible.  A few funny things here and there, but over all it just doesn't work (for me at least).  I'm not really sure why this was accepted by so many as a great movie, because its really not.

godardian

#5
May 12, 2003, 07:23:01 PM
I submit it's because most people have no concept of what a really great movie is. Most people haven't had access to enough great movies, and by the time they do, their senses are dulled by all the bad ones.
""Money doesn't come into it. It never has. I do what I do because it's all that I am." - Morrissey

"Lacan stressed more and more in his work the power and organizing principle of the symbolic, understood as the networks, social, cultural, and linguistic, into which a child is born. These precede the birth of a child, which is why Lacan can say that language is there from before the actual moment of birth. It is there in the social structures which are at play in the family and, of course, in the ideals, goals, and histories of the parents. This world of language can hardly be grasped by the newborn and yet it will act on the whole of the child's existence."

Stay informed on protecting your freedom of speech and civil rights.

Gold Trumpet

#6
May 12, 2003, 07:29:43 PM
I'm agreeing with godardian here, this is nothing that can not be seen on tv and all tv gurantees is a laugh a half hour. This film was drowned in storylines completely cliche and uninteresting I literally started reading a book during the movie. Weird, the movie has now become a tv show. actually, the best word is fitting.

~rougerum

BonBon85

#7
May 12, 2003, 09:05:00 PM
I have to admit I enjoyed it. You really can't go into it expecting that you're seeing something new and unique. I liked it for the simple family comedy that it was. It was one of the few movies that you can see with a very wide range of people. I don't care for very many romantic comedies - in fact I think this is one of maybe four I've liked. Just call it a guilty pleasure and try to smile.

Tiff

#8
May 12, 2003, 11:08:14 PM
saw it. hated it. went home. watched magnolia to wash it off me.
"Shut the fuck up!"

Pwaybloe

#9
May 13, 2003, 08:25:40 AM
Y'know the movie never fell into lame plot twists that ruin other romantic comedies.  The couple stuck together through thick and thin.  You should applaud it for that.

Dirk

#10
May 13, 2003, 08:53:20 AM
Quote from: SoNowThenThe Most Successful Film Of All Time, even though I'm pretty damn sure Easy Rider still holds that (it made something like 15 times what it cost).

I think it's actually the Blair Witch Project. As for MBFGW, it's trash.
At wave level, everything exists as a contradiction. Everything is existing in more than one stage/place at any given moment. Everything must move/vibrate and constantly change to exist. Everything, including buildings, mountains, oceans and thoughts.

Ravi

#11
May 14, 2003, 06:41:43 PM
MBFGW is entertaining, but overrated.  It is basically TV material and not extremely original, but I did laugh during the film.  I think so many people liked it because compared to the other comedies of recent years, this one seems like a masterpiece.  I can't imagine that many people would be watching it in 5 years, though.  I was entertained, but it wasn't so damn entertaining that I saw it 3 times, recommended it to all my friends, and preordered the DVD.  I wouldn't tell you not to see it, but I wouldn't actively recommend it either.

I saw one episode of the TV show, which is awful.  Once you get past the Greek jokes, there is nothing compelling you to watch.

sphinx

#12
May 14, 2003, 06:52:47 PM
it was not my cup of tea.  i thought it was o.k.

:yabbse-undecided:

life_boy

#13
May 16, 2003, 01:28:09 AM
I might have liked it more if everyone hadn't told me like every fucking part of it before I saw it.  Then again, who knows?

Ernie

#14
May 16, 2003, 05:03:37 PM
I didn't see it. I still don't really even know that much about it either. The only thing related to it that I've been sadly exposed to is the horrible-looking tv show. Let me tell you, you'd have to fucking pay me to watch that. The ads for it are just sad. It's always pissed me off how kids, teenagers, and elderly people are potrayed on tv and in film...film mostly. The ads for that damn tv show are exactly what I'm talking about. With the mother being all excited about her daughter's sex life. That's how a lot of those kind of people are potrayed. Kids and elderly people, how they're all risque yet naive...that is so fucking stupid...seriously, is that suppose to be funny?

"oh my god...that old woman said "sex"...uh oh! hahahaha!!!!"

"look at that cute little blonde kid, he's talking about sex too!"

And then the teenagers are ALWAYS potrayed as young, dumb and full of cum...that is stupid too. A lot of teenagers are like that, yes...but seriously, come on now, there are some cool teens that really do have personalities. They are rarely brought to the screen though. When they are, people love and embrace it...why not do it more often? There needs to be more Max Fischer's than Stifler's.

Anyway, It seems that, in the case of MBFGW (just judging by the tv show ads), that elderly people get the shaft. I just think that sucks...that's my rant for the day: kids, teens, and the elderly need to be treated better in film.
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