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Take the "insular and exaggerated culture clash" schpiel that was apparently (and rather mysteriously) so popular in last year's My Big Fat Greek Wedding and combine it with an indie-style "gay men dealing with the closet" comedy; whip 'em both into a fine paste and throw in a big dash of Franco-Canadianism...and this is the result: Mambo Italiano, a film that coasts over its shortcomings through sheer force of goodwill and a director who thankfully knows how to frame a gag.

Our hero is Angelo, an charming-yet-nerdly Italian/Canadian guy who (in his early 20s) is coming to terms with his homosexuality. Aside from the manic and handwringing protests from his old-school-Italian Mama and Papa, Angelo seems to be acclimating to his discovery quite easily. That Angelo finds himself in a lusty affair with bestest childhood buddy Nino (the same guy who ignored Angelo all through high school) makes the transition even more comfortable...except for Mama & Papa and those goshdarned old-fashioned cultural values.

Angelo's sister is quite helpful and somewhat understanding, but when the parents start devising a collection of schemes intended to turn him "straight" (with the canoodling assistance of Nino's keening mother), things go from sunshine to thundercloud in short order.

Second feature from Emile Goudreault (Wedding Night) and based on Steve Galluccio's popular stage play, Mambo Italiano is to be commended for the light and refreshingly matter-of-fact tone it applies to the plight of culturally-beleaguered homosexuals. Plus it's quite funny. Much can be said for any film that tries to shine some mainstream light onto a subject generally discussed in hushed tones, but what's most impressive is that the filmmakers seem to be going for Romantic Comedy first - and Topical Issue Flick second or third. Much like last year's excellent Kissing Jessica Stein, Goudreault's comedy is not content to be pigeonholed as a "gay flick" but simply aspires to keep an audience laughing...while addressing its own agenda in the broadest and most accessible fashion.

Luke Kirby (Lost and Delirious) is great as Angelo, bringing a Neighborhood Drinking Buddy attitude to a role that's trickier to pull off than the film's fluffy nature might imply. As Angelo's long-suffering Sicilian Mom & Pop, Paul Sorvino (Goodfellas) and Mary Walsh (New Waterford Girl) are simply a whole lot of fun. Sure, Sorvino's accent wavers between the apt and the absurd at various points, but Mambo Italiano is so packed to the gills with intentionally broad caricatures that the lovable old guy fits right in. Walsh comes off like a funny Italian version of Joan Plowright while stealing a handful of scenes for her very own.

It would be easy to dismiss "Mambo Italiano" as simply a Greek Wedding/Gay Issue/Italian Family amalgam - and in many ways that's obviously a fair assessment. But if you're going to offer the masses something that feels a whole lot like a bunch of other flicks out there, you should try to do it with some care, some craftsmanship and some sincerity. Despite its often-familiar trappings, "Mambo Italiano" delivers all three with impressive consistency.

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link directly to this review at http://efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=8186&reviewer=128
originally posted: 09/22/03 16:03:01
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