My Big Fat Greek Wedding review

Dreams can come true, and My Big Fat Greek Wedding is the glittering proof.

Joel Zwick's charming and effervescent culture clash comedy, written by and starring Nia Vardalos (based on her own one-woman stage play), has become the sleeper hit of the year across the Atlantic. Made for a mere $5 million (the catering budget on some blockbusters), the film is walking up the aisle towards $120 million at the US box office.

Vardalos plays Toula Portokalos, a dowdy yet kind-hearted Greek thirtysomething who works at Dancing Zorba's, a popular restaurant run by her Orthodox father Gus and domineering mother Maria.

Toula's parents have instilled certain key tenets in her: namely that her three goals in life should be "to marry a Greek man, to have Greek children, and to feed everyone until the day she dies."

In an attempt to revive her romantic fortunes, Toula gives herself a makeover and immediately she attracts the attentions of tall, dark and handsome high school teacher Ian Miller (John Corbett).

There is an instant spark of attraction, but Toula is wary of telling her parents about her new beau, since Ian isn't Greek. When he proposes, Toula is forced to drop the bombshell, and the ripples are felt far and wide.

Thankfully, Ian agrees to be baptised in a Greek Orthodox church so the marriage can go ahead. Little does he realise the chaos of a traditional wedding, masterminded by Voula: one powder blue limousine, two ice sculptures, ten bridesmaids in turquoise, and a cake five layers high with a plastic staircase. And that's before Ian's conservative parents have met Toula's parents, aunts, uncles and 27 first-cousins.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding is an unabashed joy - a film with a heart of gold in which true love conquers all, and everybody ends up singing and dancing when the end credits roll. There's nothing particularly new or original in the film, but the energy with which the cast attack their roles, and the honesty of the screenplay overcome any predictability.

Vardalos is a feisty and instantly adorable heroine, and refreshingly for a romantic comedy, she's not blessed with movie star glamour. Indeed, it's Toula's indomitable spirit and fruity sense of humour, which captivates Ian. Corbett complements his leading lady nicely, playing his groom-to-be with a mixture of amusement and perplexity, as a whirlwind of taffeta and bouquets tears through the Portokalos household.

If only all weddings could be this entertaining.