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My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3
Nia Vardalos and John Corbett in My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3
Aloners
(Film Movement DVD/Digital)
Once again, Jina is named employee of the month, but the distinction brings little satisfaction, much less joy. In Korean director Hong Sung-Eun’s 2020 film, Jina is the star customer service rep for a credit card company, fielding impatient and even nasty calls from cardholders. Some of the customers are insane (flagged as such on their account files).
Her job is a metaphor of her life and the faceless lack of civility in her society. Jina spends every available moment in front of screens or plugged into iPods, whether eating alone at a restaurant or home alone in her cheerless apartment. The performances are suitably low key and, in some scenes, alienation and ennui are masterfully represented through cinematic composition. Will Jina survive in a meta-modern world where everyone is an easily replaceable cog—make that chip—in the system? (David Luhrssen)
The Nun II
(In Theaters Sept. 8)
Michael Chaves directs this ninth installment of “The Conjuring” franchise. It’s 1956 at a French convent, just four years after “The Nun.” Taissa Farmiga (Vera Farmiga’s little sister) reprises the role of Sister Irene. After a priest is brutally murdered, she and young Sophie (Katelyn Rose Downey) feel a growing sense of dread. Soon, Irene realizes that Valak, the evil spirit she battled in The Nun, has returned. Fortunately, Frenchie (Jonas Bloquet) is also here, having stood with Irene against Valak before. Once again portrayed by the remarkable Bonnie Aarons, Valak appears as a demonic nun. Frightening spiritual incarnations combine with jump scares for ultimate shock value. The previous films each garnered $300 million-plus in ticket sales. The Nun, panned by critics, nevertheless scared up the biggest box office receipts, guaranteeing this demon’s return. (Lisa Miller)
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3
(In Theaters Sept. 8)
The strength of My Big Fat Greek Wedding revolved around its opinionated and demonstrative big fat Greek family. Writer-director Nia Vardalos nailed her family’s curmudgeonly, eccentric members. Twenty years later, her third entry returns to that well. Having lost their patriarch, Toula’s father (played by Michael Constantine, who died in 2021), Toula (Vardalos), seeks to honor his wish that the family visits the Greek village of his youth, reconnecting with old friends and distant relations. Toula makes the trip with a dozen or so relatives, including husband Ian (John Corbett), aunts, uncles, siblings and cousins (portrayed by Louis Mandylor, Elena Kampouris, Lainie Kazan, Andrea Martin, Gia Carides, Joey Fatone, Maria Vacratsis, Elias Kacavas and Gerry Mendicino). No sooner do they disembark from the plane, when they meet a long-lost cousin. Toula’s aunt swiftly informs the girl, “I will be your favorite.” Finding relatives is easy, but locating Papa’s old friends proves daunting as all seem to have died or moved to parts unknown. Meanwhile, a youthful family member is reunited with a potential love, meaning that big fat wedding number three, looms large. (Lisa Miller)
