My Life In Ruins (Fox Searchlight)
Nias Still A Charmer
Nia Vardalos came into the American consciousness with her film My Big Fat Greek Wedding. That film was an amazing hit that charmed audiences right and left. Now she is back with another Greek themed movie My Life In Ruins and she still has her charm intact. Still this time the movie is only moderately successful.
Vardalos plays Georgia, a Professor of History at the University of Athens who has been laid off due to economic cutbacks. She has taken a job as a tour guide but really hates it. She always gets the worst tourists and the worst accommodations on her tours.
On her latest tour she is assigned a new bus driver, a man named Poupi (Alexis Georgoulis). He is a rough looking character and she assumes he does not speak English. Later she finds that he does, and also that when he is cleaned up he looks very handsome.
One of the bright spots of the tourist group is a man named Irv (Richard Dreyfus). He makes the most jokes and develops into a spokesman for the group. He also gives sage advice to Georgia.
The film is all about Georgia realizing what it is that makes her truly happy, and also about the group bonding as one. In this sense it is a very heartwarming movie. You get some comedy, some drama, some romance and even some sadness.
The movie starts off a little slow with Georgias complaints getting a little old. As Georgias mood gets better so does the film. And by the end of the movie you are cheering for everyone in the group to find happiness.
The movie is rated PG-13 for mild profanity and some sexual situations.
Nia Vardalos is still a charmer and Richard Dreyfus adds real value to the film. Add in the scenic beauty of Greece and you have a couple of plusses for this film. On the negative side the story never really grabs you. It is a pleasant tale with a pleasant cast but nothing to write home about in any way.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding was a sleeper that gained popularity each week it was released. Word of mouth might help My Life In Ruins but not to that extent. It will have only a modest run at the theaters and then maybe gain more of an accepting audience on DVD.
I scored My Life In Ruins a scenic 5 out of 10.
