History YMMV / MyBigFatGreekWedding

* HarsherInHindsight: The love story which inspired Nia Vardalos's story ended in divorce.

** Gus telling Toula that he's getting older and may not have much time left is certainly harder to watch now that Michael Constantine has died.

* EsotericHappyEnding: [[spoiler:The new house that Toula's parents buy for her and Nick is ''right next door'' to theirs; while the relationship between all of them has massively improved, that still doesn't mean that Toula and Nick would be happy living so close to them.]]

* EsotericHappyEnding: [[spoiler:The new house that Toula's parents buy for her and Nick is ''right next door'' to theirs; while the relationship between them has massively improved, that still doesn't mean that Toula and Nick would be happy living so close to them.]]

* BrokenAesop: The obvious intent of the movie is to be a feel-good romp about ThePowerOfFamily. However, Toula has been consistently insulted and dismissed by her extremely xenophobic father for both her looks and her intelligence ''since she was twelve'', is restricted not only in who she is "allowed" to date but even in ''where she is allowed to work,'' with the prospect of simply going ''next door'' to work for another member of the family being in question. Her family smothers any individualism, completely takes over the planning of the wedding, and actively prevents Toula and Ian from making their own decisions about something as major as where they want to live. Ultimately she finds happiness by... giving in, accepting that this is just the way things are, asking her partner to stop standing up for her when she tries to set boundaries, letting her family control her life, and perpetuating the same cycle with her own daughter.

* HollywoodHomely:
** Averted. While certainly attractive, Nia Vardalos is anything but "Hollywood beautiful," and her "homely" look was genuinely convincing. Creator/RogerEbert, in particular, found the aversion refreshing.
-->"Everyone in this movie looks like they could be a real person. The romance involves not impossibly attractive people, but a 30-year-old woman who looks OK when she pulls herself out of her Frump Phase...I relaxed, knowing it was set in the real world, and not in the Hollywood alternative universe where Creator/JuliaRoberts [[CoolLoser can't get a date]]."
** The film is noteworthy in that HollywoodHomely and HollywoodPudgy aren't much of an issue, where the film shows men and women of different looks and shapes and sizes and where their looks aren't a big deal.
** Happens again in the sequel, where Toula has let herself go a little bit. There is again a noticeable improvement after she takes a trip to a salon.

* PhenotypeStereotype: The differences between Greeks and Anglos are decidedly exaggerated in the film, with the former portrayed as more brunette and Mediterranean and the latter as blonder and more Germanic/Scandinavian-like than is really the case.

* AcceptableTargets
** [=WASPs=]. Ian and his parents are all depicted as culturally neutered and at least a little InnocentlyInsensitive to non-white (or even white non-WASP) people.
** Greeks don't get off that easy either. If anything, the Greek stereotypes are even crueler than any others depicted, but being a movie written, directed by and largely starring Greeks, [[NWordPrivileges it's allowed]].
** Turks. Again, this is to be expected from a movie made almost entirely by Greeks, though it's obviously meant to be tongue-in-cheek.

* PhenotypeStereotype: The differences between Greeks and Anglos are decidedly exaggerated in the film, with the former portrayed as more brunette and Mediterranean and the latter as blonder and more Germanic/Scandinavian-like than is really the case.

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: The love story which inspired Nia Vardalos's story ended in divorce.

** [=WASPs=]. Ian and his parents are all depicted as culturally neutered and at least a little InnocentlyInsensitive to non-white (or even white ethnic) people.

* {{Applicability}}: What makes the movie so universally appealing is that ''every'' family, not just Greeks, has quirks which makes it difficult for outsiders to get in. Plug in any variation of heritage or culture, along with the stereotypes therein, and the movie is still largely the same. One trailer even acknowledged this by having several cultures appear one after the other in the title before ultimately landing on "Greek." This is supported by Gus's wedding speech about how people from all cultural backgrounds are NotSoDifferent.

* BrokenAesop: The obvious intent of the movie is to be a feel-good romp about ThePowerOfFamily. However, Toula has been consistently insulted and dismissed by her extremely xenophobic father for both her looks and her intelligence ''since she was twelve'', is restricted not only in who she is "allowed" to date but even in ''where she is allowed to work,'' with the prospect of simply going ''next door'' to work for another member of the family being in question. Her family smothers any individualism and actively prevents Toula and Ian from making their own decisions about something as major as where they want to live. Ultimately she finds happiness by... giving in, accepting that this is just the way things are, asking her partner to stop standing up for her when she tries to set boundaries, letting her family control her life, and perpetuating the same cycle with her own daughter.

* MexicansLoveSpeedyGonzales: Not surprisingly, a movie made largely by Greeks and people of Greek ancestry that's full of (light-hearted) jokes at the expense of Greeks and people of Greek ancestry is quite popular with... you guessed it, Greeks and people of Greek ancestry (mostly Greek-Americans).

* HollywoodHomely: Averted. While certainly attractive, Nia Vardalos is anything but "Hollywood beautiful," and her "homely" look was genuinely convincing. Creator/RogerEbert, in particular, found the aversion refreshing.

* HypeBacklash: Being one of the most successful and popular indie films of all time, it's not uncommon for latecomers to be disappointed and say that it's merely an above-average romantic comedy, not helped by it's non-too-subtle appeal to traditionalism and near-cartoonish SelfDeprecation of Greeks.

** [=WASPs=]. Ian and his parents are all depicted as culturally neutered and at least a little InnocentlyInsensitive to non-white people.

** Greeks don't get off that easy either. If anything, the Greek stereotypes are even crueler than any others depicted, but being a movie written, directed by and largely staring Greeks, [[NWordPrivileges it's allowed]].

* FamilyUnfriendlyAesop: The needs, wants and traditions of a marrying couple's families are more important than those of the couple themselves. For traditionalist families, this is very much TruthInTelevision.

* {{Applicability}}: What makes the movie so universally appealing is that ''every'' family, not just Greeks, has quirks which makes it difficult for outsiders to get in. Plug in any variation of ethnicity and religion, along with the stereotypes therein, and the movie is still largely the same. One trailer even acknowledged this by having several cultures appear one after the other in the title before ultimately landing on "Greek." This is supported by Gus's wedding speech about people from all cultural backgrounds are NotSoDifferent.

** Greeks don't get off that easy either (the Greek stereotypes are arguably even crueler than any others depicted), but being a movie written, directed by and largely staring Greeks, [[NWordPrivileges it's allowed]].

* NightmareFuel: Toula's grandmother's PTSD is [[PlayedforLaughs played for laughs.]] But considering she's old enough to have lived during [[UsefulNotes/WorldWar2 World War 2]] and she lived in Greece, it becomes more horrifying if you remember what happened.
-->'''WebVideo/CinemaSins:''' Haha, she has PTSD and is afraid of being murdered! What a crazy old lady.

-->'''[[WebVideo CinemaSins]]:''' Haha, she has PTSD and is afraid of being murdered! What a crazy old lady.

-->"Everyone in this movie looks like they could be a real person. The romance involves not impossibly attractive people, but a 30-year-old woman who looks OK when she pulls herself out of her Frump Phase...I relaxed, knowing it was set in the real world, and not in the Hollywood alternative universe where Creator/JuliaRoberts [[HollywoodDateless can't get a date]]."

* {{Applicability}}: What makes the movie so universally appealing is that ''every'' family, not just Greeks, has quirks which makes it difficult for outsiders to get in. Plug in any variation of ethnicity and religion, along with the stereotypes therein, and the movie is still largely the same. One trailer even acknowledged this by having several cultures appear one after the other in the title before ultimately landing on "Greek." It even plays into Gus's wedding speech about people from all cultural backgrounds are NotSoDifferent.

* HypeBacklash: Being one of the most successful and popular indie films of all time, it's not uncommon for latecomers to be disappointed and say that it's merely an above-average romantic comedy, not helped by his steadfast appeal to traditionalism and near-cartoonish SelfDeprecation of Greeks.



''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' reached levels of popularity that are almost unheard of for an indie film. Because of this, it did have some vocal detractors who felt that it received a lot more attention than it deserved.

* AcceptableTargets: Greeks. [=WASPs=]. Possibly Turks. All PlayedForLaughs. (Of course, being of Greek heritage herself, Nia Vardalos [[NWordPrivileges is allowed to make fun of Greeks]].)
* {{Applicability}}: What makes the movie so universally appealing is that, even if you're not Greek, the familial quirks which make it difficult for outsiders to get in can apply to ''any'' culture. Any variations of ethnicity and religion, along with the stereotypes therein, wouldn't make the movie all that different. One trailer even acknowledged this by having several cultures appear in the title before ultimately landing on "Greek."
* FamilyUnfriendlyAesop: The unwanted fuss over Toula's wedding can come off as "What your groom or you want in the wedding doesn't matter, so feel free to change anything and everything about it to suit your family." However, it's also often TruthInTelevision.

* HypeBacklash: ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' reached levels of popularity that are almost unheard of for an indie film. Because of this, it did have some vocal detractors who felt that it received a lot more attention than it deserved.