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A Wedding for Bella - Oh so wonderful comfort food
Pros
Will lift your spirits and warm your heart
Cons
If you focus on the occassional inconsistancies and weaknesses, you won't like it
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Watch it, just watch it! You'll feel refreshed after watching it, guaranteed. Like a lemon lime bitters on a hot day (but a little light on the bitters)
How lucky I was to stumble across this absolute gem of a sleeper.
Oblivious to any facet of this movie beforehand, I only expected typical Hollywood schmaltz.
Mostly set in a Pittsburgh strip – although I can't attest as to the authenticity, it is
Effective enough for me to imagine (and hope!) that it is a faithful reproduction.
Must say though that there was one particular minor (mood setting only) character who was
A little far-fetched (you'll know what I mean if you watch). Centred around a
Dinky Biscotti bakery, it's upstairs flat, a large corporation's board room and a swanky highrise-
Eclectic – yes, but doesn't it make you curious as to how it all ties together?
Bella (Rosemary Prinz) of the film title is your typical stereotyped pioneer Italian
Immigrant wife to cantankerous Massimo (John Seitz). They have an absent daughter and a
Surrogate son in Dom Pyzer (Scott Baio*), who leads a double life, by day a successful
Corporate raider who fires for a living, by early morning a "good earth" biscotti baker.
Oven –hustling with him are his "bad boy" brother Eddie (Billy Mott) and Pino (Shuler Hensley),
The mentally handicapped brother who prompted Dom to open the bakery in the first place.
The last to enter is Lucca (Kristin Minter), the prodigal daughter, unknowingly returning just
In time for a death from cancer – around which the best part of the story revolves.
This movie tells the story of, specifically, second generation American-Italians, and generally,
Of returning to what feels right to us, instead of towards what society says we should want.
Good solid performance was put in by Baio and Prinz. I enjoyed Seitz' Massimo greatly. The
Rest of the cast were simply average – least convincing was Minter, but it couldn't have been
Easy for her due to the script's unconvincing development of her character. In the end, not
Enough to pull down the story (she's meant to be iron-willed, comes across like a damp sponge).
Keeping in mind they are mostly TV-actors, performances were under-stated, gently convincing.
What spoke to me was decidedly not the wedding (and attached relationship), it was the
Exploration of the other more subtle human and human-interaction issues, like the
Daughter-mother connection Lucca touched on when explaining her return from the peace corp,
Damnably funny (but realistic) portrayals of corporate life and the quiet celebration of culture.
I confess I had to watch this movie twice before writing the review,
Not because I couldn't remember it, but because I wanted to register what about it touched me.
Going back to pinpoint exactly what was so great about it was an absolute pleasure,
So was realizing it was just as enjoyable the second time around.
Rest assured this film may not be for everyone. It is infinitely
Easy to see where the plot is going to go half-way through (aww they fall in lurrrve).
All the same, for some almost inexplicable reason, I was still completely hooked.
Due to the mood set by the director's own personal involvement in the story**? Perhaps.
You may be a little ashamed to say you enjoyed this film
- mainly as the plot, when stripped down to bare bones, is just so contrived and sugar-sweet***.
Mind you, this is because the film is so much more than the sum of its parts.
In all, there are weaknesses, but insufficient to stop you from being thoroughly warmed.
X Times better than Greek Wedding – it is unfortunate it was not even 1/10th as exposed.
Post Script (i.e. what I couldn't fit into the required letters above)
Something I loved in this film was the baking of pies and making of biscotti and bread in the bakery (and the Italian cooking *swoon*) – it is a central part of the story. I don't know about the rest of you, but there's just something so organic about seeing dough being kneaded and beaten. Rowr. Put it this way – if I had been born Italian instead of Chinese I would be absolutely OBESE by now.
To make it very clear, this was one of the best movies I've seen in a long long long time.
Bifocals
Directed by: Melissa Martin (historically theatre direction)
Released in Jan 2002
DVD Release 3 Feb 04 (ASIN: B00011V8VHW)
Length: 105 Minutes
Studio: Screen Media Films
* Of Happy Days fame
** Director Melissa Martin was born, grew up in and currently works in Pittsburgh. The script purportedly is derived from her personal experiences (her husband had a biscotti bakery with an old Italian couple living upstairs) and the experiences of her friend Larry Lagattuta (of Enrico Biscotti Company).
*** Real sugar sweet, not saccharine sweet, which makes all the difference.
Oblivious to any facet of this movie beforehand, I only expected typical Hollywood schmaltz.
Mostly set in a Pittsburgh strip – although I can't attest as to the authenticity, it is
Effective enough for me to imagine (and hope!) that it is a faithful reproduction.
Must say though that there was one particular minor (mood setting only) character who was
A little far-fetched (you'll know what I mean if you watch). Centred around a
Dinky Biscotti bakery, it's upstairs flat, a large corporation's board room and a swanky highrise-
Eclectic – yes, but doesn't it make you curious as to how it all ties together?
Bella (Rosemary Prinz) of the film title is your typical stereotyped pioneer Italian
Immigrant wife to cantankerous Massimo (John Seitz). They have an absent daughter and a
Surrogate son in Dom Pyzer (Scott Baio*), who leads a double life, by day a successful
Corporate raider who fires for a living, by early morning a "good earth" biscotti baker.
Oven –hustling with him are his "bad boy" brother Eddie (Billy Mott) and Pino (Shuler Hensley),
The mentally handicapped brother who prompted Dom to open the bakery in the first place.
The last to enter is Lucca (Kristin Minter), the prodigal daughter, unknowingly returning just
In time for a death from cancer – around which the best part of the story revolves.
This movie tells the story of, specifically, second generation American-Italians, and generally,
Of returning to what feels right to us, instead of towards what society says we should want.
Good solid performance was put in by Baio and Prinz. I enjoyed Seitz' Massimo greatly. The
Rest of the cast were simply average – least convincing was Minter, but it couldn't have been
Easy for her due to the script's unconvincing development of her character. In the end, not
Enough to pull down the story (she's meant to be iron-willed, comes across like a damp sponge).
Keeping in mind they are mostly TV-actors, performances were under-stated, gently convincing.
What spoke to me was decidedly not the wedding (and attached relationship), it was the
Exploration of the other more subtle human and human-interaction issues, like the
Daughter-mother connection Lucca touched on when explaining her return from the peace corp,
Damnably funny (but realistic) portrayals of corporate life and the quiet celebration of culture.
I confess I had to watch this movie twice before writing the review,
Not because I couldn't remember it, but because I wanted to register what about it touched me.
Going back to pinpoint exactly what was so great about it was an absolute pleasure,
So was realizing it was just as enjoyable the second time around.
Rest assured this film may not be for everyone. It is infinitely
Easy to see where the plot is going to go half-way through (aww they fall in lurrrve).
All the same, for some almost inexplicable reason, I was still completely hooked.
Due to the mood set by the director's own personal involvement in the story**? Perhaps.
You may be a little ashamed to say you enjoyed this film
- mainly as the plot, when stripped down to bare bones, is just so contrived and sugar-sweet***.
Mind you, this is because the film is so much more than the sum of its parts.
In all, there are weaknesses, but insufficient to stop you from being thoroughly warmed.
X Times better than Greek Wedding – it is unfortunate it was not even 1/10th as exposed.
Post Script (i.e. what I couldn't fit into the required letters above)
Something I loved in this film was the baking of pies and making of biscotti and bread in the bakery (and the Italian cooking *swoon*) – it is a central part of the story. I don't know about the rest of you, but there's just something so organic about seeing dough being kneaded and beaten. Rowr. Put it this way – if I had been born Italian instead of Chinese I would be absolutely OBESE by now.
To make it very clear, this was one of the best movies I've seen in a long long long time.
Bifocals
Directed by: Melissa Martin (historically theatre direction)
Released in Jan 2002
DVD Release 3 Feb 04 (ASIN: B00011V8VHW)
Length: 105 Minutes
Studio: Screen Media Films
* Of Happy Days fame
** Director Melissa Martin was born, grew up in and currently works in Pittsburgh. The script purportedly is derived from her personal experiences (her husband had a biscotti bakery with an old Italian couple living upstairs) and the experiences of her friend Larry Lagattuta (of Enrico Biscotti Company).
*** Real sugar sweet, not saccharine sweet, which makes all the difference.
