Search - My Big Fat Greek Wedding :: My Big Fat Greek Wedding (OST)

Ask anyone who's attended one and they'll tell you: there's nothing quite as colorful--and emotionally melodramatic--as a Greek wedding. Based on Winnipeg actress-comedian Nia Vardalos's one-woman show and brought to the screen by Rita Wilson and husband Tom Hanks, the film tells (with some parallels to Moonstruck) the story of a thirtysomething Greek spinster for whom falling in love with a "Xeno" (non-Greek) is surely the easiest part of a wedding that more than lives up to its billing. The film's soundtrack perfectly captures those swirling clouds of ethnic and romantic tension. Its first half largely sets up the rich cultural atmosphere with a lively sampling of traditional Greek folk music (featuring selections by Alexandros Xenofontos, John Tsifliklis, Eman, Nick Kutsukos, Daghan Baydur, and Richard Thomas), while the score proper from Alexander Janko (with help from Chris Wilson) slyly segues from similar fare ("Moose Caca," "Yasoo," "Yiayia") to more traditional orchestral film music. That sometimes electro-pastoral, compelling music has parallels with Rachel Portman's and offers the collection a sense of emotional completion. --Jerry McCulley