In 2005, writer/director Robert Tinnell paid tribute to his Italian American upbringing by creating Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Eisner award–nominated graphic novel about his family’s Christmas Eve tradition. Now Tinnell brings this cultural tale to film, just in time for the holidays.
Set in a Rust Belt town in 1983, the romantic/family comedy follows the Oliverios as they prepare to celebrate their yearly custom, which stretches back to their home country of Italy. In the midst of it all, young Tony (a charming Skyler Gisondo), who has just been accepted to art school, is unsure of what to do with his life. All Tony desires for now is to find love, and he encounters it in Beth (up and comer Madison Iseman), a blond, affluent but down-to-earth Ivy Leaguer.
The two seem to hit it off perfectly after being introduced by Sarah (newcomer Jessica Darrow), the girlfriend of his manly, domineering cousin Angelo (Andrew Schulz). But once Tony’s Uncle Frankie (Joe Pantoliano) invites Beth to the titular celebration, the couple will have to face some serious obstacles in the way of a potential relationship. Her Protestantism, for one, clashes with the Catholic faith of the Oliverios, a difference mainly fueled by Tony’s feisty great-grandmother, Nonnie (a terrific and ornery Lynn Cohen) and Beth’s Waspy mother (Nancy Telzerow). To make things worse, Tony’s determined and dramatic ex-girlfriend Katie (Addison Timlin) is back in the picture as well.
While the cast does it’s best to bring a warm and affectionate atmosphere to this much-needed Christmas story, one can’t help but notice it could’ve used a little bit more inspiration. The dramatic set-up drags too long and threatens to make the film feel like it doesn’t have a plot at all, though in the second act, the pace picks up speed.
The viewer may assume the 1980s time period is meant to convey a personal and cherished return of Christmas past on the filmmaker’s part, yet the popular songs that make up for the holiday spirit’s absence come in at the wrong time (the Boomtown Rats’ “I Don’t Like Mondays” does not fit the tone of the scene where it is placed), and a Rubik’s Cube makes a lazy appearance near the end. If anything, the ‘80s motif seems like a last-minute addition and the film would’ve been fine without it.
Tinnell surprisingly displays little energy and ambition with his own brainchild. Though it often feels like a first-time student feature with an eager desire to explain every single action and thought to the audience, the direction of the interactions during the feast actually works in a genuine way.
The film is carried by good performances from a colorful mix of veterans and fresh talent, featuring the likes of Joe Pantoliano and Paul Ben-Victor, who’s in this year’s The Irishman. Gisondo is perfect as the good-hearted Tony, and Iseman proves her versatility as a level-headed young woman, in a departure from her self-centered role in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017). It is Cohen, though, who steals the show as a very funny judgmental grandmother.
For what it’s worth, Feast of the Seven Fishes is fine as mindless and cozy family holiday viewing, but it’s not quite the fresh take on Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967) that it wants to be.
