MAMBO ITALIANO
Directed by: Émile Gaudreault.
Produced by: Denise Robert & Daniel Louis.
Written by: Steve Galluccio & Gaudreault, based on the play by Galluccio.
Director of Photography: Serge Ladouceur.
Edited by: Richard Comeau.
Music by: FM Le Sieur.
Released by: Samuel Goldwyn.
Country of Origin: Canada. 88 min. Rated R.
With: Luke Kirby, Peter Miller & Paul Sorvino.

Mambo Italiano arrives late. It’s hard to imagine why with all of the really smart, risky and entertaining programming on television today, (Queer as Folk, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, even Will and Grace), the producers and director didn’t do more to make this theatrical release into something other than a dated, trite portrayal of gay men and Italians alike. The story, about two childhood friends, Angelo (Kirby) and Nino (Miller), who are reacquainted in their twenties and begin a romance that they must keep secret from their very, very Italian families, is yet another ethnic sitcom, like My Big Fat Greek Wedding. They’re Italian: that’s the key. So this naturally means they yell a lot, hit each other upside the head, blame their miserable lives on everyone else, and the parents absolutely freak when their sons come out of the closet – together. One wishes that Mambo Italiano aspired to be the sort of film like Ang Lee’s brillant The Wedding Banquet. Though both share the same premise–young man with strong familial and ethnic ties is afraid to tell his parents that he is gay–The Wedding Banquet was a funny, moving, heartfelt story that didn’t pander to clichés or stereotypes. The characters were richly developed and memorable. And, looking back now, it was ahead of its time. Mambo Italiano just makes us ask: What year are we in anyway? Tanya Chesterfield, Book Reviewer (Barnes & Noble.com)
September 12, 2003