FILM-FORWARD.COMReviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
MAMBO ITALIANO
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)
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