FILM-FORWARD.COMReviews of Recent Independent, Foreign, & Documentary Films in Theaters and DVD/Home Video
PASSIONADA
Like an ardent suitor, this ethnic romantic comedy, (think a slightly older My Big Fat
Greek Wedding), wins you over, no matter how much you resist it. Set within the
Portuguese-American community of New Bedford, MA, perky teenager Vicki (“You
can’t predict what I’ll say, but you can predict I’ll say it”) plays matchmaker between card
shark Charlie (Isaacs) and her rigidly pious mother, Celia (Milos), who’s still morning
after many years the death of her husband, a fisherman. (As Vicky, Rossum is an eerie doppleganger
for Julia Roberts, who also played a Portuguese-American in Mystic Pizza.)
Subtly charming, Charlie’s English accent is a convenient debonair cover for a man who
is broke and dependent on the kindness of his friends. He instantly falls in love with the
beautiful Celia while she sings fado, Portuguese folk music, in a bar. Only when she
performs does Celia let her guard down. Despite her rejection, Charlie persists in wooing
her, reinventing himself as a man of wealth and leisure--he’s still a grifter at heart.
Milos’s moving performance overcomes the sitcom banter and uneven direction. Scenes
do drag--you get the point long before a scene is over--with pauses within the dialogue,
which betray the need for an extra take. And when Charlie begs for forgiveness, Celia
angrily rejects him in a one-note scene with very little emotional shading. But for the
most part, Celia is a paradox--sensual, but judgmental, and when her determination is
finally broken, her vulnerability is moving. You can hardly blame Charlie for being
persistent. Passionada will be right at home on Lifetime. KT
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