OPINION

A slap in the face?

I read in my local newspaper The Age that Athenian reaction to the film «My Big Fat Greek Wedding» was less than enthusiastic, some seeing it as «a slap in the face for Greek audiences.» Local audiences must see the distinction between diaspora Greeks and hometown Greeks. The distinction is very clear to me as I live in Melbourne, the largest center of diaspora Greeks, and I am married to one. We both found the jokes hilarious, depicting the type of mad patriotism that marks groups of the kind we belong to. Having just returned from a holiday in Athens, I could see that a comedy about hometown Greeks would be of a different kind. It must surely center around characters such as Athenian taxi drivers who: a) toss up their heads in a proud «no» if you order from the «wrong» side of the road; b) pick you up then stop to pick up enough other fares to fill the cab; c) decorate their cabs with toys and charms and hide the safety belts on the back seats; d) smoke incessantly and chat on their mobiles to friends – even at times singing love songs to their girlfriends; e) treat the new airport freeway as a Grand Prix circuit! Julia Catton, Takis Stanton Glen Iris, Melbourne, Australia Editor replies: An Associated Press story from Athens last month quoted Kathimerini commenting that «At times, ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding’ is not a flattering film… Those who have seen the movie might not be all that happy with its surprising success abroad.» This was part of a bigger piece called «Family, tradition and the diaspora» (August 26, 2002). Because the comment presented by the AP has upset many readers, we urge them to read our piece and form their own conclusions. It can be found on our website: (http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=20156)

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