Keeping Up with the Steins (2006) -vs- My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)

Review by Bryce Zabel 

The Smackdown. Two movies about groups you probably don't belong to (Jews, Greeks) and how a rite of passage event impacts their families and how the child navigates through it despite their parents.

The Challenger. "Keeping Up with the Steins" -- A 13-year-old boy struggles through his bar mitzvah, despite his parent's dysfunction. The fact that the film provides multiple, repeated viewing of Garry Marshall's ass is counter-balanced by Neil Diamond's surprise cameo. Still, didn't Jeremy Piven also play a Hollywood agent struggling to achieve the perfect bar mitzvah for his son on an episode of "Entourage"? Makes it feel just a little less original.

"If we could skip the Torah reading and go straight to the party, I'd still be miserable."

The Defending Champion. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" -- A 30-year-old woman struggles to keep her love intact, despite the dysfunction of her family. Your basic opposites attract plot, dressed up by a quick sautee in the melting pot, mixed in with a dose of the Ugly Duckling -- but it all works. No huge stars, just honest laughs, and some warm, flawed characters. Absolutely no view of any naked part of Garry Marshall's body.

"At least the limo's windows got Windexed."

The Scorecard. Both films live in a movie universe that feels more-or-less grounded, as opposed to the kind where Carmeron Diaz loses at love. I've got a close Greek friend, and have been to my share of bar mitzvahs over the years. There's an element of truth in both films that the writers and directors have built solid films on. Not unexpectedly, there's more schtick in "Keeping Up with the Steins." The spoiled wealthy Steins are a little harder to love than the decent hardworking Portokalos's.

The Decision.  "MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING" wins because it manages to be just a little bit funnier and still keep it all a little more real. That's the winning combo for a comedy that stays with you a long time. I'll still remember the Windex gag long after I forgot what Benjamin Stein's bar mitzvah theme finally turned out to be.