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Mob movies have traditionally been gritty dramas about tough men battling for power, while the women quietly exist in the background. But the crime comedy Mafia Mamma gives the typical mob movie an unexpected twist, putting the family in the hands of a timid American mom.
Mafia Mamma stars Toni Collette as Kristin, a suburban mom who’s devoted her entire life to her husband and son. So when she gets the call that her grandfather has died just after her son leaves for college and she catches her husband cheating, Kristin packs her bags and flies to Italy, hoping to find some happiness and perspective while exploring Rome. But when the funeral erupts into gunfire, Kristin learns that her grandfather wasn’t just a simple vintner. He was the head of a mob family—a family that’s he left in her unprepared hands.
Though she arrived in Italy completely unaware of her family’s business, just hoping to escape the harsh realities of her crumbling life for a while, this bumbling suburban mom suddenly finds herself at the head of a crime family in the middle of a bloody war. With the help of her grandfather’s capable secretary, Bianca (Monica Bellucci), and a team of mostly-loyal soldiers, though, she sets out to negotiate peace among the families. Along the way, she accidentally murders a few people, earning her the fear and respect of those who once doubted her.
Admittedly, Collette’s Kristin isn’t always an easy character to like. She’s awkward and indecisive and often hysterical. Of course, most normal people would probably end up in hysterics in her situation—but she tends to overplay it, distracting from some of the unexpected charms of the story. After all, as Kristin somehow settles into her new role, she grows in strength and confidence while taking the family in a new—and more legal—direction. And, despite her blundering and all-too-frequent shrieking, you can’t help but enjoy the transformation. Unfortunately, though, the filmmakers didn’t trust audiences to be smart enough to appreciate the obvious humor of this ridiculous situation—instead pushing everything a little too far, to sometimes uncomfortably wacky extremes.
At its heart, Mafia Mamma is a fun film: an over-the-top and often violent comedy about a middle-aged woman learning to take charge of her own life for a change. But the action that plays out around her is often so random and haphazard that it takes away from some of the fun.
Head to your local theater to join in the action and laughs of Mafia Mamma beginning on April 14, 2023.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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