‘Nonnas’ – Now, That’s Italian!
Vince Vaughn’s motor-mouth routine made him a star.
He left that shtick behind in recent years, witness atypical turns in “Arkansas,” “Brawl in Cell Block 99” and “Freaky.”
Now, he’s targeting our heart strings in “Nonnas,” a Netflix original with a PG rating. Really.
Turns out he’s perfectly suited for this tale of a broken-hearted son eager to make his late momma proud. You might wince a few times, but Vaughn’s assured presence keeps the story afloat.
Vaughn plays Joe, a middle-aged man mourning the loss of his mother. A nostalgia-drenched prologue shows young Joe scampering through his New York neighborhood, scarfing down Italian pastries and basking in his family’s presence.
The kitchen mattered most in Joe’s world. That’s where his mother and Nonna (Italian for “grandmother”) worked their culinary magic. Nonna’s “gravy” was second to none.
Joe feels lost without that connection following her passing. So he impulsively uses her insurance money to start an Italian restaurant … with a catch.
He’ll recruit a team of Nonnas to serve as his chefs. They’re older, wiser and brimming with decades of experience. That’s assuming they don’t kill each other first.
Nothing is ever easy in the restaurant business, putting Joe’s limited skills to the test.
“Nonnas” knows the formula in play and never shies from it. The feisty Nonnas (Lorraine Bracco, Brenda Vaccaro and Talia Shire) know they’re playing stereotypes, but they deliver performances that rise above expectations.
Susan Sarandon, despite her 78 years, looks too youthful to be part of the gang as the restaurant’s pastry chef.
Some story elements are so predictable you’ll wince. A poorly staged food fight sequence nearly derails the sequence’s impact on Joe’s quest. Another scene follows a heartfelt call for a miracle to save the restaurant. Said miracle arrives so swiftly even the new Pope might cry foul.
And it’s impossibly on-the-nose to include a “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant” needle drop.
For every groan, there’s a line of dialogue to savor. The cast is dialed in, rendering Italian cliches cozy and comforting. Vaughn offers a laid-back approach as Joe which balances the Nonnas’ collective hysterics.
Shire stands out as a former nun eager to do something new with her life. The screenplay includes a dig at her faith, but a third-act moment offers a sense of spiritual rebirth.
The tastiest part of this Italian confection? Joe’s feelings for Olivia (Linda Cardellini), his prom date from many moons ago who comes back into his life at the film’s beginning. We can smell this story arc from a mile away, but “Nonnas” has the patience to let it simmer until it’s just right.
It’s kind of like an Italian mother’s Sunday gravy.
HiT or Miss: “Nonnas” has its clunky moments, but its heart is so firmly in the right place you may not even notice.
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