Suzie Gold

This is quite an entertaining little film, very much in the vein of 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding'. Like that hit movie, it deals with family and cultural expectations when it comes to marriage. Summer Phoenix stars as Suzie Gold, a true romantic who wants to marry for love rather than prestige.

I laughed a lot at the start of the film. A fine ensemble cast includes Miriam Karlin, Frances Barber and Stanley Townsend.

What lets the film down, in my opinion, is the total lack of chemistry between Ms Phoenix and Leo Gregory as Darren, the love of Suzie's life. You just don't believe that these two are crazy about each other which is a shame as it's otherwise quite fun.

I'm sorry i haven't given any film a rating like this before. But I've never seen a film thats so craaaaaaap!!!!!!! This has already been done in my big fat Greek wedding! That was a half decent film and if you've never seen it, it was a decent film to watch. This just tries to imitate the same thing with a Jewish family. I used to love British films. They had great stories and thrived on that rather than the big effects of Hollywood films. But this is so awful!!!! I cant believe its ratings are like a 5 at the moment.. I cant believe i was talked into watching this!! The jokes are so dry, they have been done and dusted so many times. There is nothing original in this film that i can say stands out from any other film. Therefore i don't see the point in watching it!

_Suzie Gold_ takes the first act from _Fiddler on the Roof_, stirs in a little _Pride and Prejudice_, and tries to update this blend for 2004. While the Jewish traditions, and anxieties, have survived intact into the new millennium, the chief innovation for the young seems to be four-letter words. And while the plot revolves around the dilemma of "marrying out" (outside of the Jewish faith), it isn't clear why any of these nice Jewish girls should care about marriage, since they all are ready to sleep with their boyfriends, whether likable or not. This ribald caricature will prevent this film from matching the wide popularity of _Greek Wedding_, which is too bad.

If you can overlook these contradictions, the portrayals are charming, the ladies handsome, and the ancient faith is shown to be alive and well. Mom, Dad, and Grandma all come through for the perplexed little Suzie, although she does what she wants instead of what they would think she ought. Suzie's father is such a warm and wise fellow, that he could singlehandedly carry the story, and he indeed must ultimately make the right call for his little girl. The film is entertaining, but not because anything is really resolved in the end (and the plot is as old as storytelling itself), but rather because the people and events are fun to watch, and a few are worth emulating.

I was intrigued by the synopsis and bought the film on video for a £1. It was well worth the spend and my wife and I enjoyed watching it. We have had some exposure to the North London Jewish community, having attended several weddings and various other functions and although we didn't recognise the over-the-top histrionics of Suzie Gold's mother, most of the film was a reasonably accurate portrayal of the milieu. Rebecca Green's script was very good. The treatment of Suzie's on-off- relationship with a non-Jewish boyfriend is apparently superficial but it dealt with a difficult subject generously. Generally, the film pokes glancing fun at the community, such that whilst not holding it up to ridicule, it nevertheless shines light on aspects of Jewish life that non-Jews might find both revealing and interesting. I thought the ending was clichéd and lacked originality - it showed, more than anything else in the film,the weaknesses of the script and direction, but who cares? It was a bit of froth and everyone will recognise the homage paid to other films with greater merit.

This is the tale of Suzie Gold, a 20 something Jewish girl in North London. The film takes place in the months leading up to her sister's wedding to a nice Jewish boy. Her family are semi-orthodox, but have traditional views as far as marrying out of the faith. Suzie falls for a non-Jewish guy called Darren. However she cannot introduce Darren to her family because of their perceived attitude.

I and my partner are both Jewish. When we saw the film at the local cinema I suspect that most of the audience were Jewish. Having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed the film, but my girlfriend hated it thinking it was too stereotypical. To me the film reminded me a little of the excellent TV play The Barmitzvah Boy, and it had a stronger and more believable story than the other Jewish film of recent years, Leon The Pig Farmer.

I thought Summer Phoenix put in a very convincing performance as Suzie Gold - her North London accent was good enough to fool me, and the film was very entertaining.