MAFIA MAMMA – Review by T.J. Callahan
Mafia Mamma: You can’t run away from your destiny.
Mafia Mamma is an action/comedy based on an original story written by a woman, directed be a woman, starring a woman and meant to empower women, but for all the wrong reasons.
The always wonderful and insightful Toni Collette is Kristin, a people pleasing suburban helicopter mom who puts everyone else first, so when she unexpectedly inherits her estranged grandfather’s mafia empire in Italy, it’s her chance to do something for herself. Guided by the film’s consigliere, played by Monica Belucci, Kristin takes the cannoli AND the gun becoming a bad mamma jamma creatively fighting her family out of a turf war and on to heights no one expected her to reach.
Mafia Mamma is My Fair Donna. A classic fish out of water story. Its refreshing to see a woman put in a powerful role and to watch a seemingly mild mannered housewife, who doesn’t feel seen or heard, pull up her espadrille straps and take the reins of an organization that’s totally foreign in more ways than one. Mafia Mamma should be recognized for cracking the glass ceiling, but despite the plethora of power wielded by one woman , the action is more lipstick slapstick than critical thinking negotiation.
It’s Collette who makes this a fun film. It’s obvious she’s having a good time turning the tables on the Dons of the past and acting out some current fantasies, but despite all the mobster murders, which kept my husband Ricky awake, this movie isn’t whack.
Mafia Mamma doesn’t sleep with the fishes, but by the time you leave the theater, you’ll fuggedaboutit. Mafia Mamma gets a 5 out of 10.
