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Let's get the bad things first. The plot is predictable and you have probably seen it before quite a few times, all the good guys (even those with 2 minutes of screen time) are indestructible (martial art wizards level), and there must have been a serious shortage of guns and bullets because the bad guys rarely use any (and when they do they obviously miss like any known to human action film).

Having said that, onto the good parts.

Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx as leads do a very good job to elevate the pretty standard plot they had and give it a little bit of character.

The whole movie was created with them as an extremely balanced duo (nor a male character as a lead and a damsel in distress neither an OP female lead with a secondary male), like Mr and Mrs Smith in strength but with a smooth relationship. The portrayal of them both as a couple, as parents and all their history is very well done to the level that you actually care about them and their family (doesn't hurt to have to elite actors).

Glenn Close as a secondary character is just a gem. The role of a weird British grandmother with a couple of twists suits her very well and really transcends a part that could have been quite dull without her performance.

The kids were annoying, like any 12 and 14 year old. So kudos to the youngsters, McKenna Roberts and Rylan Jackson for their delivery.

I criticized before the more scarce use of guns (again using them would have really help the bad guys), but if it was a stylistic choice to emphasize more the street fight, I was up for it, and the fight scenes were decent.

So in the end, we have a movie with an ok flow, good portrayals, decent fights, while the comedy was subtly there (no ROFL but neither the typical vomiting etc stuff). If you are in a mood for a stereotypical action-comedy that you don't need to think too much, you will probably have a good time.

It is always a pity and unfair for a movie to compare it with others. In the case of "Love's Greek to Me" however, it is difficult to avoid any comparison with "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". The premise and consequently the scenario is very simple and around similar ideas: a foreigner joins through romance a Greek family and has to deal with the different culture, traditions, and Greek hyperbole, with the differences in this movie being that this takes place in Greece, the foreign protagonist is a female and the major "problem-creator" is the mother-in-law.

The depiction of Greek habits and behaviours is a little over the top. But personally, even as a Greek, I didn't find it offensive and rather enjoyed this aspect, since even though it was a little excessive, some of these behaviours are to a much lesser extent present in real-life and in fact Greece is heavily rooted in tradition. But contrary to My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the movie appeared less witty and left the characters defined simply as an expression of their caricatures rather than give them some depth. The only character I felt that had a meaningful and healthy arc was Alex (Mike's sister who was getting married).

Without hitting around the bush, let's get to the major flaws of the piece.

First, once again it appears that Greek actors cannot act to the same level as their foreign counterparts. The difference between Torrey DeVitto (Ilana) and even Jo Price (Ilana' mother) who had much less screen time with the rest of the mostly Greek cast was staggering. Especially the performance of Tsimitselis, who is a big name in Greece (we actually feel that he has made a deal and sold his soul to the devil as he appears everywhere), was somewhat blunt and uninspiring and a huge reason why the relationship/chemistry between Mike and Ilana was not believable, despite Torrey DeVitto' great efforts. At least the as always beautiful Santorini and the Greek scenery get a big win for team Greece.

Second, sometimes I felt angry with the screenplay. Obviously, the most interesting character is Ilana which is also played by a much bigger name than the rest of the characters. It is therefore understandable that much of what is happening is centered around Ilana, while the movie is essentially a portrayal from her point of view. But here lies the issue. In their core, the problems faced by our couple are around Illana's fear of commitment and Mike's indecisiveness and poor communication of his life's aspirations and plans (+mommy issues). But throughout the whole movie we see everyone including crucially Mike blaming Ilana like what is happening is primarily her fault, while to the contrary Mike showcased a lot of toxic aspects and manipulative behaviours. Even when Illana raises her concerns, the movie/Mike quickly avoids the tension and then forgets about it. Neither we nor Illana are faced with this admittedly kind of misogynistic reality, and the movie does not provide a resolution to this. Generally, when the recommendation is "Boys don't be like Mike" and "Girls don't put up with so much and accept to be victim blamed as Illana" there is something wrong.

Overall, was it terrible? No? Was it enjoyable? So and so. Would I recommend seeing this? It's less than 90 minutes and if you liked "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" you will get a long distant cousin that can be somewhat enjoyable, you probably won't say that you absolutely wasted an hour and a half, and you support a smaller production effort. Maybe with company, especially if you have a Greek friend (to provide live commentary) this could end up being unexpectedly fun.

Going into a John Wick movie you should probably be aware of what you are about to view and adapt your expectations accordingly. And honestly I really liked the previous movies, and I consider the first one to be one of the greatest action movies. But honestly, this 4th installment is just too much. I was at awe to see that it is now the most high-rated in the franchise and at the time that this review is written has an astonishing 8.2/10.

First, it seemed like the plot went missing. Again, this is a John Wick movie, you don't need something elaborate, but at least you should put a minimum effort. Friendships appeared out of nowhere, and the viewer is supposed to accept that these friendships are so strong that they could influence the events. Sub-plots related to these friendships were built and then left like nothing happened.

Second, one thing that this movie is praised is the almost non-stop action. To many people this seems like a positive. But honestly, the "calm before the storm" concept is something very useful to bring the viewer to the emotional status you want them, even in action movies. Here we didn't have this. Instead, we were bombarded with action scene after action scene, where John Wick should have died but didn't. And this fails to convey a fear. And after a while, all these action scenes appeared to be the same. There was a sequence towards the end which was different and more novel, which is appreciated. But apart from that everything was the same. Same moves, same choreography, people not dying when they should. John Wick is in constant danger and yet you don't fear for him for one second.

Third, contrary to popular belief, the movie was way too long (between 2.5-3 hours), and there were instances that the length could be reduced without losing too much, even within the non-stop action concept adopted by the movie. How many times do we need to climb the stairs in Montmartre?

This is not a bad action movie, but not as good as the 8.2 indicates.