Bite into "Big Night", a culinary delight, which never did get the
attention it deserved in theaters but will hopefully find its
audience in video. Like the sumptuous meal that Jersey shore
restaurateurs throw for Louis Prima in the hopes of attracting
attention to their failing establishment, "Big Night" is a work of
art. Lovingly crafted by Stanley Tucci, it is a tribute to food, to
all things American, to immigrants trying to make it, and to the love
between brothers. Tucci wrote it with Joseph Tropiano, directed it
with Campbell Scott, and stars in it with Tony Shalhoub, Minnie
Driver, Isabella Rosellini, and one of my favorites, Ian Holm. I knew
it would be a winner at Sundance and it did, in fact, receive the
Screenwriting Award. But just as the folks in the fifties expected
Italian food to be spaghetti and sauce, we have come to expect the
usual thing at the movies. So when Tucci comes up with risotto and
timpano, we don't know how to react. So don't make popcorn to have
with this one. Not even a pizza will do. "Big Night" will make your
mouth water for something more, and maybe leave you unsatisfied with
the usual movie fare as well. Rated R for language.
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