On Screen: “Nonnas”
Nonnas
Feel-good films are few and far between these days, so discovering “Nonnas” was an unexpected delight. “Nonnas” was inspired by the true story of Jody Scaravella who, after the death of his mother, opened a restaurant called Enoteca Maria.
Always captivated by watching his Italian mother and grandmother (‘nonna’) in the kitchen, the words of comfort that touched inconsolable Joey (Vince Vaughn) the most were: “You need to feed your grief. It’s your only way through.”
Which explains why … a middle-aged M.T.A. mechanic living in Brooklyn, Joey knew nothing about opening and running a restaurant when he impulsively bought the run-down Staten Island property in 2007 and recruited four elderly ‘nonnas’ to cook authentic, traditional Italian dishes.
Passionate about preserving their cultural heritage as part of their legacy, Roberta (Lorraine Bracco) a prickly Sicilian, perpetually bickers with sassy Antonella (Brenda Vaccaro), whose family came from Bologna and whose daughter Olivia (Linda Cardellini) Joey dated years ago.
After leaving the convent, former nun Teresa (Talia Shire) is looking to reinvent her life, and beautician and breast cancer survivor Gia (Susan Sarandon) loves baking pastries. Perpetually under-appreciated, all four are supportive of one another and eager to go to work, embarking on this new adventure, proving that expertise has no age limit.
So — undaunted by a series of obstacles — like finances, building inspection permits and lack of customers — Joey relentlessly pursues his dream, assisted by his best friend Bruno (Joe Manganiello) and his wife Stella (Drea de Matteo).
Campbell Scott delivers a memorable cameo as an elusive food critic. And you can glimpse the ‘real’ Scaravella in the crowded dining room sequence with his ‘real’ pal Bruno.
Scripted by Liz Maccie and directed by her husband Stephen Chbosky, it’s an intergenerational testament to temerity and tenacity, since Enoteca Maria is still thriving almost two decades later and ‘capuzzelle’ (the stuffed lamb’s head dish) remains on the menu.
On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Nonnas” is a nostalgic, compassionate 7, streaming on Netflix.
Susan Granger is a product of Hollywood. Her natural father, S. Sylvan Simon, was a director and producer at M.G.M. and Columbia Pictures. Her adoptive father, Armand Deutsch, produced movies at M.G.M.
As a child, Susan appeared in movies with Abbott & Costello, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Margaret O’Brien, and Lassie. She attended Mills College in California, studying journalism with Pierre Salinger, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with highest honors in journalism.