Kely Christmas I get the story. I get the message—I'm a movie message geek, if there ever was such a thing. But, there was no middle to this story. I really don't get how everything just evolved into the ending, in a sense? We never truly saw him all that happy until after his brother died. We never truly saw the love story develop between him and that girl, by the way, until the very end. We never saw him bond with his kids all that much, other than with his oldest son. . .though I wouldn't call that bonding completely. It was all just random; the ending came at such a random resolution. They spent so much time building up the story, creating the characters, and adding to the cinematography that we never truly see the exposition—the build up. When his brother died, I couldn't even force myself to feel sad or even sympathetic, to be honest. It was so random: one moment, his brother is in a mid-coma, and the next his brother dies? Huh? He literally tells him that "you have to let me go" and yet, what was there to let go off? Most of the movie, he was just there, he was just moping about and completely shoving at his brother. I never truly saw a moment where they hung out without that tension, where they laughed and had fun. I suppose the middle was supposed to be the pictures, which is completely lazy. I can't believe that movie was that. I was bored out of my mind in the beginning and then in the end, I was just disappointed. I felt a slight rise of happiness when I saw him dancing in the end, but then it ended of course.And don't get me wrong, I am all for sensitive, deep, and long, slow movies, but this went from beginning to end. There was no build up at all. I love—and I mean it—love family movies; family movies are all I live for in my cinema life, to be honest. But, this, this was just "family is broken" then suddenly, haphazardly "family is fixed." There was no slow progression into the ending, where we could see all of our favorite moments and list them one by one. It just began and ended.I can't force myself into liking a movie like that. No, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. It was barely okay—it was just here. No offense to all who felt deeply moved by it. I barely felt my heart move a bit in this movie. Anyway, oh well. It was at least a good try and a great opportunity for another ethnicity to get a movie that seemed true to their culture and their roots. At least, there were a few parts that made me smile—the dancing in the end, the daughter's silly love story, and that one scene of bonding between the dad and the oldest son. I can at least give the movie that.

David Ferguson Greetings again from the darkness. There is always a risk in stamping a movie with a particular label ... "Greek" in this case. It can limit the audience to which it appeals, if there are too many in-jokes or cultural references. Writer/director Marcus Markou offers up a terrific little story that most can enjoy. It's certainly not at the level of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", but it's charming and entertaining enough.Stephen Dillane stars as Harry, a self-made millionaire who loses everything during a financial market collapse. You will recognize Mr. Dillane as Thomas Jefferson from the HBO mini-series "John Adams". Here he plays a single dad to 3 kids: a stuttering plant loving son, a pop star-wannabe teenager daughter, and nerdy young son with a penchant for picking stock trends. Joining them is screen veteran Selina Cadell as the housekeeper/nanny. The crisis sends the family back into the life of Harry's brother Spiros, and they proceed to re-build the old family business ... Three Brother Fish & Chips.Sure, it's a formulaic story, but the characters are interesting enough and Uncle Spiros is so full of life and spirit that he can't help but get you excited for this second chance. Watching the family re-connect with each other and their past is not just pleasant, but also well presented. Mr. Dillane is wonderful as the uppity millionaire type, however, when he gives his hospital soliloquy regarding never feeling "so alive", I do wish we had actually seen more proof of that.While I most enjoyed the interactions between Harry and Spiros, the two musical/photo medleys seemed to interfere with the flow ... rather than shortcuts, they proved a bit annoying. However, it's always refreshing to see a movie where a family bonds together, and puts the past where it belongs.

pollythras After following the film's journey via twitter, right the way through to the cinema release, I finally saw this when it was released in London with family and friends.I had been anticipating seeing this film before it even finished filming. It most definitely lived up to my expectations! Papa&Sons is such a sweet, funny movie with a fantastic cast! Great feel good film, I laughed, I cried, I laughed again and left the cinema with a big smile on my face really well written and made. Definitely something I'd watch again and again and AGAIN!! Look forward to watching it with my Greek Cypriot parents next time they are in the UK as it's soon out on DVD whoo-hoo! Great job Marcus Markou and one up for the independent film maker!!!!!

Kaoru Sato I was invited to a preview screening of Papadopoulos & Sons and went without any expectations one way or the other. The narrative is deceptively simple but hides a surprising number of subtexts that reveal themselves through the compact running time. One one level, it's a straightforward recession era story of a family's struggle in dramatically reduced economic circumstances. The Greek diaspora background adds poignancy given that country's particularly fragile position within the economic crisis, but also adds a more mythological framework as a particularly ancient Greek style familial tragicomedy plays out with an onlooking comic chorus of London types from Kebab shop owners to asset stripping loss adjusters.Deep down it is a warm hearted and unashamedly sentimental British family drama, albeit distinctively shot through with a Mediterranean sense of fable. A likable ensemble cast and an unobtrusive camera guide you through with a smile on your face.