Connie and Carla MPAA Rating: PG-13 Entertainment: +3 1/2 Content: -2

Two lifelong girl friends, Connie (Nia Vardalos, also writer of the script) and Carla (Toni Collette), have dreamed of singing careers since they were in grammar school. As grown-ups, they struggle to get gigs in the St. Louis airport lounge and dinner theatres. When the two are caught spying on a mob murder, Connie and Carla embark on a wild adventure that leads them to Los Angeles. They rent an apartment at the center of a tightly knit gay community that features a neighborhood bar where transvestites perform musical numbers. Posing as gay men in drag, Connie and Carla become an instant hit at the bar and convince the owner to add a dinner theatre to accommodate bigger crowds. Complications arise when Connie falls for Jeff (David Duchovny), a straight guy trying to accept his brothers homosexuality. Nia Vardalos, the star and writer of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, probably ensures another box-office blockbuster.

Jeffs efforts to reconcile with his brother demonstrate the proper approach of loving the person and hating the behavior, but the acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle, which permeates the movie, will offend many discerning audiences. Cross-dressing, effeminate men and same-sex kissing are used as entertainment. Two straight women posing as gay men invites some crude humor, such as one gay man groping Connies breast to see if its real. When Connie drops her purse, a feminine product falls out as Jeff helps her pick up the contents. Particularly offensive is a musical number from Jesus Christ, Super Star with one of the flamboyantly gay men portraying Jesus. A drug-filled plastic bag in the girls car breaks open, producing a cloud of white dust. Connie and Carla contains no sex or nudity and only a few profanities and obscenities, but its treatment of homosexuality as a valid and entertaining lifestyle earns it a negative rating.

Preview Reviewer: Mary Draughon
Distributor: Universal