Almost Family Review
Director: Felipe Joffily
Date Created: 2025-07-19 19:15
3.5
Almost Family Review: Directed by Felipe Joffily, Família Pero no Mucho is a Brazilian drama-comedy. With a runtime of 1 hour and 21 minutes, the film has Leandro Hassum, Júlia Svacinna, Simon Hempe, Gabriel Goity, Karina Ramil, and Felippe Sanches. The film unites Argentine and Brazilian characters on a family vacation with misunderstandings, plot turns, and emotional surprises. The film is the story of Ottavio, a proud Brazilian bar owner, who is compelled to confront his prejudices and phobias when his daughter informs him she is to be married to an Argentine.
Netflix’s Almost Family is that catch-all, feel-good family movie, but it’s more heart and substance than I expected. It isn’t a game-changer, but it does put itself in the right place to be—a simple, comforting, and accessible bit of entertainment that looks at the impact of cultural stereotypes on personal relationships.
Almost Family Review
I liked the way the Almost Family movie employed humour to touch beneath the surface feelings. The Brazil-Argentina rivalry is employed as a joke, yet beneath are genuine feelings, such as a father not wishing to lose his daughter or a man not wishing to lose his position in her life. These are universal themes, and they make the movie more emotionally real than at first glance one might initially consider its slapstick humour.
Leandro Hassum as Otavio gives a funny yet heartfelt performance. His exaggerated facial expressions, sarcastic comments, and stubbornness create a character who is both frustrating and human. One minute you’ll be rolling your eyes at him, and the next minute you’ll be sorry for him. Júlia Svacinna as Mariana also does well to convey the frustration of a daughter who feels overlooked, and I liked how her passion for music made her character have some personality of her own beyond the romance.
Argentine cousins, particularly Hector, contribute to the mayhem with deadpan humour and backhanded compliments. The two dads’ confrontation is melodramatic, but knowing, it’s how real-life interactions are when ego and pride get in the way of what really matters.
I also appreciated how Almost Family on Netflix never attempted to be too sappy or too dramatic. It was at an even keel that made the show one that lingered in your mind like a weekend movie—laugh, get a dash of nostalgia, and leave the movie with a smile.
One of the most ingenious aspects of the tale was the manner in which the two fathers’ rivalry was converted to friendship when they discovered that they were attempting to thwart the same wedding. This was not only a humorous turn of events but also a lesson that most wars break out due to personal fears and not malice. It was amusing to observe how their “patriotism” was suddenly lost when they realised their vulnerabilities.
The other excellent aspect was the setting. Bariloche, Argentina, was beautiful on screen, and the snow added a beautiful visual to the movie. It also helped to make the culture shock between the two families more believable; Otavio’s discomfort with the snow and Hector’s sarcastic ski advice seemed real to the narrative.
Also Read: Delirium Review: Beautiful Disaster of Emotion and Madness with an Overdone Plot
Also, I appreciated that the ending did not tie up with some sort of conventional wedding ceremony to provide closure for the film. The twist with the other characters (no spoiler here) was a nice surprise, and it provided the film with continuity, like things just kept going off-screen.
While the film was enjoyable, Almost Family is not flawless. Some of the humour was more forced than it needed to be, and some of the gooey moments were rushed along a bit too rapidly. I would have preferred to have seen more put into Mariana and her father’s relationship when she returns home. They go from tension to forgiveness, and some extra emotional tension would have been preferable.
Additionally, although the cultural competition was entertaining, at times it did depend too heavily on stereotypes. I did sometimes catch myself hoping that the movie would dive a little deeper rather than skimming over stereotypes on the surface. That said, though, the movie isn’t trying to be anything else, so I couldn’t really fault it for it.
Família Pero no Mucho Review: Summing Up
Overall, the Brazilian movie Almost Family is a nice, feel-good film that delivers enough emotion and humour to be worth watching. It doesn’t try to fix everything, but it presents a small, simple story with charm and heart. The family dynamics are dysfunctional but recognisable, and the message of love, support, and acceptance is transmitted forcefully without being preachy.
Also Read: Superstar Review: Bold But Confusing Glimpse into Spanish Pop Culture
