VIFF 2009 Mid-August Lunch Review

At only 75 minutes long, Mid-August Lunch is a short but savory Italian treat.

Here is the VIFF 09 description of the film:

In Gianni Di Gregorio's delightful debut, an obliging middle-aged son finds himself catering to a spry but temperamental geriatric foursome--including his own mother. On the August holiday of Ferragosto, that celebrates the ascension of the Virgin Mary into heaven, pretty much the entire city of Rome empties out. Unfortunately for Gianni (played by the director himself), nursing a mountain of debt as well as his elderly mother Valeria, there is no easy escape. When the building manager realizes that he too can pawn off his own mother on Gianni (in exchange for forgiving a certain number of debts), the gray-haired quotient begins to escalate.

This is where the comedy comes in. In total (including his own mother) the senior set totals four and it does turn into an Italian version of the Golden Girls and that is not a bad thing. Each of the women offer different eccentricities that you could equate to the four women from the classic TV show. There is Marina who totally could be the Blanche of the group. There is Gianni's mother that could be the Dorothy of the group while Grazie who incessantly talks is Rose while Aunt Maria, who is a great cook, is Sophia down to the glasses.

There is also something very touching of how Gianni (who looks like Jerry Orbach) takes care of all these women, especially the three that are forced upon. He makes sure they have a place to sleep, make sure they eat well, take their medication and also make sure they are comfortable such as offering them a TV to watch. He does all this while taking more than the occassional sip of white wine.

The food in the movie should also get star billing. Their meals looked absolutely delicious and when the cast were talking about it in the film, it was even more delicious.

Even though Mid-August Lunch has finished its run at VIFF 09, I recommend checking it out if you ever get a chance.