Das Festmahl im August

To help pay some debts, Gianni, an unemployed, single, middle aged man, agrees to look after four very old women for a night. Antics DO NOT ensue, as you might expect, but friendship food,and joy. The director, Gianni Di Gregorio, wrote it, acted in it, used his own apartment, based it on an incident in his own life, and then and cast the women from hundreds of non-professionals. The result is a unique and brilliant short story of a film. It was pointed out that August 15 is Feast of the Assumption, and that in religious mythology Mary "having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory". The old women in this movie are also ascending to heaven without death, and the movie glories in the blessings and quirks of old age. If you love your mother, Italy, or Italian movies – see it!

Simple and Beautiful. The story of a bachelor living in Rome with his aged mother. They struggle to make ends meet. Forced to take in three elder ladies to help pay the bills, the couple makes the best of the situation. The new "nuclear" family enjoys the dreaded August heat in Rome by sharing the simple joys of life.

A joy to watch.

True art when someone can make a story like this so memorable. If you tired of the big budget extravaganza films with too many special effects and big time actors and want to get back to the art of film, "Lunch in August" is a perfect alternative. In Italian.

This gentle movie, about a middle-aged man left caring for some elderly relatives (and non-relatives) during a public holiday, is notable for some fine performances from a truly aged cast; at least one member was 94 when the film was made. It's quite perceptive about the way that old people interact; and it's younger male lead (played by the writer and director) is also shrewdly drawn. What there isn't is any real plot beyond the set-up: there's almost unlimited potential for disaster here, but none of it ultimately happens. The result is mild, in places amusing, but something short of riveting: rather like visiting an elderly aunt's for tea.

Gianni (Gianni Di Gregorio), who is well into his forties, has no job or income and still lives in his comfortable family home with his ageing mother. She is a capricious but refined woman who requires a lot of attention and even more patience. Gianni offers her those but can barely squeeze a little life of his own in there. When those around him escape from Rome for some fresh countryside air in the mid-summer weekend, he finds himself left behind in the empty city with a motley of elderly ladies.

I suppose many people will amuse themselves wondering if Mr Di Gregorio is playing himself, or at least a little... as the Gianni in the movie is somewhat removed from normal society. He seems to have accepted that he will be taking care of his mother, at the expense of having his own life. This is a rare form of self-sacrifice in our day, and shows, through our own eyes, our expectations of an individual's life. Can you live a full life without a romantic relationship? Can you feel content without being able to provide for yourself (and your family), without perusing some kind of personal development? How far from the ordinary can you be removed and still feel content about your life?

It is not easy. Gianni needs money and yet does not work. Of course if he would work, then who would take care of his mother? Should he be working to be able to pay for a home for her, so that he can start a relationship of his own? Then his mother would be all alone, unhappy and less well taken care of than in the company of her own son. The dilemma of the ageing society laid bare.

When we see the elderly ladies laughing and interacting together, it is almost as if a choice has to be made in society, that either the elderly or the young have to sacrifice themselves for the other. This awkward thought is dispelled later on, at least somewhat, as the characters all find a place for themselves in this unexpected weekend away without leaving. This is a touching and funny film, which should have been released here in May when everyone has one foot at home and the other in a long weekend away. It would have added a nice tie-in with the reality around us.

I loved this movie! It's a little movie that totally captivated me. It's the story of a middle-aged unmarried man who lives in Rome with his mother. Money is obviously tight but they seem to live a very nice life. Unfortunately, the condominium bills keep piling up. So when the head of the condominium offers to forgive the expenses in return for his caring for the condo head's mother for 2 days (over Ferragosto), he agrees. When the mother shows up, an aunt also comes - obviously a packaged deal. Through another act of fate, another elderly woman comes to share the overnight experience. The women are wonderful as is the main actor (Gianni DiGregorio) - he is also the writer and director. He was at the showing I attended and shared some interesting info. These women are not actors. One is his aunt and one is a family friend. He found the other two at a home for the elderly. Said he interviewed 100 women and had trouble deciding because so many were so wonderful. The crew was exhausted at the end of the day - these women were on a roll - and all were over 90 years old. The apartment in which he lived was actually the apartment in which he had lived with his mother. This was a low- budget film which was one of the reasons that he starred in the film, i.e., he couldn't afford to hire a "real" actor. Thank you Gianni for a wonderful movie!