Mid-August Lunch has no grand ambitions other than to express the gentle joy that comes with long life lived. Gianni Di Gregorio does triple duty by, writing, starring in, and directing this film, his first feature.

Its plot is so simple, it’s almost inconsequential.  In the movie, Gianni plays, er, “Gianni,” deeply in debt with his landlord, seemingly without a job, but with enough money to buy wine and food for himself and his 93-year-old mother that lives with him. One day, an acquaintance asks Gianni to look after his own elderly mother, in exchange for some pull with the landlord to forgive some back rent.  Gianni agrees, and soon he finds not one, but four more elderly ladies as guests in his home.  To complicate things, each has their own peculiarities about them, mostly dictated by their sons (“She can’t have tomato sauce,” “No cheese,” “Don’t let her run away,” etc.).

With a bit of bemused frustration, Gianni attends to the ladies’ needs, while the five of them reminisce, opine, and argue with high spirit.  It’s certainly refreshing to see elderly characters treated with such respect onscreen, even when comedy ensues from their peculiarities.  And it’s worth noting that Gianni seems to be the only one paying them any attention or respect, as the women’s sons leave them at Gianni’s doorstep with one foot still on the pedal of their Alfa Romeos. But by the end of the movie, the newfound friends find their way home, and Gianni figures he may have found a new calling, house-sitting the sprightly seniors for cash.

Mid-August Lunch breezes by at barely an hour and fifteen minutes; I watched the film on a plane ride from San Antonio to Denver.  By all accounts, it was pleasant way to while away my time in the sky.

MID-AUGUST LUNCH ON BLU-RAY & DVD

The DVD of Mid-August Lunch includes interviews with the cast and Gianni Di Gregorio.  The movie features several delicious-looking meals, and the DVD producers have helpfully included recipes for some of the dishes.

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