Queerguru’s Robert Malcolm reviews ‘ACCIDENTAL FRIENDS’ an Italian queer rom-com screening at OUTshine Miami’s Queer Film Fest

Accidental Friends (Amici Per Caso) directed by Max Nardari, is a gay Italian rom-com that feels like it should have been made thirty years ago but has been made today, perhaps only because same-sex civil partnerships, but not marriages, were made legal in Italy in 2016.Its comedy depends on worn-out stereotypes and clichés about gay men, straight men, the bourgeoisie, and the proletariat, but it successfully breaks down prejudices and brings everyone together in the end…except for Roma and Juventus soccer supporters!Omero, a young art dealer, lives in Rome with his architect boyfriend Andy. The film opens with Andy proposing to Ome via a flash mob performing a cheesy dance routine in front of a city fountain. Ome is embarrassed by the attention and rejects the proposal. Andy, in a fit of pique, returns home to Milan.Meanwhile, Pietro, a sexy warehouseman and obsessive Roma soccer fan, forgets an important anniversary with his girlfriend Lolly, and she throws him out. He goes to live with a friend while looking for a permanent place to stay.Ome has been left with a problem. He needed Andy’s rent to pay the mortgage on his sprawling modern villa, so he advertises in a newspaper to find a house mate. This outdated method of house hunting is essential to the plot, because Pietro spills coffee on the newspaper and misreads “gay friendly house” as “pay friendly house”.Pietro moves in with Ome and apart from Pietro being a “Neanderthal” slob they seem to be hitting it off. Pietro even asks Ome to join his soccer team when they are a man short and Ome surprises everyone by scoring the winning goal. However, in the locker room, the conversation takes a homophobic turn and Ome realises that Pietro has no idea that he is gay.Ome is determined to come out to Pietro but not before Andy returns to complicate the situation.When Ome finally confesses to Pietro, Pietro is traumatised, moves out and gets drunk with his mates. They return him to Ome’s place, unconscious and covered in sick. Ome strips him, cleans himup and puts him to bed naked. The next day after some farcical misunderstandings, and plain speaking, Pietro comes around to accepting Ome and they start to plan a way of getting Lolly back, beginning with dress, manners and culture, with Ome as Professor Higgins and Pietro as Eliza Dolittle.This almost works, but once again his love of soccer interferes and Pietro has to resort to dramatic measures to get his girl.But soon all conflicts are resolved and everyone lives happily ever after.Filippo Tirabassi as Ome and Filippo Contri as Pietro are well matched as the odd couple, but ultimate praise must go to the charismatic Contri for stealing the show as a loveable blockhead.This movie wins no points for originality, and manages to make Rome look like California, but its life lessons, wholesomeness and feel good ending are sure to entertain family audiences.

 

 

Robert Malcolm is an Interior Designer who relocated from London to his home town of Edinburgh in 2019. Under the pen name of Bobby Burns he had his first novel, a gay erotic thriller called Bone Island published by Homofactus Press in 2011.