When Rocco (Andrea Amato) comes out, his liberal parents (Veronica Pivetti and Corrado Invernizzi) react poorly. He leaves town, in a rage, to see his favorite singer (Jacopo Brogioni) in concert. His helicopter mom pursues. A Little Lust (Né Giulietta, né Romeo) starts off well. Rocco is a likeable character with agency. His relationship with his mother was enough to build a film around. Unfortunately, the screenplay adds a crowd of additional characters and subplots. The central conflict gets lost in the shuffle. I grew increasingly frustrated as things progressed. A choppy third act suggests the 104-minute film lost something important on the cutting room floor.

I’ll attempt to summarize in this spoiler filled recap.

Rocco’s Modern Life

Scene One: High School
TEEN FRIENDS: Rocco did you see the news? Pop star Jody McGee was outed and assaulted. He says this tour will be his last.
ROCCO (Angsty teen): Homophobic bastards. We have to get tickets to his show.
SHY BOY: Hi. I’m new here. Which way are the bathrooms?

Scene Two: After School
(An ambulance leaves as Mom drives up.)
MOM (A journalist. Divorced.): What happened?
BULLY: I caught two queers hooking up in the bathroom. One ran off. The other jumped out the window and broke his arm.
MOM: How awful. Rocco why are you crying? There’s nothing wrong with gay people.
ROCCO: I was the other queer in the bathroom.
MOM: Don’t say such a thing! This is just a phase.
DAD (A therapist. Arrogant.): My castrating ex-wife turned you gay? This will ruin my reputation!
ROCCO: You’re just like the parents in Romeo and Juliet.

Scene Three: Road Trip
ROCCO: I stole mom’s car and dad’s credit card. We’re going to that damn concert.
TEEN FRIENDS: It’s sold out. How will we get tickets?
ROCCO: We’ll figure out something off screen.

Scene Four: The First Concert
ROCCO: The scalper ripped us off. Now we can’t get in.
MOM: Rocco! I’m taking you home this instant… And my car got towed.
ROCCO: This rock’s gonna roll!
(Rocco and friends hop on a bus to Milan and somehow get tickets to…)

Scene Five: The Second Concert
MOM: I finally caught up to you. We should talk about this gay thing.
ROCCO: No time for that! Dad knocked up my English teacher. My Fascist Grandmother just tried marijuana. One of my Teen Friends is suddenly homophobic. And I met this Mystery Guy who looks just like pop star Jody McGee. I want to talk to him but I’m shy.
MYSTERY GUY: Don’t worry. Take it easy. (This is the only time he speaks.)
ROCCO: Are you Jody McGee? You’re clearly played by the same actor, but why would you be in the audience of your own concert? And… I lost you in the crowd.

Scene Six: Parking Lot
FASCIST GRANDMA: I’m high as a kite. Woo! How was the concert?
ROCCO: Awesome. It happened off screen ‘cuz we have no budget. Also, I’m gay.
FASCIST GRANDMA: Your late grandpa would hate that. But I say better gay, then a communist. I love you. (Jump cut.)
MOM: I love you, Rocco. (Jump cut.)
DAD (on the phone): I love you too son. (Jump cut.)
ROCCO: Great. Everybody loves me. When exactly did you get over the gay thing? Between jump cuts?
MOM: Don’t worry about it. The film was running long. It’s hard to direct and co-star simultaneously.

Scene Seven: A Street Corner
RADIO: Pop singer Jody McGee was found dead in his hotel room.
ROCCO: They fridged him?
(Mystery Guy walks up to Rocco.)
ROCCO: Did Jody McGee fake his own death to escape the paparazzi? Or are you just a random older man that I’m going to hook up with? A shame I never bothered to visit my first crush in the hospital.
(Mystery Guy smiles. He and Rocco walk into the horizon.)
ROCCO: You really don’t have any other lines?

THE END

Something’s Missing

A Little Lust definitely has a bit of an identity crisis but it’s a sweet movie that offers something new about coming out. ~ Entertainment Focus

A Little Lust was nominated for three awards by the Italian Foreign Press Association: Best Debut Film, Best Comedy and Best Actress. It was Veronica Pivetti’s first, and so far, only, directing credit. She was already an established actress. She finds the charm and humor in the role of the stressed-out mother. But her path to acceptance is hard to track. The father’s hostility and the teen friends’ acceptance seem to influence her. But her conversations with Rocco never dig deep enough.

It’s a shame that two gay men get fridged on Rocco’s journey to acceptance. His high school crush is forgotten about 30 minutes in. Jody McGee sings some terrible songs on the soundtrack. But never gets to speak for himself. As for the Mystery Man… he could have been a mentor or guardian angel. Making him Rocco’s new love interest is tricky. Who is he? Where is he from? How old is he? A conversation could have brought a more satisfying conclusion to the story.

Instead, we end with a monologue from his father. Dad’s writing a novel about his experiences called Né Giulietta, né Romeo. Is he comparing himself to Juliet’s father Lord Capulet? The title is as vague as the English title A Little Lust.

The film is currently streaming on Dekoo and TUBI. You can find more of my reviews on The Avocado, Letterboxd and Serializd. My podcast, Rainbow Colored Glasses, can be found here.