ICFF wrap-up: Edoardo Leo, awards and mocap

Story & photos by Allan Tong

The fourth Italian Contemporary Film Festival wrapped on Friday evening with a lavish red-carpet gala party at the Ritz-Carlton. Italian comedy star Edoardo Leo picked up The People’s Choice Award for his film, Noi e la Giulia, that he both directed and starred in. Leo also appeared at ICFF in the comedy, I Can Quit Whenever I Want.

Mischa Barton (Hope Lost) received an Award of Honour from the festival. Sergio Navaretta, an Italian-Canadian director, captured the Castlepoint Numa Award for his romantic-comedy, The Colossal Failure of the Modern Relationship, at the gala. (Full review here.)

Italian Contemporary Film Festival roundup - the sequel

by Allan Tong

The second half of the Italian Contemporary Film Festival offers some gems, with screenings in Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City and Vaughan through Friday.

Directed by Sydney Sibilia, I Can Quit Whenever I Want is a lively comedy bout a university science researcher (Italian star Edoardo Leo, center above) who loses his job and turns to making a potent synthetic drug to get by. He hires his academic buddies, all of them underemployed now washing dishes or pumping gas but were once chemists and economists, to form his gang to sell his "non-illegal" drug to clubbers.

The comedy obviously tips its cap to Breaking Bad and Weeds, but fortunately steers clear of corniness and cuteness that plagues so many Italian comedies. Instead, the movie is a deadpan and surprisingly tongue-and-cheek critique of modern Italian society where even the most educated can't land a job. I Can Quit Whenever I Want, however, ends abruptly and the story could've used one last turn, but it's still a fun, entertaining romp.