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Packed with atmosphere, this old-fashioned but deftly told ghost story delivers ample chills and thrills.

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The Salt Of Life (Film)

by Catherine Brown | December 19, 2011 17:11 | Edited December 19, 2011 17:12

It’s engaging and charming enough, but for a flick musing about life, love and growing older, this doesn’t offer up anything profound or even unique.

Gianni Di Gregorio once again pulls triple duty as actor, writer and director in his latest passion project, The Salt Of Life, a perfectly pleasant, if not particularly memorable, chronicle of one man's desperate struggle to retain vitality after retirement. Di Gregorio stars as the semi-autobiographical character, Gianni, a sixty-year-old retiree whose days now consist of nothing more than running thankless errands for the demanding women in his life. Unsettled by the ageing process and fed up with being ignored, Gianni takes the advice of his best friend, Alfonso (Alfonso Santagata), a sex crazed lawyer who actively encourages Gianni to reinvigorate his youth by taking a mistress. Unfortunately, Gianni's search for a sexual conquest is not as successful as he hoped; after all, being at the beck and call of a wacky mother (a scene stealing Valeria De Franciscis Bendoni), prickly wife (played by Di Gregorio's real spouse, Elisabetta Piccolomini) and flamboyant neighbour (Aylin Prandi) leaves little time in the day for romance.

 

Although The Salt Of Life doesn't quite reach the same heights as Di Gregorio's acclaimed 2008 comedy, Mid August Lunch, it still possesses a certain charm. Di Gregorio is a master at infusing his comedies with subtle realism, making his situational brand of humour highly relatable. That said, whilst the film is predominately engaging, its musings on life, love and the ageing process aren't at all unique or profound.

 

Scant on plot, much of the narrative consists of Gianni finding himself in a plethora of situations that reinforce how underappreciated he is by seemingly every person that he comes into contact with. While many of these scenes elicit laughs, the constant repetition grows tedious. In the end, perhaps the film itself could use a bit more salt, as it often runs dangerously close to coming across as bland.