To Rome with Love (2012)

Hayley’s Story. American tourist Hayley falls in love with and becomes engaged to Italian pro bono lawyer Michelangelo while spending a summer in Rome. Her parents, Jerry and Phyllis, fly to Italy to meet her fiancé and his parents. During the visit, Michelangelo’s mortician father Giancarlo sings in the shower and Jerry, a retired—and critically reviled—opera director, feels inspired to bring Giancarlo’s gift to the public. Jerry convinces a reluctant Giancarlo to audition in front of a room of opera bigwigs, but Giancarlo performs poorly in this setting. Michelangelo accuses Jerry of embarrassing his father and trying to use him to revive his own failed career, which in turn breeds discontent between Michelangelo and Hayley.

Antonio’s Story. Newlyweds Antonio and Milly plan to move to Rome because Antonio’s uncles have offered him a job in their family’s business. After checking into their hotel, Milly decides to visit a salon before meeting Antonio’s relatives. She becomes lost and loses her cell phone, but ends up at a film shoot where she meets Luca Salta, an actor she idolizes. He invites her to lunch. Back at the hotel, Antonio is worried Milly will be late for their lunch date with his aunts and uncles. Anna, a prostitute, then arrives, having mistakenly been sent to his room.

Leopoldo’s Story. Leopoldo lives a mundane life with his wife and two children. The best part of his day is watching his boss’s beautiful secretary Serafina walk around the office. Inexplicably, he wakes up one morning to discover that he has become a national celebrity. Paparazzi document his every move. Reporters ask him what he had for breakfast, if he wears boxers or briefs, whether he thinks it will rain or with which hand he scratches his head. Leopoldo even becomes a manager at his company, and Serafina sleeps with him. He begins dating models and attending prestigious film premieres. The constant attention wears on him, though. One day, in the middle of interviewing Leopoldo, the paparazzi spot a man “who looks more interesting”, and they abandon Leopoldo. At first, Leopoldo welcomes the return to his old life, but one afternoon he breaks down when no one asks for his autograph.

John’s Story. John, a well-known architect, is visiting Rome with his wife and their friends. He had lived there some 30 years ago, and he would rather revisit his old haunts than go sightseeing with the others. While looking for his old apartment building, John meets Jack, an American architecture student who recognizes him. Jack happens to live in John’s old building, and invites him up to the apartment he shares with his girlfriend Sally. Throughout the rest of the story, John appears as a quasi-real and quasi-imaginary figure around Jack and makes unusually frank observations of events. Sally tells Jack that she invited her best friend Monica, an actress, to stay with them and tells him that Monica gives off a sexual vibe that drives men crazy.