Joe and Mary have been living together in Manhattan for six years. Joe is an actor, who has no agent and no thesping credits, but whose ambitions are very high. He works as a waiter at a cafe. Mary works as a make-up stylist for hot fashion photographer Blair, and she pays most of the pair's bills. Joe finally lowers his standards and accepts a degrading bit in a Madonna video, while his friend and co-waiter Bob gets a high-paying job on a soap opera opposite siren Kelly.

Self-esteem and insecurity are at the heart of this comedy about the relationship between a mother and her three confused daughters.

Following the death of their mother (Hope Davis), two young sisters accompany their father (Colin Firth) to the Italian city of Genoa, where an old friend (Catherine Keener) has gotten him a teaching assignment for the summer. Still coping with the grief over the loss of their mother in two very different ways, the girls soon find themselves swept up in a city and lifestyle that seem as equally alluring as they do imposing. While the youngest daughter remains haunted by visions of her mother, the elder embarks on a sexual awakening rooted in a desire for a clean break. And as the summer progresses, both girls and their father must come to terms with their irreplaceable loss and find a way to once again become a family. *"Haunting, suspenseful and powerfully emotional, this is a brilliantly directed drama with terrific performances from Firth, Holland and Haney-Jardine." - Matthew Turner, **ViewLondon***