“You have to do what your heart tells you to do—if you even know what it is.”
Lost in Florence is the story of a young man who must find his future. Will he just be blown by the winds of life, or will he take control of his destiny?
While visiting his cousin in Florence, American football player (not quite good enough for the NFL) Eric Lombard (Brett Dalton) proposes to his girlfriend, Colleen (Emily Atack)—and is shocked and heartbroken when she turns him down. Rather than return home to law school, he stays in Italy where he discovers Calcio Storico, a brutally violent Italian game like rugby, only with no rules. He enjoys the beauty of the ancient city, and meets Stefania (Alessandra Mastronardi), the girlfriend of the team captain and Eric’s friend Paolo (Alessandro Preziosi).
In some ways Eric is stuck between looking back and looking forward. (It is of interest to note that, as he is studying Italian, he always seems to be working on verb tenses.) He isn’t ready to let go of his football dreams. The reason Colleen turned down his proposal was because he wasn’t willing to commit to law school and move on to a future together. When he is with Stefania, she pushes him to live in the moment.
The game Calcio plays into the idea of past and future as well. Dating back to the 17th Century, the game was played by Medicis and popes. It is said that Michelangelo designed the ball. It continues to have elaborate parades with traditionally costumed drummers and flag bearers leading up to a game. There is so much anachronistic about the game, yet for Eric it is the passion he finds to focus his energies.
But Eric’s real problem is that he has failed to take control of his life. When he was cut by the NFL team, they told him to go to Canada and improve, so he played in Canada. When Colleen rejects his proposal, he just mopes in bed for several days. When Paolo learns of Eric and Stefania and tells Eric he is off the team, he quickly acquiesces. At some point he needs to learn to choose what he wants his life to be and be an active agent in making that happen.
Photos by John O’Malley, courtesy of Orion Pictures