In “Italian Studies,” the wonderful Vanessa Kirby is stranded in a sea of nothingness. This is the kind of pretentious independent film that gives the art form a bad name. It’s intended to be a surreal and hypnotic dive into the head of an amnesiac, but is akin to watching paint dry for a mind-numbing 78 minutes. Kirby’s, at first, unnamed protagonist gets a severe bout of temporary amnesia, she can’t remember who she is and what she’s doing on the streets of New York City. She wanders around, thinks back about prior conversations that vaguely pop into her head. Meanwhile, what are the odds that in a city of 14 million people, she bumps into people who know her, but that she sadly can’t remember. It turns out her name is Alina Reynolds and she’s a semi-successful author. Despite knowing her identity, a lot of questions go unresolved; does she have family? is she married? what’s the deal with the temporary amnesia? Alas, anyone hoping for an answer will be disappointed As Nicholas Britell’s beautifully atmospheric score continuously invades the muddled frames of this film, much like Alina, your interest starts to wander more and more. This disappointing film is all the more crushing when you realize it was directed by Adam Leon, whose last film, “Tramps,” was a buried indie treasure at TIFF 2016. And, there are moments in “Italian Studies” that do hint at something much better. I’m almost inclined to say that I’d watch Kirby read the phone book and be enthralled by her enigmatic presence, but I guess roaming around the streets of New York City with no purpose whatsoever seems to stretch those limits of patience, and sanity.
SCORE: C