"Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot" (Guardian 18/09/15)

Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot **

Dir: Matteo Oleotto. With: Giuseppe Battiston, Rok Prasnikar, Teco Celio, Roberto Citran. 106 mins. Cert: 15

 
A curious item to push into our crowded marketplace: a low-watt Italian comedy that proceeds with no stars, droll-to-hypoglycaemic energy levels and an altogether familiar odd-couple dynamic. Pairing the Falstaffian Paolo (Giuseppe Battiston) with Zoran (Rok Prasnikar), the dorky teen he inherits from his late aunt’s estate, yields one semi-winning diversion when the kid reveals a money-spinning facility with darts. Yet even this tangent proves a dead end, pulling up short of the much-mooted world championships in Glasgow. Though not unpleasant, such meandering feels naggingly negligible: the central relationship is what BBC3’s Uncle has been doing for several seasons with more laughs and surprises, and greater emotional heft. 

Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot is now playing in selected cinemas.