Actor Carmine Famiglietti and director Matthew Bonifacio team up to write the script for the comedy drama Lbs. Famiglietti stars as Neil Perota, an Italian man with a food addiction who weighs more than 300 pounds. Following a heart attack, he realizes that he needs to do something soon or his health will deteriorate. But since he still lives at home in Brooklyn, he can't seem to make the lifestyle changes required to lose weight. After his sister's wedding, he leaves the city and stays in a
trailer in the woods. Living by himself, he tries to reclaim his life. Meanwhile, his friend is also suffering from a different kind of addiction. Carmine Famiglietti is also a songwriter, comedian, and member of the Queens-based rap group the Ha Ya Doin' Boys. Lbs. premiered at the Sundance Film Festival as part of the American Spectrum competition. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
Those concerned with obesity issues may find "Lbs." authentic and inspirational. Otherwise it's an earnest little low-budget indie without much to distinguish it.
With obesity now a pop-culture as well as a medical issue, Lbs. offers insight -- as well as laughs and heartstring tugging -- into the struggles of a food addict.
Lbs. look and feel has an unassuming confidence that's all the more remarkable for this being a first feature, when new filmmakers usually can't resist being flashy in an attempt to be memorable.
When a movie is written and filmed as part of the writer-actor's effort to save his own life and slim down, the movie feels, to a certain extent, critic-proof.
An inspirational drama that's somewhat unfocused and occasionally veers toward contrivance and oversimplification, but remains engaging thanks to Famiglietti's brave, warm and charismatic performance.
On one side, the film deals with a subject not often touched and this alone gives it an urgency and a credibility...but formally the film earns no stripes.
Kudos to Matthew Bonifacio for crafting an inspirational, humorous portrait of an individual grappling with an addiction that, unlike heroin or alcohol, has rarely been addressed in film.
If you were to write an utterly predictable tale of a druggie and then replace "slice of pizza" for every instance of "cocaine" in the script you would get Lbs.
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