Sunday April 29 7:28 PM ET
Everett checking into Italian comedy

By David Rooney

ROME (Variety) - Rupert Everett is in advanced negotiations to play a
British nobleman fallen on hard times in ``South Kensington,'' an
English-language comedy feature due to start shooting in London in
July.

Everett will play a member of the English aristocracy whose father
has squandered the family fortune. To make ends meet, he is forced to
take in lodgers at his swanky residence in the neighborhood of the
title.

The landlord character functions as the link between several
interlocking stories of love and friendship involving young Italians
and other Europeans living in London for work or study.

The $7 million film represents a move into more sophisticated comedy
for Italian writer-director team Carlo and Enrico Vanzina, exponents
of the Italian commercial mainstream since the 1970s.

Writer Enrico and his brother Carlo, who directs, suffered at the box
office with their last two films, light comedies with simple
storylines and no major-name stars. ``South Kensington'' promises a
more complex plot and higher-profile cast.

Reuters/Variety REUTERS