In 1930s fascist Italy, adolescent Luca just lost his mother. His father, a callous businessman, sends him to be taken care of by British expatriate Mary Wallace. Mary and her cultured friends - including artist Arabella, young widow Elsa, and archaeologist Georgie - keep a watchful eye over the boy. But the women's cultivated lives take a dramatic turn when Allied forces declare war on Mussolini.
Maggie Smith
as Lady Hester Random
Judi Dench
as Arabella
Joan Plowright
as Mary Wallace
Cher
as Elsa Strauss-Almerson
Lily Tomlin
as Georgina "Georgie" Rockwell
Baird Wallace
as Luca
Charlie Lucas
as Luca (Child)
Michael Williams
as British Consul
Paul Chequer
as Wilfred Random, aka Miss Lucy
Massimo Ghini
as Paolo
Paolo Seganti
as Vittorio Fanfanni
Tessa Pritchard
as Connie Raynor
