Mel Gibson Goofs Off While Dining in Rome and Working on New Film

Mel Gibson was hamming it up for the cameras -- or should it be prosciutto? -- dining solo in Rome while working on his latest film project.

Mel was snapped on Thursday enjoying some delicious-looking pasta ... and proceeded to goof off -- as you can clearly see -- when he noticed he was being photographed.

A source close to Mel tells TMZ ... He's in Rome for pre-production of "Resurrection of the Christ" -- which is the follow-up to his 2004 biblical epic, "The Passion of the Christ."

As we reported ... Mel was recently in the news when a straw poll showed he was a popular candidate to run for California governor ... but a source close to the actor told us he's not interested in politics -- although he's flattered by the results.