Fresh and Exciting

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

"La Strada" is Fellini's poignant drama about a simple, naïve young women Gelsomina (Giulietta Masina) who is 'sold' by her mother to be the consort/assistant of Zampanò, a cruel, itinerant street performer (Anthony Quinn). The film follows the two as they travel though post-war Italy performing Zampanò's shabby one-man show for handouts. While working in a run-down circus, they encounter "Il Matto" (Richard Basehart), a talented performer who takes an immediate dislike to Zampanò and taunts the quick-tempered strongman at every opportunity. Gelsomina is torn between her aversion to the harsh, thoughtless Zampanò and a feeling of duty toward him, which she begins to believe is her purpose in life. As the sweet, fragile Gelsomina, Giulietta Masina is fascinating to watch. She has limited dialogue and much of her story is told in her face, which ranges from almost expressionless vacuity to great joy to profound sadness, as she struggles to get along with her brutish companion. Quinn and Basehart, playing contrasting, antagonistic characters, are also excellent. Winner of the first Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Best seen in the original Italian, with subtitles if necessary.

If this isn't the saddest movie that I have ever seen, it is very close to the top of the list. Even more significant are the stellar performances of the three leads, the skill and sensitivity of Fellini's direction, the stark black and white cinematography of Martelli and Carlini, and the haunting theme song by Noni Rota, which must never be underestimated in its overall contribution to the prevailing sadness from beginning to end.Although the film occurs nearly a decade after World War II ravaged much of Italy, the bleakness and impoverishment of the Italian countryside serve as a perpetual backdrop to the disastrous events that befall the three central characters. Although I initially believed that the road covered much more of Italy, most of the movie was filmed in only three central Italian locations, including the towns of Viterbo and L'Aquila and the seaside at Fiumcino, not far from Rome.The first time I viewed "La Strada" was as a very young boy when it appeared on "Million Dollar Movie" for an entire week at a time. Although I could not have possessed a clue as to what was transpiring in front of me, I was nevertheless very impressed by the actors, the music, and the unique atmosphere even as a child. Needless to say, the film has immensely improved in time as I watch it as, more or less, an adult.How could the casting of Giulietta Masina have been as controversial as it was? I can't imagine anyone else on the screen as the simple and very expressive Gelsomina. She was outstanding and so were Anthony Quinn and Richard Basehart in three interacting roles that have been sharply defined and unforgettable for more than six decades. In Shakespearian tradition, it was the fool, played by Basehart, who ironically exposed the foolishness of those around him. In spite of the limitations of all, especially the unimaginative brute Zampano (Quinn), the story reveals the true humanity of us all. Along the road of "La Strada", life is often unkind, and we are only human, not gods. Forgive us all.

Others might see symbolism in the characters of this film based on the elements and director Federico Fellini certainly includes his familiar tropes in this film such as the sea, circus, clowns, beach, good women and prostitutes.To me this is a road picture of two not very bright people who end up together. Zampano (Anthony Quinn) has a circus strong man routine travelling around in a beat up camper van pulled by a motor cycle. His companion Rosa has died, he goes to tell the news to her mother and buys Rosa's younger sister as a replacement. Gelsomina (Giulietta Masina) who he brutally trains to be his assistant.Zampano is a brutish thug, a drinker, a womaniser. I was never convinced whether he loved or cared for Gelsomina, I believe she cares for him and even loved him.When both join a larger circus she comes into contact with the Fool (Richard Basehart) who is a clown and a high wire act. He is a sweet man to Gelsomina, even a kindred spirit but he senses that Gelsomina loves Zampano and maybe he loves her but cannot show it or say it because he just lacks the intelligence. The Fool like a few other people throughout the film offers her a way out from Zampano but she refuses.The Fool also has a deep dislike for Zampano, always taunting him and driving him to a rage. Eventually their path will cross again leaving Gelsomina mad and Zampano to abandon her. At the end Zampano is left unfolding his emotions to the sea. Maybe he eventually realised the love he has lost.There is distinctive music from Nina Rota. Actress Masina has a clown like way of movement which looked like Harpo Marx combined with Charlie Chaplin. You can see why the circus wanted her to stay. She had an inane sweetness in contrast with Quinn's Zampano whose only ability was the strongman act where he could break chains with his pectoral muscles. If he had any sense he might had realised that that being taunted by The Fool could had been incorporated into the circus act with beneficial results.There is a tragic undercurrent in this film very much from the first scene heightened by the black and white photography and Fellini's symbolism's which he revisited many times in the course of his career.

I was curious to watch this movie because I had seen many other Fellini's works but not this one. I was also told that was one of his best and so I was even more intrigued. I must say that I was surprised by how melancholic and sad it is. It reminded me of a Neo-Realistic movie for its scenes set in the city suburbs amongst people who struggle to carry on in every day life. Of course, other Fellini's movie had also these kinds of setting, but the Italian director paints his portrait of provincial Italy with more sad and crude hues, helped also by Gelsomina's melancholic recurring trumpet music theme, written by the great Nino Rota. However you can still see the Fellinesque style in "La Strada", for example in the irony in the scenes of the argument between Zampanò and the crazy guy. The circus certainly is another typical Fellini subject, present in many of his works. Overall a good movie but definitely not one of his best.