First of a series, in which we visit countries through books and movies. Also a nod to the great overnight radio show “Night Flight,” broadcast on WJR Detroit during the youth. What am I missing from Italy? Nights of Cabiria. 1957. My first Fellini! This one stars his long-time wife and muse, Giulietta Masina, whose prostitute character is a winning mix of ingenue and harridan, sort of a shorter, tougher Lucille Ball. She needs the toughness when, in the first few frames, her boyfriend steals her purse and pushes her into the canal. She gets her mojo back, though, first with a good Samaritan, then with a movie star, and finally with a new boyfriend who says that he doesn’t care about her past….which means he’s lying, of course. Where are Fellini’s clowns? 3.0 stars.
More: La Dolce Vita.
Camp/cult: The 10th Victim; Danger: Diabolik.
Thanks for this! I am thinking Marriage Italian Style and Love and Anarchy could be the first ones for me to watch.