Review of La Strada (1954) by Brad S — 07 Dec 2009

Widely considered to be the film where iconic director Federico Fellini really cemented his style, this is a film that is at turns beautiful, charming, and devastatingly tragic. This seems to be a hallmark of Fellini, especially his films right before his more surrealistic "8 1/2" phase.

The film details a simple, naive, and relentlessly optimistic young girl (Giuletta Masina), and in many ways it is the story of how her positive attitude towards life is slowly torn down through the adversity of life.

She is sold to a traveling carnival-type, escapes, finds love in a kind clown, and then once again has her spirts crushed by the man she was sold to. Masina is spellbinding in the film. In many ways this is a highly Chaplin-esque performance, as she has relatively little dialogue.

Most of her acting is purely phsyical and expressive, but those wide eyes and cherubic, youthful smile make her visage the perfect palette for dramatic art. Masina succeeds in stealing your heart with one simple smile, and making you feel a wave of pain in your soul at the lowering of a head and a tear in her eyes.

Her scenes with her owner (Anthony Quinn, also great as a harsh entertainer) are among the best, and while Fellini's direction is gorgeous as usual (the black and white photography and general atmosphere is at times chilling in this film, especially when paired with silence outside the flowing wind), Masina's the heart and soul of this film.

The film has some parts where I wasn't as engaged and it didn't consume me the way Fellini's 8 1/2 did, but it another great film from a genius of Italian cinema.