Review of Nights of Cabiria (1957) by Mitch P — 05 Feb 2008

One of Fellini's best, "Nights of Cabiria" pays respect to the director's neorealist roots, while pointing his audience toward the new artistic heights that his next two features would capture.

Masina gives another astonshingly deep performance, inhabiting her character and bringing us into her emotional world. The directing and acting transcend the limits of a mere character study. The final act of the film is one of the most wrenching, heartbreaking sequences in the history of cinema.

But in the end, Fellini leaves his audience with a sense of optimism and potential conveyed in the smile of the unflappable Cabiria. Truly sublime filmmaking.