La Strada
Federico Fellini
© Ponti De Laurentiis
Gelsomina, a naive and generous young woman, has been sold by her mother to Zampano, a brutal, obtuse fairground strongman, who performs a chain-breaking act in public squares. Aboard a strange piece of equipment – a three-wheeled motorbike converted into a caravan – the couple travel the roads of Italy, living the harsh life of fairground entertainers. Along comes Il Matto (the Fool), a violinist and poet who is the only one able to really speak to Gelsomina.
Cast : Anthony Quinn, Giulietta Masina, Richard Basehart, Aldo Silvani, Marcella Rovere, Livia Venturini
Scenario : Federico Fellini, Tullio Pinelli, Ennio Flaiano
Cinematography : Otello Martelli, Carlo Carlini
Sound : R. Boggio, Aldo Calpini
Editing : Leo Catozzo
Music : Nino Rota
Scenario : Federico Fellini, Tullio Pinelli, Ennio Flaiano
Cinematography : Otello Martelli, Carlo Carlini
Sound : R. Boggio, Aldo Calpini
Editing : Leo Catozzo
Music : Nino Rota
Production : Ponti-De Laurentiis Cinematografica
Distribution : Les Acacias
Distribution : Les Acacias
No distributors wanted to take on La Strada, which was considered too far removed from traditional dramatic conventions. A miracle happened: critics and audiences were unanimous in their praise. Giulietta Masina was described as the "female Charlie Chaplin". "Gelsomina and the Fool," wrote André Bazin, "carry around them an aura of wonder that baffles and irritates Zampano. But this wonder is not supernatural, gratuitous or even ‘poetic’; it appears as a possible quality of nature". Jean de Baroncelli said: "La Strada is like a transfiguration of neo-realism. Everything in it is everyday, familiar and perfectly plausible. This story of itinerant performers has the appearance of a true story, yet we are bordering on the strange, if not the fantastic".