Giulietta Masina - Gelsomina
Richard Basehard - Il Matto
Frederico Fellini (Director)
I watched La Strada over the course of a couple of days. I kept getting pulled away for other things. I think this would be better appreciated in one sitting, but here goes the review anyway.
La Strada is about a gypsy that buy a woman from her mother because the family is starving. Traveling by a half motorcycle half mobile home he takes her all over Italy as his assistant. He treats her like property most of the time, and occasionally acts out violently towards her.
The woman is Giulietta Masina in the role of Gelsomina. This is only the 3rd Fellini film I have ever seen, but it is far and away the most humanistic. And that is due largely to Masina and her performance. She reminded me of a female Chaplin. She has one of the most expressive faces I have ever seen. She can convey every thought, feeling, and yearning with a simple break of a smile or a turn of her head away.
Gelsomina doesn't want to admit it, but she enjoys the nomad lifestyle. She even falls in love with Zampano although she never says it. You can see it in her face. It is an uncomfortable love. He is her master for all practical purposes, but we can see that she is hurt when he "cheats on her" with women from the towns they visit. She conveys the pain and disappointment in her by mearly dipping her head. Maybe even shame and pity for him.
The him is Anthony Quinn who is good in his role, but pales in comparison to Masina. Another performance is that of Richard Basehard as Il Matto or "The Fool". He is charming and silly. He is more like the Italian clown that I was expecting from this movie, but even his character has depth and resonance.
This is the earliest of Fellini's films that I have seen. Often times with the first works in a directors cannon you can see their potential, but not their brilliance. That is not the case here. I would say that La Strada is no much like the other 2 Fellini films that I have seen (8 1/2 and La Dolce Vita). I would rank 8 1/2 first (and one of the 10 best movies ever made), La Strada second and La Dolce Vita third.
I saw this picture on Netflix Watch Instant in High Def and it looked amazing. It wasn't letter-boxed, but I didn't mind it so much after a while. The cinematography was crazy good. Fellini captured Italy in a way that few directors have been able to do with their films. Even fewer when restricted to black and white. Jules Dassin and Woody Allen both paid tribute to New York with Manhattan and The Naked City respectively.
If this film did anything to me, it made me rearrange my Netflix Queue. I now have Night of Cabiria in the #1 position. It is another Fellini film staring Masina in a huge role. She carries the film I am told. I can't wait to see it and her again. I give La Strada ★★★1/2. La Strada is available on Blu Ray through the Criterion Collection. Check out the Trailer Park to see for yourself.
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