La strada (1954)

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Federico Fellini (story) &
Tullio Pinelli (story) ...

Release Date:

16 July 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A carefree girl is sold to a traveling entertainer, consequently enduring physical and emotional pain along the way.

Plot Keywords:

On The Road | Road | Strong Man | Widow | Italy

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 8 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Anthony Quinn	...	Zampanò
Giulietta Masina	...	Gelsomina
Richard Basehart	...	Il Matto
Aldo Silvani	...	Signor Giraffa
Marcella Rovere	...	La Vedova
Livia Venturini	...	La Suorina

Also Known As:

The Road (USA) (literal English title)

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:G | Australia:M (alternate rating) | Chile:18 | Finland:K-10 (1986) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of the Grisons) | West Germany:16 | Singapore:PG | Norway:15 (1995) | UK:PG (video rating) | UK:A (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Bagnoregio, Viterbo, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Ponti-De Laurentiis Cinematografica

Trivia:

Anthony Quinn said in an interview a few years before his death that he originally accepted a deal that would have paid him a percentage of the profits this film generated instead of an upfront salary. When his agent found out about it, the agent changed the deal and insisted an upfront salary and no percentage. Quinn said that decision cost him several million dollars.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Gelsomina leaves Zampano, she walks by the road and sits down on the roadside near a small group of trees (about 4-5 m away). When the trio of musicians marches past, she appears to have moved back down the road as the height and appearance of the roadside behind her have changed and it takes the musicians, with Gelsomina following, some time to reach the point where the trees are.

Quotes:

Zampanò: [reciting his act by rote before a crowd] Here we have a piece of chain that is a quarter of an inch thick. It is made of crude iron, stronger than steel. With the simple expansion of my pectoral muscles, or chest, that is, I'll break the hook.
[collecting money from the crowd]
Zampanò: Thank you, thank you. Now, to do this feat, I must fill myself up like a tire. If a blood vessel should break, I would spit blood. For instance, in Milan a man weighing 240 pounds lost his eyesight doing this trick. That is because the optical nerves take a beating, and once you lose your eyes, you are finished. If there's any delicate person in the audience, I would advise him to look away 'cause there could be blood.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Noé bárkája (2007)

Classic example where "less is always more".

This is one of the most influential films of all time, it is the classical example, where "less" is always "more". The story is deceivingly simple and it feels at the beginning almost like a piece from "commedia del arte", however the master touch of Fellini's heart and vision talk to us directly through the canvas of Gesolmina's face (Giulietta Massina was his wife in real life). You don't need big words or a crafty developed script. This is like music, speaks directly it does not need translation even most non-Italian speakers find themselves more and more immersed in the visual aspects of this drama, it seems in many aspects surreal (I'll develop this point later) and distant but at the same time there is an underlying tension brought up by the close ups and the music revealing all those emotions much more close to our hearts than we are at first openly willing to admit. This is cinema at its best ladies and gentlemen. No special effects, no grandiose vistas, no colors, no extra help. The intimate nature of these characters feelings talk and paint more pictures than anything else can convey. Regarding the intimate relationship of Fellini and his movies there are already many of his little "secrets or eccentricities" that he imposes in all his films, they all have relevant hidden messages, such as the "white mysterious horse" and the haunting "trumpet melody" are just some of them. Those interested in Fellini's oeuvre should have the pleasure to uncover them with more of his viewing of what this all means, in same cases there is a definite reason in others he leaves it to your own devices and interpretation. He constantly teases us with contradictory emotions, sadness and laughter, complicated and simple, logical and absurd, brutish and angelical. Finally this film is like a great banquet, it seems to drag at he beginning and makes you think that is going to be too long and then at the end it seems too abrupt and you want it to continue, but most importantly leaves with us a savor that will linger in our minds for a long time, those who are sensitive to Fellini's vision will carry this for ever and hunger for more, those indifferent will dismiss it as an extravagant little piece and may be curios for another one. Once thing is for certain, nobody will ever forget Gesolmina's face.