La Strada [DVD] [1954]

La Strada is a simple but beautifully crafted story that transcends itself to encompass the big themes in life; love, hope, loneliness, regret, loss, dreams and so much more. Add to that three magnificent performances from Masina, Quinn and Basehart and you have a movie that stays with you. A movie that bears repeated viewing. In short, one of the great movies and Fellini's finest moment

La Strada - Italian existentialism a la Ibsen.Federico Fellini's "La Strada", the way I look at it, is not about the character and protagonista Gelsomina, beautifully played by Giulietta Massina, as much as it is about Zampanó (Anthony Quinn).Federico Fellini asks a fundamental question: is Gelsomina's literally self-annihilating love enough to save the brute Zampanó who never loved anybody but himself? Even in the closing scene, senselessly drunk on the beach at sunrise, Zampanó cries out: "I need nobody!", whereupon the sun rises. Light floods the scene, is it the rays of love, the light of hope, we don't know.Fellini, well versed in classic existentialism; literature, theater and drama, e.g. in Ibsen, Kierkegaard, Strindberg, and others, refers here, I think, to the final scene in Henrik Ibsen's "Peer Gynt". Peer's lifelong self-love is juxtaposed against Solveig's lifelong and unselfish love for Peer who finally sees, but maybe still does not fully understand. Thus, when the last scene fades out, or rather: the curtain falls for the last time, Zampanó's fate and Peer's is still pending decision, namely: Zampanó's (or Peer's) own decision".I strongly recommend this film, it is arguably (one of) the best film(s) ever.

One of the best films from the fifties, a true masterpiece. Won the first Oscar for the Foreign Language Film in 1957. Even when I saw it as a teenager at the premiere, it made a big impression on me. The main theme, composed by the great Nino Rota, is unforgettable. The A/V presentation of this Blu ray is very good.

A slight fault in synchronisation but apart from that it is one of the best films ever made. I have watched it 3 times!

Great service. Beautiful movie.

One of beautiful movies to the XX century. Must have.

outstanding film

One of the best films ever made