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Though Pauline Kael's well-known
criticism of La Strada
breaks the three central characters down into symbols
that represent mind, body, and soul, it's not necessary
to tear a Fellini
film apart and analyze it pretentiously. Just because
it's subtitled doesn't mean watching it will be
a heavy intellectual exercise, especially with the
amount of joy Fellini
uses in his visual artistry. He frees the audience
to have some fun along the journey. I was especially
struck by this a few years ago in Paris when I saw
the Italian language print with French subtitles,
and still followed the plot and enjoyed it immensely
(despite my rudimentary knowledge of French).
You don't even have to be familiar with The
Bicycle Thief and Italian neo-realism
to appreciate Fellini's
break with the movement upon the release of this
1954 film. But since realizing what "rules" Fellini
breaks can add another layer of appreciation, following
is a brief description of the movement from Robert
T. Eberwien's A Viewer's Guide to Film
Theory and Criticism:
Neorealist films are characterized by a pronounced social consciousness on the part of their makers, a concern for the lower classes and their despair and squalor, and a stark realism of technique relying heavily on long takes and depth of field.
Fellini may
not have satisfied the Marxists, who thought Italian
cinema should have social limits placed on it, but
he certainly shows affection for a variety of common
and quirky characters in this and many other films.
La Strada includes some
of his favorite human subjects--circus artists and
waifs. These characters may not supply the stereotypes
that neo-realists expected, but they entertain and
ultimately leave us with indelible images of the human
spirit. According to Fellini:
"La Strada is
about loneliness and how solitude can be ended when
one person makes a profound link to another. The
man and woman who find this bond may sometimes be
the least likely, on the surface, and yet the bond
is in the depth of their souls."
On a literal level, La Strada translates into "The Road," and it involves an itinerant strongman, Zampanò (Anthony Quinn), who needs a female assistant. He purchases the services of the second daughter from a poor woman who lives by the seashore (the eldest daughter, Rosa, died under his care), so the remaining family will be able to fix their roof and have a bit of food.
The daughter is the memorable, dimwitted Gelsomina,
played by Fellini's
own wife--the incomparable Giulietta Masina (Nights
of Cabiria, Juliet of
the Spirits). Fellini
states that he patterned Gelsomina's character from
the impressions he received from the closed-mouthed
smiles of Giulietta's childhood photographs.
Can you imagine a casting in the same movie of Masina and Charlie Chaplin? These two represent the finest male/female pantomime artists ever filmed--both use similar comical body movements, can instantaneously transform their faces from comedy to tragedy, and possess unsurpassed timing.
Still, the casting of Masina with Quinn is ingenious, and the contrast between the two characters forms the crux of La Strada. The exchange between the two as Zampanò teaches Gelsomina to use the drum and announce his arrival stands as a true classic moment in film--Masina's reactions alone make La Strada worth viewing.
Even though Masina's character is identified as retarded, both Zampanò and Gelsomina are simple people. Zampanò has just one tired circus routine with the same verbal pitch, that he repeats from town to town as he tours on his makeshift wagon powered by motorcycle--the act of breaking a chain while expanding his chest. Even the mildly retarded Gelsomina is only amazed the first time she witnesses the act.
But Gelsomina is such an endearing soul that it's heartbreaking to see Zampanò treat her so cruelly, especially when he leaves her at the side of the road to take on a common, buxom woman and wine for the evening.
Quinn plays Zampanò like an adulterous Stanley, whose
"Stella" moment comes late in the film. Still, Gelsomina
remains loyal, running off to find him when passers-by
tell her about seeing the wagon. Zampanò remains a
brute for most of La Strada--a
man who ignores Gelsomina's emotional needs and cannot
express his own love until it's too late. And that's
the real poignancy of La Strada--when
we realize how Zampanò does love Gelsomina and see
that he is incapable of expressing it.
The third significant character, the Fool (Richard Basehart), gets on Zampanò's enemy list for two reasons--cruelly mocking Zampanò's strongman act at the circus and mesmerizing Gelsomina with his high-wire act. Even though the Fool leaves to avoid confrontation, Zampanò's rage and jealousy consume him and lead to his downfall.
Fellini has
made so many great films, and the incredible performances
turned in by Quinn and Masina make La
Strada rank as one of my favorites despite
lying slightly beneath the artistry of later films
like La Dolce Vita and Fellini's
8 ½. Shades of his other films appear
in this early work--the clowns, the ocean imagery,
parades, and freaks. A redemption of sorts takes place,
as Fellini
explores a facet of humanity's soul without pedantically
preaching.
Fellini once
explained that "all art is autobiographical," when
describing his inner-life creations, elaborating that
"the pearl is the oyster's autobiography." Indeed!
La Strada certainly represents
such a priceless jewel.
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