Il Bidone (1955)

Directed by Federico Fellini. Starring Broderick Crawford, Richard Basehart, Franco Fabrizi, Giulietta Masina, Sue Ellen Blake, Irene Cefaro, Lorella De Luca, Alberto De Amicis.

Led by one of Crawford’s best post-All the King’s Men portrayals (even though his voice was dubbed), this poignant Fellini film tracks the criminal exploits of a trio of swindlers who find their fortunes and futures rapidly changing due to unforeseen circumstances. Audacious to the point of being strident at times, with an off-key effort from frequent Fellini collaborator Masina as the wife of one of the crooks, but the tender scenes stand out for their humanity, and the final stretch lingers in the mind and heart afterward. Tethered to the political and socially-conscious neorealist fringes that Fellini came from (it’s considered a middle chapter in his “trilogy of loneliness” along with La Strada and Nights of Cabiria), but the boisterous party scene hints at the director’s more extravagantly indulgent 60s output to come. Zesty, versatile music provided by Nino Rota. Title translates to “the drum”; also known as The Swindlers.

71/100