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Sophia Loren: 4 Film Collection

Feature films contained in the set:
Attila (1954)
Carosello Napoletano (1954)
Madame Sans-Gêne (1962)
I Girasoli (1970)

This collection of performances by legendary Italian actress Sophia Loren may not be her most well known, at least on this side of the Atlantic, but they certainly show the diversity of her roles and the depth of her talents. 

In the “sword and sandal” spectacle epic, Attila, Loren stars beside Anthony Quinn as the beautiful and ambitious Onoria, sister to the immature Roman emperor, Valentiniano (Claude Laydu).  To seize the power she so badly covets, Onoria offers herself to the equally ambitious Attila, who along with his peaceful, compassionate brother Bleda (Ettore Manni), lead the Huns, a race of many Asiatic tribes and allies bent on expanding their own empire.  Attila has his eyes set on taking down the entire Roman Empire and he and his troops make their way to Ravenna.  The film is technically unremarkable, even for the time, but the intense conflicts between and within the Huns and the Roman Empire are compelling plot devises, at least until a very abrupt and unconvincing ending.  Anthony Quinn and Ettore Manni give great performances along with a supporting, but memorable performance by Loren. 

In the beautifully crafted, exceptionally designed and hugely entertaining musical Carsello Napoletano, the Espositos, a family of vagabond street musicians, travel throughout post war Italy telling the stories of Naples through song and dance.  The film as a whole is a cultural history of Naples told in musical vignettes about the experiences of individuals over time.  Loren has a smaller, but wonderfully acted (and sung!) role in one of these vignettes as Sissina, a model-turned-actress whose lover goes off to war and doesn’t return.  Though I can’t comment on the cultural accuracy of Carsello Napoletano, with its wonderful use of saturating color and vibrant, elaborate costume as well as diverse musical numbers and even a ballet reenactment of the invasion of the Saracens and the occupation that followed, the film is thoroughly enjoyable and portrays a wonderful lively cultural history. 

Loren is delightful, and surprisingly effective as a French laundress, in Madame Sans-Gêne, the story of the beautiful, outspoken Catherine Hubscher, who launders the clothes of Napoleon (Julian Bertheau) before his rise in the ranks of the Parisian military.  Catherine falls for and marries a rugged soldier, François-Joseph Lefebvre (Robert Hossein) and follows him through the battlefields.  She is swept up into the lifestyle of French nobility as Napoleon promotes François and puts him in charge of a local community.  Madame Sans-Gene, as Catherine is called, is translated as Ms. No Embarrassment, which fits her spirited, vivacious nature as she struggles to conform to the stringent rules of the French court.  Loren, witty, beautiful and sexy throughout the film, is the spark that carries the script through some of the duller moments.

I Girasoli, which translated means “sunflower”, is a dramatic tale of love and loss in post World War II Europe.  Loren plays Giovanna, a beautiful Neapolitan girl who elopes with a handsome soldier named Antonio (played by Loren’s frequent co-star, Marcello Mastroianni) so that he can receive an additional twelve days matrimonial leave.  But in that short time, the two fall deeply in love and scheme a way to prolong Antonio’s leave.  In the end, their efforts prove fruitless as Antonio is sent to fight on the bitterly cold Russian front.  Years pass, the war ends and more and more Italian soldiers return home, but not Antonio.  Giovanna refuses to give up hope that her beloved is still alive.  She travels to Russia, hoping to track him down, but what she finds out is worse than her darkest fears.  Loren is wonderful in her role as both, infatuated young woman and determined wife.  She conveys so much emotion in the simplest movement and captures the feelings of the character perfectly. Mastroianni is equally as compelling, playing a man wounded both physically and emotionally, caught between love and loyalty.  The film is beautifully shot and superbly acted. 

In addition to these four features, the set contains an eighteen minute documentary, La Diva Poplana, about Loren and her upbringing in Italy during and after World War II.  Loren’s humble upbringing in Naples inspired her passion and talent which her producer and later husband, Carlo Ponti helped cultivate.  With interviews from Italian historians, I Girasoli producer, Arthur Cohn, her sons Carlo Ponti Jr. and filmmaker Edoardo Ponti, this brief history of Loren weaves in the feature films of the set and other titles to tell the story of her rise to international fame. 

Though many of her memorable films are not included in this set, it’s a great addition to the collection of an avid Sophia Loren fan.  While not all of the films included in the set are first rate, the set does gives a perfect sampling of the types of roles for which she was most famous and gives the viewer a glimpse at a more diverse set of work.  It is also a great selection of Loren’s international titles for someone who is limited to her American works or someone who wants to see her at her youngest. 

For a newer fan, or someone trying to get to know Loren’s work, the set falls short.  I would suggest adding a few of the following wonderful performances by Loren (and great films overall) to this set: 

The Fall of the Roman Empire
El Cid with Charlton Heston
Arabesque with Gregory Peck
A Countess from Hong Kong alongside Marlon Brando
Heller in Pink Tights, a lavishing designed western in which Loren starred alongside Anthony Quinn
Two Women, a performance that earned Loren an Academy Award, also directed by I Girasoli’s Neo-realist Italian director Vittorio De Sica

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