I Vitelloni (1953)

Now this is much more my speed.  It was the only Fellini film that I had not seen previously; I remember well the one time that BBC2 did a Fellini season some years ago when I fell in love with his talent.  This particular film was being shown on a night when I was away at a conference and by the time I got back to my room only the closing minutes were left -- and I never managed to catch up.  Now I have!  The title is translated as "Spivs" but this is a poor translation; a more appropriate one would be 'layabouts' as it follows a group of five young men in their twenties who are still living at home (very Italian) and not making much of their lives.  It is set in Rimini which was Fellini's hometown and serves as an early template for his brilliant "Amarcord" some twenty years later.  While only his third film after working with the post-war realist directors, traces of what would eventually be described as Felliniesque are in evidence: love of the music hall and entertainers, well-cushioned females, weak men and strong women. Not necessarily the best of his films by a longshot but a necessary part of the canon from Pretty Pink's point of view.