Dalbert Pringle For starters - I cannot begin to describe to you my initial shock and overwhelming disbelief to find out that this decidedly mediocre, Italian, 3-In-1 passion play (from 1964) actually won an Oscar for "Best Foreign Film".Not only were the 3 mini-stories combined in this 2-hour film all totally forced and annoyingly contrived situations - But the English dubbing was so atrociously amateur that it was downright irritating (and there was no option given to the viewer for the relief of subtitles).Clumsily directed by Italian film-maker, Vittorio De Sica - This "adult" drama (with its weak attempts at comedy thrown in for good measure) was set in the city of Naples, Italy - And I couldn't believe what a grubby, rundown eyesore that this metropolis looked like through the lens of De Sica's camera.All-in-all - (IMO) - This 50+ year-old picture was far from being an Oscar-winner.

Steven Torrey This is a fine movie. Funny and heartwarming. A series of 3 short stories--slice of life stories they would be called in Lit class. As a beauty, she works best with dark hair--not really a blonde or red hair. The visual depiction of the locals are stunning--Naples, Rome, Milano. One looks at a movie for it's place in the form, the genre, or for the artists who played the role; as a film from Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroiani or director Vittorio de Sica alone makes the movie worth looking at to see where the movie falls in their oeuvre. Like so many short stories, it's easy to overlook the import of the story for it's being so slight; these stories carry their weight and convey that import most excellently. The short story/vignettes, for all their gossamer, hold the weight.

blanche-2 Marcello Mastroianni and Sophia Loren star in three stories about - well, men and women - in "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow," a Vittorio de Sica film.The stories vary, with the two stars playing roles that show off their different talents. All three of the stories showcase one of Loren's great talents - her awe-inspiring beauty.I was lucky to have seen this in Italian with subtitles. The Italian language is so beautiful. I loved hearing it spoken and to see the Italian scenery along with it.The first story is about a woman who keeps getting pregnant to avoid going to prison for not paying for furniture she purchased. She ends with 7 kids and a husband so worn out he can barely walk. Meanwhile, with each birth, she becomes more beautiful. It's either the longest story or it went on the longest - it's not the most interesting of the three.The second story involves a rich woman with no regard for anyone but herself and her money, even though she talks a different game entirely to her new boyfriend as they're driving. She keeps bumping into people with her car. When she lets the boyfriend drive, he crashes the car rather than a hit a child, and she has a fit. A real nasty piece of work.The third story is really the best - Loren is a high-class prostitute who befriends a young man studying for the priesthood. He's staying with his vicious grandmother in the apartment across from hers. The grandmother flings insults at Loren. Meanwhile, one of Loren's steadies, Mastroianni, can't get to first base with her because she's so distracted. This vignette is famous for Loren's hot striptease, which she repeats for Mastroianni again in 1994's "Pret a Porter." Marcello Mastroianni and Sophia Loren are excellent in all of their roles, set against the beauty of the Italian locales. Loren is gorgeous, in fact, beyond gorgeous, particularly in the last sequence. Even today, she manages to dazzle. There's something about her that no American actress can even approximate.This film may have been a little overrated in its day, but it is certainly well worth seeing.

kirksworks YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW. Three short films about sex starring the two top Italian stars of the day, Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni, and directed by Vittorio De Sica.  In the first part Sophia plays a pregnant woman who may have to go to prison for selling contraband on the street.  However, after speaking to a friend who is a lawyer, she and her husband find that the government cannot send a pregnant woman to prison.  So, Marcello has his work cut out for him as soon as the new baby is born.  Very soon she is pregnant again, then again, and again, seven times in all, and keeping her out of jail the whole time - that is, until Marcello runs out of "gas."  Very charming and funny episode.  In the second episode Marcello is having an affair with married Sophia, playing a completely self serving, rich snob.  Almost the entire film takes place in her Rolls Royce as they head for another sexual escape while the rich husband is away.  That is, until they have a car accident.  The third episode, the most famous, is the story of a high priced call girl, Loren, who is trying to arrange time for her best john, Mastroianni, who also is in love with her.  In the house next door, however, is a young man who is studying to be a bishop and is questioning his path in life, particularly after he watches Loren, in a skimpy lacy outfit, watering her plants on the outside deck.  The boy and his mother, a very self-righteous woman who abhors Loren's character, keep getting in the way of Marcello's time with Sophia.  When things are finally worked out with the boy and his mom, Sophia does her famous strip for Marcello, who is sitting on her bed, bouncing up and down in delight in response to Sophia's every move.  It's a very funny scene, and the episode isn't bad, but of the three, the first one, the pregnant woman story, is the most entertaining.  All three stories had something interesting to say about sex in Italy of that time, in particularly the second story about the rich woman having the affair, but it was the least entertaining of the three.  The thing that was good about all of them was how different the six characters created by Sophia and Marcello were.  Vittorio De Sica's direction was superb.  The music and cinematography added a lot to the wonderful atmosphere, particularly in the first episode.  If you're unfamiliar with Loren's or Mastroianni's Italian output this is a good one to take out for a first spin, especially if you've never seen Sophia in anything other than her Hollywood films.