One Paragraph Movie Review: Europa ‘51

One hundred and thirty-third film: Europa ’51, a Rossellini film starring Ingrid Bergman that makes heavy-handed moralising look extremely glamorous. This is a muddy message dressed up in restrained post-war elegance, but I’m not sure what the main take-away is supposed to be. That Communism and religion are no subtitute for good old non-denominational selflessness? That the rich think anyone who tries to help others is insane? That only the wealthy truly know what the poor need? If it wasn’t for the reasonably brisk pace set by main character Irene’s grief over a dead child, care for a sick kid from the projects, nursing of a sex worker, altruism towards a bank robber and ability to sit quietly in an asylum for hysterical women, this would be a boring movie. But when all is said and done, this… this is a boring movie. A boring movie with excellent eyebrows, because 1952 knew what it was doing. One and three quarter ghetto ricotta sandwiches out of five.