Rich and handsome Guido has had the terrible misfortune of losing his only two children to accidents, and when he unexpectedly becomes a father again, his baby's life hangs in the balance.
Played stiffly by Amadeo Nazzari, Guido remains somewhat of a cipher in this melodrama, interacting coldly with almost everyone except his ex-wife, Addolorata (Yvonne Sanson), who joined a convent after their son's demise. Guido will take any contact he can get with her, if only praying together, but in Addolorata's grief, she denies him.
Recalling the obsessed protagonist of Hitchcock's "Vertigo," Guido crosses paths with Luisa, an underworld figure who looks exactly like his lost love and is as seductive as Addolorata is withdrawn.
And what a tortured couple are they!
"I felt debased being with her, and can't wait to see her again!" Guido laments.
Luisa is equally repelled, declaring, "I won't play the stand-in for another woman!"
The movie drags a bit as we watch the diffident Guido play approach-and-avoidance with Luisa, whose partner in crime seems to want to roll him. However, interest builds when Luisa goes to prison and tangles with some particularly loathsome female inmates. The movie reaches an unexpectedly exciting crescendo as a habit-draped Addolorata tells a prison thug: "In the name of all mothers, be good. Give me the baby."
The movie ends with a spectacular depiction of problem-solving through words and not violence. Stunning!
Played stiffly by Amadeo Nazzari, Guido remains somewhat of a cipher in this melodrama, interacting coldly with almost everyone except his ex-wife, Addolorata (Yvonne Sanson), who joined a convent after their son's demise. Guido will take any contact he can get with her, if only praying together, but in Addolorata's grief, she denies him.
Recalling the obsessed protagonist of Hitchcock's "Vertigo," Guido crosses paths with Luisa, an underworld figure who looks exactly like his lost love and is as seductive as Addolorata is withdrawn.
And what a tortured couple are they!
"I felt debased being with her, and can't wait to see her again!" Guido laments.
Luisa is equally repelled, declaring, "I won't play the stand-in for another woman!"
The movie drags a bit as we watch the diffident Guido play approach-and-avoidance with Luisa, whose partner in crime seems to want to roll him. However, interest builds when Luisa goes to prison and tangles with some particularly loathsome female inmates. The movie reaches an unexpectedly exciting crescendo as a habit-draped Addolorata tells a prison thug: "In the name of all mothers, be good. Give me the baby."
The movie ends with a spectacular depiction of problem-solving through words and not violence. Stunning!