Fellini and Masina's unique collaboration appears to demolish the wall between life and art, film and audience.

In 1957, Fellini was still as indebted to neo-realism as to surrealism, and this melancholy tale of a prostitute working the outskirts of Rome is notable for its straightforward depiction of destitution.

What makes the character so poignant is that her final fortification is not her street wisdom -- that's all surface -- but her innocence. Her ultimate protection is our sympathy for her.

Fellini’s true-to-life themes simmer throughout the picture, and many of them would resurface in “La Dolce Vita”. And at the core is Masina and her magnetic performance.