Even if one rejects the concepts of this movie, its mood and the details of scenes stay with one; a year or two later, a gesture or a situation suddenly brings it all back.

Anthony Quinn as the strong man and Richard Basehart as a derisive rival are excellent. As the girl, Giulietta Masina is extraordinarily touching and gives a performance hard to forget.

Acting by Quinn and Basehart is tops, but Giulietta Masina, one of Italy's best performers, easily steals show with her clownish mimicry, a job which should finally earn her more consistent work in local pix.

Like any deeply felt and realized symbol, La Strada is at once nuclear and radiating; within its deceptively simple span, an eternal pattern and a prophecy are established.