Review of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

In my opinion, Vittorio De Sica really lost most of his talent when he met up with Sophia Loren. His films with her always feel like mush compared to his earlier masterpieces, even the much lauded Two Women. Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow is comprised of three short stories, all starring Loren and Marcello Mastroianni. This might be De Sica's worst film if it weren't for the third segment. The first two are really poor. The first, "Adelina" (all three are named after Loren's character), is about a married woman who sells illegal cigarettes on the street. The cops try to arrest her, but cannot since she's pregnant. No pregnant woman can go to jail, and they get six months after the birth, while nursing, before they can be sent, too. The solution? Obviously, keep getting pregnant so they can never send her to jail. Soon, with seven kids, Mastroianni is too tired to keep fathering children. This story is just plain stupid. The second story is so negligible it barely exists. It's called "Anna" and Loren is a rich woman cheating on her husband with Mastroianni. The two of them drive around in a car for a while. Who cares? It's all too bad, too, because "Mara," the third story, is excellent. Not as good as De Sica's masterpieces, but wonderful all the same. Loren is a high class prostitute who gets into an argument with her elderly neighbor after she flirts with her grandson, who is in the seminary. After the argument, the kid decides to quit and the old woman and Loren join forces to convince him to go back. Mastroianni is hilarious as an eager john getting more and more irked that his time with Loren is getting compromised. The whole film is worth sitting through for this, but I'd almost suggest just fast-forwarding to this third part. It also features Loren's infamous striptease. The movie won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film in 1965.