1001 Club - Europa '51 (1952)

#255. Europa '51 (1952)

Why It's In The Book: "Roberto Rossellini’s Europa ’51 contains the most unpredictable mixture of ingredients one can think of, a stew you might not be so sure you want to taste… Each situation in Europa ’51 is composed of conventional stuff, and every scene comes as unexpected, filled with a disturbing sense of reality, of secret connections with real life, though it seems to deal only with the usual references, both on the Romanesque side and on the thematic side. And it all takes places without any overly dramatic effect, without any kind of boasting, but, on the contrary, with an incredible modesty (by a director and an actress who were anything but humble) in the way the story is told, the way it is shot, and the way it is acted.

Europa ’51 slips beyond all the frames it would appear to belong to, reaching a level of essential humanism rarely achieved in the cinema—and never by using heavy means." -1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

Member Ratings

Tsorensen - 8/10
"I am not ashamed to admit that I was crying helplessly at the end. So, yeah, this is a good one."
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Adolytsi - 7/10
"It is only Bergman’s character’s unflinching resolve to weather the storm that makes this remotely worth watching, rather than just fall into sheer pointlessness of beating up a fictional character."
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Nicolas Krizan - 7/10
"devastating loss creates immense emotional turmoil"
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Movie Guy Steve - 6/10
"Ultimately, I can’t help but wonder what makes this film so important."
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Overall Rating: 7/10