This book contains essays on seventeen Italian films, made between 1945 and 1982, which are either Neorealist classics, or demonstrate the influence of Neorealism on Italian films made after the movement (7 yrs. duration, according to Marcus) ended. Marcus strikes a fine balance between readabiltiy and theory. I believe that anyone with a broad interest in Italian cinema would enjoy her readings, even those, like myself, who feel ambivalent toward "film theory". The book is a most intelligent companion to several of the finest Italian films, and several classics of international cinema. The essays are on the following films: Part I: Neorealism Proper: Open City (dir. Rossellini) ; Bicycle Thief (dir. De Sica); Bitter Rice (dir. De Santis); Umberto D. (dir. De Sica) / Part II: Transitions Bread, Love, and Fantasy (dir. Comencini); La Strada (dir. Fellini); Senso (dir. Visconti); Red Desert (dir. Antonioni) / Part III: Return to Social Commentary: Il Posto (dir. Olmi); Seduced and Abandoned (dir. Germi); Teorema (dir. Pasolini); Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion (dir. Petri) / Part IV: Fascism and War Reconsidered The Conformist (dir. Bertolucci); Love and Anarchy (dir. Wertmuller); Christ Stopped at Eboli (dir. Rosi); Night of the Shooting Stars (dir. Taviani Bros.); We All Loved Each Other So Much (dir. Scola) --- [back cover: Millicent Marcus is Associate Professor in the Department of French and Italian at the University of Texas, Austin]