YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW. Three short films about sex starring the two top Italian stars of the day, Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni, and directed by Vittorio De Sica. In the first part Sophia plays a pregnant woman who may have to go to prison for selling contraband on the street. However, after speaking to a friend who is a lawyer, she and her husband find that the government cannot send a pregnant woman to prison. So, Marcello has his work cut out for him as soon as the new baby is born. Very soon she is pregnant again, then again, and again, seven times in all, and keeping her out of jail the whole time - that is, until Marcello runs out of "gas." Very charming and funny episode. In the second episode Marcello is having an affair with married Sophia, playing a completely self serving, rich snob. Almost the entire film takes place in her Rolls Royce as they head for another sexual escape while the rich husband is away. That is, until they have a car accident. The third episode, the most famous, is the story of a high priced call girl, Loren, who is trying to arrange time for her best john, Mastroianni, who also is in love with her. In the house next door, however, is a young man who is studying to be a bishop and is questioning his path in life, particularly after he watches Loren, in a skimpy lacy outfit, watering her plants on the outside deck. The boy and his mother, a very self-righteous woman who abhors Loren's character, keep getting in the way of Marcello's time with Sophia. When things are finally worked out with the boy and his mom, Sophia does her famous strip for Marcello, who is sitting on her bed, bouncing up and down in delight in response to Sophia's every move. It's a very funny scene, and the episode isn't bad, but of the three, the first one, the pregnant woman story, is the most entertaining. All three stories had something interesting to say about sex in Italy of that time, in particularly the second story about the rich woman having the affair, but it was the least entertaining of the three. The thing that was good about all of them was how different the six characters created by Sophia and Marcello were. Vittorio De Sica's direction was superb. The music and cinematography added a lot to the wonderful atmosphere, particularly in the first episode. If you're unfamiliar with Loren's or Mastroianni's Italian output this is a good one to take out for a first spin, especially if you've never seen Sophia in anything other than her Hollywood films.
Review of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
