Souvenir d’Italie

Margaret, a young Englishwoman, is on vacation in Italy when she picks up two hitchhikers in her convertible - Josette from France and Hilde from Germany. After an accident, the three of them embark on a hitchhiking trip through the country. They end up in a stately home with an impoverished count (Vittorio De Sica), meet Margaret's art professor, a lawyer (Gabriele Ferzetti), and also Sergio (Alberto Sordi), who sings about "Souvenirs d'Italie" and joins the young women on their journey. Pietrangeli's first color film is a road movie that plays with national clichés and effectively acts as a commercial for Italy's tourist attractions: the northern lakes, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Rome. (hjf)