Drawing me in and engaging me certainly took some time for this movie, but it turned out it wasn't worth it since by the end of it, I felt like I had watched half a film. This film makes ridiculous points about criminal activity and motherhood, and should've been developed further in the screen-writing process.

the ending made me cry

This was just perfect, as a hooker tries to reconcile her life with her son in post WWII Italy. Absolutely loved the scenes of the lead actress walking down the strip with nothing but the lights of the city in the background as people walk in and out of her spotlight whilst she recounts her life, it provides something very mysterious.

Just when you though her life was tragic enough....

while rebuilding a country of rosselini's war years, lonely people try to make their living.

Shitty acting, underdeveloped story.

In the general ballpark of neorealism, though not strictly so. Anna Magnani does an amazing job in some scenes, but in others she seems a bit hammy to me. The one thing that will probably stick with me the most is the long tracking shot of Magnani streetwalking. It's the kind of thing that makes me wish I were a filmmaker so I could copy it. Otherwise, I'm at a loss to mention anything remarkable about the film, but it holds together nicely and explores some interesting territory.

"Pasolini's second film showcases Anna Magnani with a minimum of sentimentality in a bleak, pitiless Eternal City of the early '60s." - Bill Weber

A compelling little film. The social insights are acute, the dialogues are well-written, Magnani is magnetic (although sometimes vexingly upbeat) and Garofolo is pretty much the Italian equivalent of James Dean. There are scenes (such as two impressive tracking shots) where Pasolini shows brief chops of his directorial prowess. And although the ending is perhaps too heavy-handed, the bluntly bleak final scene packs an emotional wallop. Overall, nothing too exceptional, but very solid.

Mamma Roma is us. We all desire mediocre things and bound by the self- satisfied way of love which we think that are the best for others around us.