Widely considered to be Fellini’s first masterpiece, La Strada features a masterful performance by Anthony Quinn as an itinerant strongman who purchases a tragic, affection-starved waif (the sublime Giuletta Masina) as his assistant for the price of a plate of pasta. He exploits her at every turn as they travel to grey and desolate towns that Fellini captures in strikingly poetic and symbolic imagery. Winner of an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, La Strada also features a haunting score by composer and lifelong Fellini associate Nino Rota.