Full Speed

An elegant young Vittorio De Sica stars as a bookish academic, who, when a vivacious, sports-mad socialite (the single-monikered Milly) crash-lands (literally) into his life, experiences both joie de vivre and romantic complications. In one of her earliest screen appearances, Magnani -- looking less like Mamma Roma and, with bobbed hair and penciled eyebrows, more like an MGM starlet -- makes a strong impression as a scheming maid; even in a relatively small role the force of her irrepressible personality shines through.