The final film of a Hollywood legend captured a fading star in Italy
In short: Released in 1960, It Started in Naples marked Clark Gable’s last completed performance before his death. Pairing the aging American icon with the vibrant Sophia Loren, the romantic comedy became a postcard-perfect snapshot of the Mediterranean, though critics remained sharply divided on whether the unlikely duo actually generated any real chemistry.
Directed by Melville Shavelson, the film follows Michael Hamilton, a Philadelphia lawyer who travels to Naples to settle his late brother’s estate. He discovers an unexpected nephew, Nando, being raised by a spirited cabaret singer named Lucia. The plot, which hinges on a custody battle and a blossoming romance between the mismatched leads, serves primarily as a vehicle for showcasing the Italian landscape, including Rome, Naples, and the island of Capri.
The production was marked by unusual behind-the-scenes quirks. Carlo Angeletti, the young actor playing Nando, did not speak English and learned his lines phonetically, a technique he had previously used to mimic German. In another instance of chaotic production, a courtroom scene required a replacement actor when the original performer decided to take his family to the beach. The replacement, the actor's brother, bore no physical resemblance to the original, highlighting the film's occasionally loose approach to continuity.
Critical reception was polarized. While some reviewers, such as those writing for the German magazine Cinema, praised Loren’s fiery performance and the film’s whimsical humor, others were less forgiving. Bosley Crowther of The New York Times dismissed the script as a "featherweight, obvious romance," while Le Monde suggested that Gable appeared weary, noting that his performance seemed to foreshadow the illness that would claim his life just months after the film's release. Despite these mixed reviews, the film remains a notable artifact of 1960s Technicolor cinema, capturing a specific moment where classic Hollywood met the allure of the Italian coast.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: It Started in Naples
- Also: Wikidata — It Started in Naples · CC0
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