Though she rose to fame thanks largely to her looks, Italian superstar Sophia Loren more than proved her acting chops with a series of international hits and an Oscar win for Best Actress. But how many of her titles remain classics? Let’s take a look back at 15 of her greatest films, ranked worst to best.
Born in 1934 in Rome, Loren began appearing in films both in her native Italy and in Hollywood, popping up in several titles that played more to her incredible beauty than her acting chops. That all changed with “Two Women” (1961), a stirring drama from Italian neorealist Vittoria De Sica that cast her as a mother protecting her daughter from the horrors of World War II. The role brought her international acclaim and Oscar, BAFTA and Cannes Film Festival victories as Best Actress, making her the first performer in a foreign language film to win at the Academy.
Born in 1934 in Rome, Loren began appearing in films both in her native Italy and in Hollywood, popping up in several titles that played more to her incredible beauty than her acting chops. That all changed with “Two Women” (1961), a stirring drama from Italian neorealist Vittoria De Sica that cast her as a mother protecting her daughter from the horrors of World War II. The role brought her international acclaim and Oscar, BAFTA and Cannes Film Festival victories as Best Actress, making her the first performer in a foreign language film to win at the Academy.
- 9/14/2023
- by Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
A film acting career that spans seven decades is so extremely rare that it’s almost unheard of, but 86-year-old Sophia Loren is living proof that it is possible. Since her early days as an extra, the Italian screen legend has stunned audiences all over the world with her timeless beauty as well as her remarkable talent, for which she has been consistently rewarded. In 1995, she was chosen as the 10th female recipient of the Golden Globes’ highest honor: the Cecil B. DeMille Award. Though she has a total of five Globe wins to her name, she has still never prevailed in a competitive category – but, that could change this year.
In “The Life Ahead,” which was released on Netflix last November, Loren stars as Madame Rosa, a former prostitute who makes a living caring for other people’s children. The story focuses on the especially strong, life-changing bond she...
In “The Life Ahead,” which was released on Netflix last November, Loren stars as Madame Rosa, a former prostitute who makes a living caring for other people’s children. The story focuses on the especially strong, life-changing bond she...
- 2/3/2021
- by Matthew Stewart
- Gold Derby
Sophia Loren is generating red-hot Oscar buzz for her performance in Netflix’s Italian-language drama “The Life Ahead.” The screen legend has earned some of the best reviews of her seven-decade career for her heartbreaking performance as a former prostitute and Holocaust survivor who takes care of children of streetwalkers.
Loren made Oscar history 59 years ago when she became the first performer to receive an Academy Award for a foreign-language film. She took home Best Actress for Vittorio DeSica’s harrowing World War II drama “Two Women,” which was also in Italian. Loren, who also starred with Charlton Heston that year in the lavish epic “El Cid,” had very strong competition when the Oscar nominations were announced in the winter of 1962.
Natalie Wood, who had received a Supporting Actress nomination as a teenager for 1955’s “Rebel Without a Cause,” gave an extraordinary performance as a sensitive teenager living in Kansas...
Loren made Oscar history 59 years ago when she became the first performer to receive an Academy Award for a foreign-language film. She took home Best Actress for Vittorio DeSica’s harrowing World War II drama “Two Women,” which was also in Italian. Loren, who also starred with Charlton Heston that year in the lavish epic “El Cid,” had very strong competition when the Oscar nominations were announced in the winter of 1962.
Natalie Wood, who had received a Supporting Actress nomination as a teenager for 1955’s “Rebel Without a Cause,” gave an extraordinary performance as a sensitive teenager living in Kansas...
- 1/17/2021
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Exclusive: Sophia Loren, the Oscar winner who has returned to the screen starring in this year’s Netflix move The Life Ahead directed by her son Edoardo Ponti, will receive this year’s Kcet Cinema Series Lumière Award. The honor, which recognizes excellence, artistry and innovation and outstanding contribution to film, will be bestowed during a special screening of the film January 28.
Loren and Ponti will join the screening, hosted by Deadline’s Pete Hammond, for a conversation about the movie, her life and career (check out a bit of the conversation in the video below). Tickets to the virtual event are available here.
In The Life Ahead, Loren plays Madame Rosa, a Jewish Holocaust survivor and former sex worker, who is brought together in unlikely circumstances with Momo (Ibrahima Gueye), a Senegalese street kid. After a contentious start they begin to find a deeper connection to each other that...
Loren and Ponti will join the screening, hosted by Deadline’s Pete Hammond, for a conversation about the movie, her life and career (check out a bit of the conversation in the video below). Tickets to the virtual event are available here.
In The Life Ahead, Loren plays Madame Rosa, a Jewish Holocaust survivor and former sex worker, who is brought together in unlikely circumstances with Momo (Ibrahima Gueye), a Senegalese street kid. After a contentious start they begin to find a deeper connection to each other that...
- 1/12/2021
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
The all-virtual 25th Capri, Hollywood – The International Film Festival wound to a close this week, culminating with the presentation of awards recognizing 2020 films that played at the fest and that didn’t.
The Trial of the Chicago 7, Netflix’s top awards contender, was chosen for a field-leading four honors, including best picture, by a jury of prominent industry friends of the Italian fest — among them Tony Renis, Mark Canton, Bobby Moresco, Dante Ferretti, Francesco Lo Schiavo and Alessandro Bertolazzi.
The Aaron Sorkin film was also recognized with prizes for best supporting actor (Sacha Baron Cohen), best film editing and a special honor, Capri Italian-American ...
The Trial of the Chicago 7, Netflix’s top awards contender, was chosen for a field-leading four honors, including best picture, by a jury of prominent industry friends of the Italian fest — among them Tony Renis, Mark Canton, Bobby Moresco, Dante Ferretti, Francesco Lo Schiavo and Alessandro Bertolazzi.
The Aaron Sorkin film was also recognized with prizes for best supporting actor (Sacha Baron Cohen), best film editing and a special honor, Capri Italian-American ...
The all-virtual 25th Capri, Hollywood – The International Film Festival wound to a close this week, culminating with the presentation of awards recognizing 2020 films that played at the fest and that didn’t.
The Trial of the Chicago 7, Netflix’s top awards contender, was chosen for a field-leading four honors, including best picture, by a jury of prominent industry friends of the Italian fest — among them Tony Renis, Mark Canton, Bobby Moresco, Dante Ferretti, Francesco Lo Schiavo and Alessandro Bertolazzi.
The Aaron Sorkin film was also recognized with prizes for best supporting actor (Sacha Baron Cohen), best film editing and a special honor, Capri Italian-American ...
The Trial of the Chicago 7, Netflix’s top awards contender, was chosen for a field-leading four honors, including best picture, by a jury of prominent industry friends of the Italian fest — among them Tony Renis, Mark Canton, Bobby Moresco, Dante Ferretti, Francesco Lo Schiavo and Alessandro Bertolazzi.
The Aaron Sorkin film was also recognized with prizes for best supporting actor (Sacha Baron Cohen), best film editing and a special honor, Capri Italian-American ...
Aaron Sorkin’s acclaimed and increasingly relevant political drama The Trial of the Chicago 7, which revolves around the raucous trial of a group of protesters accused of disrupting the 1968 Chicago Democratic Convention, took a leading four awards including best picture at the just concluded 25th annual Capri, Hollywood – The International Film Festival. If past winners at this Italian fest are any indication, the victories should give the Netflix film a boost stateside during Oscar season.
The DreamWorks production, originally put in motion 14 years ago by Steven Spielberg and written and directed by Sorkin, was originally set to be released by Paramount before the coronavirus pandemic turned the exhibition business on its heels and shut theaters — especially in key cities like New York and Los Angeles. It premiered on Netflix in October.
The film also took Capri awards for Sacha Baron Cohen as best supporting actor, film editing and a...
The DreamWorks production, originally put in motion 14 years ago by Steven Spielberg and written and directed by Sorkin, was originally set to be released by Paramount before the coronavirus pandemic turned the exhibition business on its heels and shut theaters — especially in key cities like New York and Los Angeles. It premiered on Netflix in October.
The film also took Capri awards for Sacha Baron Cohen as best supporting actor, film editing and a...
- 1/4/2021
- by Pete Hammond
- Deadline Film + TV
Welcome to this week’s Monday Night Raw review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have a show that has to talk about Randy Orton setting Bray Wyatt on fire and not getting arrested for doing so. Oh, The Miz cashed in the Money In The Bank contract, but it was John Morrison that actually did it and I don’t recall the bell ever ringing…yeah. Let’s see if Vince…wait…it’s…Lil’ Dimples! Ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!! He’s the perv and the prey all at once! Ahhhhhhh!!!!! Raw starts…I almost got shunted.
Match #1: Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax def. Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax rolled into Raw angry and set their sights on Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke to take out their frustrations. The “Sexy Muscle Friends” impressed WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions...
Match #1: Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax def. Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax rolled into Raw angry and set their sights on Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke to take out their frustrations. The “Sexy Muscle Friends” impressed WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions...
- 12/22/2020
- by Nathan Favel
- Nerdly
It is staggering to think that Sophia Loren has been making movies for 70 years, initially appearing uncredited in such films as 1950’s “Tototarzan” and “Quo Vadis” before becoming a full-fledged star in mentor Vittorio De Sica’s 1954 comedy anthology “The Gold of Naples.” And she became the first performer to win an Oscar for a foreign language film for De Sica’s harrowing World War II drama “Two Women,” which opened in the U.S. in 1961. She received two more Oscar nominations for Italian productions: DeSica’s “Marriage Italian Style” and Ettore Scala’s 1977 “A Special Day.”
After a decade’s hiatus from features, Loren has made a triumphant return to film in her son Edoardo Ponti’s poignant “The Life Ahead,” currently streaming on Netflix. The 86-year-old actress has received some of the strongest reviews of her career and loud Oscar buzz for her performance as an aged prostitute...
After a decade’s hiatus from features, Loren has made a triumphant return to film in her son Edoardo Ponti’s poignant “The Life Ahead,” currently streaming on Netflix. The 86-year-old actress has received some of the strongest reviews of her career and loud Oscar buzz for her performance as an aged prostitute...
- 12/4/2020
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
What becomes a legend most?
Well, in the case of the Oscar-winning 86-year-old Sophia Loren, a terrific role in the new Netflix movie “The Life Ahead,” which premiered on Nov. 13 to rave reviews. The film is also a valentine from her youngest son Edoardo Ponti who co-adapted and directed the drama based on Romain Gary’s 1975 novel “The Life Before Us.”
Loren plays Madame Rosa, a former prostitute and Holocaust survivor living in Naples who now takes care of children of prostitutes. But she has her hands full with her latest charge, a 12-year-old Senegalese immigrant named Momo (Ibrahim Gueye). Rosa may seem like the ultimate earth foster mother, but she is haunted by fevered memories of her time at Auschwitz and more and more frequently drifts away from reality.
If the plotline of “The Life Ahead” sounds familiar, the Gary novel was originally adapted as “Madame Rosa,” an Oscar-winning...
Well, in the case of the Oscar-winning 86-year-old Sophia Loren, a terrific role in the new Netflix movie “The Life Ahead,” which premiered on Nov. 13 to rave reviews. The film is also a valentine from her youngest son Edoardo Ponti who co-adapted and directed the drama based on Romain Gary’s 1975 novel “The Life Before Us.”
Loren plays Madame Rosa, a former prostitute and Holocaust survivor living in Naples who now takes care of children of prostitutes. But she has her hands full with her latest charge, a 12-year-old Senegalese immigrant named Momo (Ibrahim Gueye). Rosa may seem like the ultimate earth foster mother, but she is haunted by fevered memories of her time at Auschwitz and more and more frequently drifts away from reality.
If the plotline of “The Life Ahead” sounds familiar, the Gary novel was originally adapted as “Madame Rosa,” an Oscar-winning...
- 11/17/2020
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Exclusive: Ava Capri (Blast Beat) and Anthony Keyvan (Alexa & Katie) are set for recurring roles on the upcoming second season of Hulu’s comedy series Love, Victor.
Set in the world of the 2018 Love, Simon film, Love, Victor follows Victor (Michael Cimino), a new student at Creekwood High School on his own journey of self-discovery, facing challenges at home, adjusting to a new city and exploring his sexual orientation. When it all seems too much, he reaches out to Simon to help him navigate the ups and downs of high school.
Capri will play a cool free-spirit who is close friends with Benji (George Sear). Keyvan will portray a funny and effusive LGBTQ student at Creekwood at the start of his coming out journey.
Ana Ortiz, Anthony Turpel, James Martinez, Isabella Ferreira, Mateo Fernandez, Rachel Naomi Hilson, Bebe Wood, George Sear and Mason Gooding co-star in the series, inspired by Becky Albertalli’s novel,...
Set in the world of the 2018 Love, Simon film, Love, Victor follows Victor (Michael Cimino), a new student at Creekwood High School on his own journey of self-discovery, facing challenges at home, adjusting to a new city and exploring his sexual orientation. When it all seems too much, he reaches out to Simon to help him navigate the ups and downs of high school.
Capri will play a cool free-spirit who is close friends with Benji (George Sear). Keyvan will portray a funny and effusive LGBTQ student at Creekwood at the start of his coming out journey.
Ana Ortiz, Anthony Turpel, James Martinez, Isabella Ferreira, Mateo Fernandez, Rachel Naomi Hilson, Bebe Wood, George Sear and Mason Gooding co-star in the series, inspired by Becky Albertalli’s novel,...
- 11/13/2020
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Sophia Loren celebrates her 85th birthday on September 20, 2019. Though she rose to fame thanks largely to her looks, the Italian superstar more than proved her acting chops with a series of international hits and an Oscar win for Best Actress. But how many of her titles remain classics? In honor of her birthday, let’s take a look back at 15 of her greatest films, ranked worst to best.
SEEOscar Best Actress Gallery: Every Winner in Academy Award History
Born in 1934 in Rome, Loren began appearing in films both in her native Italy and in Hollywood, popping up in several titles that played more to her incredible beauty than her acting chops. That all changed with “Two Women” (1961), a stirring drama from Italian neorealist Vittoria De Sica that cast her as a mother protecting her daughter from the horrors of World War II. The role brought her international acclaim and Oscar,...
SEEOscar Best Actress Gallery: Every Winner in Academy Award History
Born in 1934 in Rome, Loren began appearing in films both in her native Italy and in Hollywood, popping up in several titles that played more to her incredible beauty than her acting chops. That all changed with “Two Women” (1961), a stirring drama from Italian neorealist Vittoria De Sica that cast her as a mother protecting her daughter from the horrors of World War II. The role brought her international acclaim and Oscar,...
- 9/20/2019
- by Chris Beachum and Zach Laws
- Gold Derby
Sophia Loren, an iconic actress and Oscar winner, does not think much of today’s selfie culture. “In my time, an actress’ merit and skill was based on her talent,” Loren told Page Six. “Now when people meet me, they pull out their phones to take pictures. I do not know much about social media, but it seems that that’s what makes people more famous. My era of Hollywood was much better. You were known for your skill and talent.” Loren, who starred in such films as “It Started in Naples” and “Marriage Italian Style,” also cautioned young stars about rushing into plastic surgery.
- 10/21/2015
- by Joe Otterson
- The Wrap
By Mark Cerulli
On Wednesday night, Hollywood took a step back in time and it was a beautiful thing. Italy’s most glamorous export, the lovely Sophia Loren, made a rare visit to screen two of her films to an adoring crowd at the Dolby Theater. The movie legend was greeted with a standing ovation when she walked out in a shimmering gown, escorted by director Rob Marshall who was clearly in awe of the star he cast in Nine, her last Hollywood film. Settling into two plush seats separated by a mountain of roses, Marshall introduced her as “A woman with a heart as big as all of Italy.” Loren opened up about her life, career and leading men in a 45 minute Q&A, punctuated by frequent laughter and some poignant moments when she remembered how movies offered an escape from the misery of post-wwii Italy.
Loren came across...
On Wednesday night, Hollywood took a step back in time and it was a beautiful thing. Italy’s most glamorous export, the lovely Sophia Loren, made a rare visit to screen two of her films to an adoring crowd at the Dolby Theater. The movie legend was greeted with a standing ovation when she walked out in a shimmering gown, escorted by director Rob Marshall who was clearly in awe of the star he cast in Nine, her last Hollywood film. Settling into two plush seats separated by a mountain of roses, Marshall introduced her as “A woman with a heart as big as all of Italy.” Loren opened up about her life, career and leading men in a 45 minute Q&A, punctuated by frequent laughter and some poignant moments when she remembered how movies offered an escape from the misery of post-wwii Italy.
Loren came across...
- 11/15/2014
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Hollywood goes for blockbuster returns on Memorial Day, but how do the Us-centric hyper-macho films perform overseas?
Memorial Day is fast approaching, so naturally one's thoughts turn to the Fallen, and to the shared sacrifice of European and American continents as they united in common cause against the spectre of global tyranny. But that's enough about the reviews for Battleship.
"A preposterously lunkheaded salute to American naval machismo" snorted Tim Robey in The Daily Telegraph. "It seems that the Us Navy is as much committed to the production of this film as is the toy company" opined Le Monde's Thomas Sotinel. As news of the hostile European reception spread, American critics equipped their reviews with a pre-emptive Euro-snob missile defense shield. "That the movie didn't exactly receive hosannas in Europe should surprise absolutely no one. This is a Super-American movie," bristled Jeff Simon of Buffalo News. "It would be like...
Memorial Day is fast approaching, so naturally one's thoughts turn to the Fallen, and to the shared sacrifice of European and American continents as they united in common cause against the spectre of global tyranny. But that's enough about the reviews for Battleship.
"A preposterously lunkheaded salute to American naval machismo" snorted Tim Robey in The Daily Telegraph. "It seems that the Us Navy is as much committed to the production of this film as is the toy company" opined Le Monde's Thomas Sotinel. As news of the hostile European reception spread, American critics equipped their reviews with a pre-emptive Euro-snob missile defense shield. "That the movie didn't exactly receive hosannas in Europe should surprise absolutely no one. This is a Super-American movie," bristled Jeff Simon of Buffalo News. "It would be like...
- 5/25/2012
- by Tom Shone
- The Guardian - Film News
Sophia Loren, along with Myrna Loy, an Honorary Oscar recipient at the 1991 Oscar ceremony Sophia Loren will be honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, May 4, at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. The Sophia Loren Academy tribute will feature film clips and reminiscences from friends and colleagues, concluding with an onstage chat with the 1961 Best Actress Oscar winner. Among Loren's international leading men were Marcello Mastroianni (in a number of films), Cary Grant (The Pride and the Passion, Houseboat, 1958), Frank Sinatra (The Pride and the Passion), Alan Ladd (Boy on a Dolphin, 1958), Clark Gable (It Started in Naples, 1960), Charlton Heston (El Cid, 1961), Gregory Peck (Arabesque, 1966), Marlon Brando (A Countess from Hong Kong, 1967, directed by Charles Chaplin), Omar Sharif (More Than a Miracle, 1968), Peter O'Toole (Man of La Mancha, 1972), and Richard Burton [...]...
- 4/6/2011
- by Anna Robinson
- Alt Film Guide
HollywoodNews.com: The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences will celebrate the life and career of Sophia Loren with a gala evening of film clips and personal remarks from her friends and colleagues, concluding with an onstage conversation with the Oscar®-winning actress on Wednesday, May 4, 2011, at 8 p.m. at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.
In 1961 Loren earned the first Academy Award® presented to a lead performer in a non-English speaking role, for “Two Women,” directed by Vittorio De Sica. Prior to her win, Loren had already made an indelible impression on film audiences both in her native Italy and throughout the world.
De Sica directed Loren to another Oscar nomination in “Marriage Italian Style” (1964) opposite her most frequent co-star, Marcello Mastroianni. The two starred in “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” (1964), the winner of that year’s Foreign Language Film Academy Award for Italy, and “A Special Day...
In 1961 Loren earned the first Academy Award® presented to a lead performer in a non-English speaking role, for “Two Women,” directed by Vittorio De Sica. Prior to her win, Loren had already made an indelible impression on film audiences both in her native Italy and throughout the world.
De Sica directed Loren to another Oscar nomination in “Marriage Italian Style” (1964) opposite her most frequent co-star, Marcello Mastroianni. The two starred in “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” (1964), the winner of that year’s Foreign Language Film Academy Award for Italy, and “A Special Day...
- 3/28/2011
- by HollywoodNews.com
- Hollywoodnews.com
Sophia Loren, Gerard Butler, and Mel Gibson have been set as presenters at the 2010 Golden Globe Awards on Sunday, January 17. They join Jennifer Aniston, Halle Berry, Colin Farrell, Matthew Fox, Nicole Kidman, Julia Roberts, Mickey Rourke and Sam Worthington. Additionally, Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio will present the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Cecil B. DeMille Award to Martin Scorsese for his "outstanding contribution to the entertainment field." Sophia Loren has been nominated for three Golden Globes: It Started in Naples (1960, comedy or musical), Marriage Italian Style (1964, comedy or musical), and Ready to Wear (1994, supporting actress). Also, Loren won a Cecil B. DeMille Award for career achievement [...]...
- 1/5/2010
- by Anna Robinson
- Alt Film Guide
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