When casting children's roles, director Luchino Visconti is said to have been besieged by clamouring mothers, each trying to attract his attention to their child with cries of "Bellissima!". In his film of the same name, Visconti turned his experiences into art, with the famous Cinecitta studios as a backdrop.

Maddalena (Anna Magnani) is a screenstruck mother convinced of her daughter Maria's (Tina Apicella) star potential. Dreaming of a better life for her family she invests everything, including her last penny, into the dream that her daughter will be discovered at an open casting.

From a story by Cesare Zavattini, Bellissima stars Italy's most famous actress, Oscar-winning Magnani, in a bravura performance. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present - for the first time on DVD in the UK - Visconti's expose of false dreams and shallow fantasies behind the screen, a subtle critique of the industry in which he worked.