It Started in Naples Reviews

It Started in Naples is not a great movie in either Clark Gable’s or Sophia Loren’s resume, but it is a breezy, flirty fun piece of fluffy entertainment. The barebones plot goes a little something like this: Gable comes to Naples to settle some business involving his dead brother’s son, who is being raised by his fiery, passionate, earthy aunt, Loren. They meet, and everything seems to be going perfectly well until they begin to argue about raising the boy and who is he better off living with. Gable doesn’t like that Loren is a nightclub singer/performer whose odd hours and anything-goes lifestyle offer little discipline and structure for the boy. Do I really need to explain what happens next? Or even how it ends? But the megawatt star power radiating from Clark Gable could elevate any old piece of dreck. And Sophia Loren’s two nightclub sequences show that she had wiggles, jiggles and curves in all of the right places. They also showed that she could be effortless funny, charming and sublime. You don’t watch something like It Started in Naples for the plot, this is pure movie star charisma. Sit back and enjoy it. I know that I did.