Five young men dream of success as they drift lazily through life in a small Italian village. Fausto (Franco Fabrizi), the group’s leader, is a womanizer; Riccardo (Riccardo Fellini) craves fame; Alberto (Alberto Sordi) is a hopeless dreamer; Moraldo (Franco Interlenghi) fantasizes about life in the city; and Leopoldo (Leopoldo Trieste) is an aspiring playwright. As Fausto chases a string of women, to the horror of his pregnant wife, the other four blunder their way from one uneventful experience to the next.

I Vitelloni, Federico Fellini’s third film (and his first masterpiece), has been cited as a foundational influence on both Martin Scorsese’s debut film Mean Streets and George Lucas’ American Graffiti.