The character of Accattone himself, self-destructive and conscious of his situation within a class from which he cannot escape, embodies many of the contradictions in Pasolini's lifetime of coming to terms with Marxism and Catholicism.

Powerful, gripping, urgent.

Pasolini's first feature is a classic neorealist study of the Roman underworld of poverty and petty thievery.

This is a fascinating debut by writer-director Pier Paolo Pasolini, who has scripted some interesting pix.