I’m Starting from Three 1981

Gaetano, Massimo Troisi, is a shy Neapolitan boy who grows up in a tight-knit southern city, surrounded by family: a brother, a sister, his mother, and a father whose fervent Catholicism guides every moment and even led him to seek a miracle from Madonna of the swords to restore his missing hand. The world feels claustrophobic and provincial to Gaetano, and the dull routine of a factory job only amplifies his restlessness.

Driven by a longing for something broader, he decides to hitch-hike north to Florence, a city he imagines as more modern and cosmopolitan. There, he meets Marta, Fiorenza Marchegiani as Marta, and the two swiftly fall into a tender, hopeful romance. Gaetano is soon joined by his old friend Lello, Lello Arena, a rotund, clumsy yet endlessly humorous presence who brings warmth to the budding relationship.

One night at Marta’s, a manuscript in hand, Marta reveals she is pregnant and unsettled about who the father might be. She confides that she had a relationship with a teenage boy, and she speaks candidly to Gaetano, laying bare the messy, human truth of the situation. The news leaves Gaetano sad and embittered, and he returns to Naples ostensibly for his sister’s wedding, though the real motive is to clear his mind and come to terms with what he has learned.

Back in the city of his birth, Gaetano confronts a deeper realization: his love for Marta runs strong and clear. He chooses to go back to Florence, ready to embrace Marta and the child as part of their future together, even if the paternity remains uncertain. In this journey, he moves from doubt and inward retreat to a renewed commitment, opening the door to a life where love, responsibility, and the possibility of a family coexist in a fragile, hopeful balance.