It is 1950s Italy, and under provincial law, occupants in illegally-constructed buildings cannot be evicted once a roof is erected. In the outskirts of Rome, in the middle of the night, a newlywed couple rush to build a roof on a house so they can have their own home.

In Vittorio De Sica’s slice-of-life drama, another remarkable collaboration with Bicycle Thieves screenwriter Cesare Zavattini, love perseveres even in times of poverty. Driven by an optimistic faith in the rallying power of community, The Roof counters the wealth gap with working-class solidarity.