Whatever the silly story, this has to be watched! And admired!
With Sophia Loren, Vittorio de Sica and the young Marcello Mastroianni noathing can go wrong, and nothing does go wrong. Usually, Sophia alone already plays anyone to the ground, and in here, a masterly de Sica at times even outpaces her. It is a pity that he tends to be forgotten.
The whole plot circles around these two, father and daughter, kind of outdoing each other with petty and not quite so petty crime. De Sica shows enormous talent as a comedian in this movie.
Watch it at least twice, and one time just follow Sophia Loren, and the second time Vittorio de Sica.
And then tell yourself which 'more modern' actors are able to do likewise. Doing almost nothing. Just being there. Actually, in this respect Fernando Rey falls into this same class. But that's another story altogether.
Unfortunately, my copy is dubbed in German. A horrible choice of speakers spoil half of it. Mastroianni dubbed by someone who sounds like a 17-year-old dimwit, and Loren by a 17-year-old nanny.