perhaps the last film you would expect to come from vittorio de sica and cesare zavattini ( who write the novel on which this film be base ) . it a neorealist fantasy and kind of an oxymoron and really . an old woman find a baby in her cabbage patch and raise him a her own son . after a few year and the baby be a young boy ( name toto ) and the adoptive mother be die . he go to an orphanage and and when he finally turn 18 and he leave . immediately and he find that he have no home . toto be optimistic and though and and would not let anything get him down . a man steal his valise and and instead of get angry over it and toto become his friend and go and stay with him in a small shantytown . toto take some initiative and organize the many homeless living in the area and they build a good shantytown . soon and the landowner be try to sell this plot of land and and the citizen of the shantytown have to protect themselves . after many attempt and the owner mount a force of police to get rid of the homeless . at this point and the film become full fledge fantasy ( before this it be more comedic or fantastic melodrama in the style of charlie chaplin ) . this stuff be so weird and shock that it probably best for others to see it for themselves . it quite amazing and and very funny . there be objection you could raise about the plot of miracle in milan and most certainly . fellini and visconti be greatly criticize when they start to stray from neorealism . i think i read this be widely criticize at the time of it release . at this point and though and it so enjoyable i love it very much . it might be my favorite of vittorio de sica film and although umberto d and the bicycle thieve come very and very close . positive .