There are old lovers, young lovers, good Germans, bad Germans, an anarchist, a funny priest, pretty plazes, blue skies and rainy ones […] It probably won’t offend anyone, except perhaps a few movie critics who prefer their Italian films to be made by Italians, rather than by Americans who can purchase landscapes and faces but not good movies […] There’s not one affecting, surprising or spontaneous moment in the picture. However, it’s possible to see the interior mechanics of conventional movie-making in everything from its crowd scenes (you can almost hear the loudspeakers telling the extras what to do) to an interior love scene (medium shot to establish situation, cut to close-up of her, cut to close-up of him, etc.) — Vincent Canby