una lampada alla finestra (1940)

an elderly collector of antique jewels accuses his son, who leads a dissolute life, of stealing a precious object to pay himself a gambling debt. the young man, distressed by the suspect, escapes by car but soon crashes and dies. the father, destroyed by pain, also learns that his son had no fault and heartbroken, he begins to show signs of mental imbalance: believing that his son can soon return home, every night he exposes a lamp to the window of the villa where he lives with his daughter. one night a vagabond happens in which the poor demented believes he sees his missing son. welcome to the house, the young wanderer is in love with the sister of the deceased and, to make himself worthy of her, he leaves in search of a good job. the poor old man, hoping for his return, puts the lamp back in the window.