Bicycle Thieves - 1596 Words

Vittorio De Sica’s The Bicycle Thieves is a simple story set amidst a post-war Rome. It is a neorealist film characterized by setting the story amongst the poor and working class. The film surrounds the difficult economical and moral conditions of post WWII Italy, reflecting the conditions of everyday life: Poverty and desperation, with the implicit message that in a better society, wealth would be more evenly distributed. The plot is simple, surrounding a man, his son and a bicycle. The film tells a story of Antonio Ricci, an unemployed worker who finally gets a job to paste advertisements in the city of Rome. To keep this job, he must have a bicycle, in which his wife, Maria had to pawn their bed linens to get money to redeem their†¦show more content†¦This further creates authenticity of the film and shows the hardship that the people face during that period. As for the actors, none had the slightest experience in theater or film. Antonio (Lamberto Maggiorani) was a factory worker in Breda factory, Bruno (Enzo Staiola) was found hanging around in the street and Maria (Lianella Carell) was a journalist. Despite his age, Bruno already plays a mature role in the family, as can be seen in him working. Nonetheless, dressed like his father in overalls, he remains at his fathers side or in his shadow. We first see him proudly cleaning the newly reclaimed bicycle, and he gently rebukes his father for not complaining to the pawnshop workers about a dent for which they are responsible. Brunos self-assured walk and obedience to his fathers authority are nothing compared to the love for his father we see in his eyes. In addition, Bruno serves as his fathers moral compass: What are you, my conscience? Antonio asks, annoyed, moments after striking him. As his fathers conscience, but also as his son and friend, Bruno suffers public humiliation with him. One distinct prop that the movie uses is the bicycle. the brand name of Antonios bicycle, Fides, which means faith or, even more ironically for this story, reliance. (Nothing could be less reliable than that red bicycle.) This can be seen in many scenes. For example, right at the beginning of the movie, the bicycle is introduced when the government officerShow MoreRelatedThe Work Bicycle Thieves By Vittorio De Sica2024 Words   |  9 PagesThe work Bicycle Thieves is chosen to be discussed in this essay. Bicycle Thieves is an Italian film published in 1948, directed by Vittorio De Sica. It gained both commercial and artistic success, and have won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1948. The film is famous for its neorealism that reflects the post-war Italian society. In the following essay, I’m going to discuss how did De Sica use the cinematography skills to strengthen his expressions in Bicycle Thieves, and the waysRead MoreBicycle Thieves1588 Words   |  7 PagesVittorio De Sica’s The Bicycle Thieves is a simple story set amidst a post-war Rome. It is a neorealist film characterized by setting the story amongst the poor and working class. The film surrounds the difficult economical and moral conditions of post WWII Italy, reflecting the conditions of everyday life: Poverty and desperation, with the implicit message that in a better society, wealth would be more evenly distributed. The plot is simple, surrounding a man, his son and a bicycle. The film tells aRead MoreBicycle Thieves Analysis1154 Words   |  5 Pages While Rossellini’s Rome Open City portrays the struggle for freedom, De Sica’s Bicycle Thieves tries to find the human face. He discovered it not in the exceptional sorrow of war but in the misery of daily life where war is just one aspect of the human lot. Bicycle Thieves takes place at a specific time under a unique series of social conditions that shape both its narrative and its embrace of the Neorealist style. Consider the intricate sociopolitical climate of Italy just before the film’sRead MoreFilm Theory Vs. Realism1509 Words   |  7 Pages. However, not only was the subject matter different from national cinema, it also created a unique film style. The movement’s main principles were set forth by Cesare Zavattini, who released one of its most enduring classic, The Bicycle Thieves. â€Å"The Bicycle Thieves is one of the crown jewels of neorealism, the post-war Italian philosophy of filmmaking that permanently reinvigorated our world of cinema. Rejecting the illusory glamour and set-bound artificiality of conventional filmmaking, neorealismRead MoreItalian Neorealism ( 1945-1953 )1909 Words   |  8 PagesItalian neorealism (1945-1953), through directors like Roberto Rossellini and Vittorio De Sica, made its trademark on cinematic history not only in Italy, but also throughout the world. It was films such as Rome Open City (Roma città   aperta, 1945), The Bicycle Thief (Ladri di biciclette, 1948), and Umberto D., (1952) whose style of depicting the harsh economic and social realities of the poor and working class of Italy took off as a new cinematic style after World War II. Neorealism is a response to desperateRead MoreBicycle Thieves: An Expression of Italian Neo-realism756 Words   |  4 PagesBicycle Thieves is considered an example of Italian Neo-real ism. The plot demonstrates Italians of the working class in Italy and unfolds their day to day lives. One could argue it portray the reality and develops into an emotional storyline towards the end. Antonio, the main character is offered a job requiring a bicycle and on his first day it was stolen on the streets. You immediately feel drawn to the character as you want to see a happy ending. Watching the film, automatically feel sorry forRead MoreMovie Analysis: M vs. Bicycle Thieves Essay1399 Words   |  6 PagesAnalysis of M and Bicycle Thieves One thing that both movies, M and Bicycle Thieves, share collectively is the open ending; both movies make audiences interpret their own perception or ending of the movies. Also, both movies contain a sense of tragedy in the final scenes; in the movie M, I felt somewhat sympathetic toward the mentally ill killer even though I knew he was the serial killer and might be pretending to get away. The feeling of sympathy toward the serial killer in the presence of hisRead MoreBicycle Sharing System Bixi Comes to New York Essay5149 Words   |  21 Pagesleaked that PBSC was experiencing financial difficulties with its Montreal operations. The contract was worth several millions of dollars and was crucial to Bixi. The leak had the potential to jeopardize the chances of PBSC-Alta to win the contract. BICYCLE SHARING SYSTEMS AROUND THE GLOBE In 2011, bike-sharing services was a booming industry (exhibit 1). From 213 bike-sharing systems in operation in 14 countries across Europe in 2008, by this point there were 375 bike-sharing systems in operation acrossRead MoreTheme Of Neorealism In Ladri Di Biciclette1348 Words   |  6 Pagesscreenwriters who help start the Neorealism movement in his home county’s cinema once said â€Å" The true purpose on cinema is not to tell fables...There must be no gap between life and what is on the screen.† His screenplay, Ladri Di Biciclette (known as Bicycle Thieves to American audiences) is an artful manifestation of the Italian Neorealism. The film through numerous narrative aspects captures realistic snapshot into the fictional life of a working class family in post WWII Italy, and even has viewers questionRead More Comparison Of Two Films: Essay1268 Words   |  6 Pages In that paper, I will try to compare two films which are â€Å"A Birth of a Nation† directed by D.W.Griffith and â€Å"The Bicycle Thieves† directed by De Sica. After giving the story of the films, I will try to explain their technical features and their similarities. A Birth of a Nation by D. W. Griffith nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Griffith can be seen as the first modern director, his greatest achievements being the historical epics The Birth Of A Nation. When it was released, it was one of the longest