Bicycle Thieves
The Bicycle Thief is a neorealist film set in Rome, Italy in 1948. It is based on the book by Luigi Bartolini and the story by Cesare Zavattini Directed by Vittorio De Sica the film follows the moral conditions and economic situations faced by Italians in the working class after the fall of Mussolini’s government post-WWII. Almost all of the movie is shot in the streets as many film studios had been damaged during the war as well as the fact that no longer occupied by Germans the Italian filmmakers were able to utilize realistic settings like the beautiful countryside. Lamberto Maggiorani plays Antonio, a new father who is desperate to make a life for his family. Enzo Staiola as Bruno, the silly son that follows his father around but can hold his own too, and lastly Lianella Carell as Maria the mother who wishes the best and is pregnant with her second child. The movie was classified as the 6th best movie ever made by ___ and won at the Cannes Film Festival Classics 2018; Academy Awards Honorary 1950; Nominee: Best Writing, and Screenplay; Locarno International Film Festival 1949 Winner: Special Prize of Jury; and San Sebastián International Film Festival 2018 Klasikoa.
In the depressed post-WWII economy of Italy, a desperate but hopeful family man luckily gets a job based on the sole fact he has a bicycle. His family sells their possessions like bedsheets so they can afford it. Unfortunately on his first day of the new job of hanging up posters, his bicycle, essential to do the work, is stolen. With his son in tow, he sets off to track down the thief. Antonio gets the help of his friend and they go to Italian markets. Through his journey to find the thief the audience sees the realism of the Italian poverty and situation. When they find the thief they have no proof, forcing them to give up their attempt to find it. Heartbroken, Antonio is put into a moral dilemma in order to survive and provide a life for his son who knows his father won’t be able to keep his job.
The story flows with contemplative pacing, as the audience watches they think with the characters about the thief. As the Father and Son journey through Rome, they are able to see a glimpse into the real life of the Italians in Rome. They enter a church with lawyers cutting hair and nuns guarding a soup line after mass. They watch a truck full of protesters drive by advocating for the communist chancellor of Rome. With close-ups to show emotion and long editing, the audience feels the emotion and hard decisions that Antonio must make as well as capturing the beautiful Italian scenery. The cinematic style evokes a sense of melancholy with visual symmetry and actions in the plot that remind you of the economic situation. Shots with no camera movement allow the audience to focus on what the characters are saying while moving to allow the audience to follow along.
The simplicity of the cinematic techniques illustrates the complexity of Antonio’s life and the changing society in Italy. De Sica uses wide sweeping shots when the characters are outdoors and close-ups indoors with an intimate emotion that makes the reader smaller in these situations. The narrative of the film shows the realness of Antonio’s economic situation and father-son relationship. Antonio wants to be a good father and De Sica uses camera angles to show how close Bruno and Antonio are. Antonio scolds and slaps Bruno for criticizing him which makes Bruno upset and the camera angles change to far away as Bruno no longer walks close to him demonstrating Bruno’s drift away from his father. While searching for an old man by the river Antonio hears that a boy has drowned. Fearing that it is his own so he goes to see if he is okay. Realizing that Bruno stayed where he was told, Antonio appreciates his son more and the camera angles shift back to close-ups and mid-shots.
In conclusion, The Bicycle Thief was a great movie to watch to get a new perspective on poverty and hardship. The movie is timeless and a piece of Italian history with some actors being real people off the street and shot entirely in public. I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys Ozu films and likes the slow-paced reflection with melancholy undertones. If you have a soft spot for father-son relationships this movie perfectly illustrates the complexity of both roles. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and would watch it again.
