THE BICYCLE THIEF **** (out of ****)
I've decided to offer a film series regarding what I think are some of the greatest films ever made. Here I will be able to write about classics in world cinema. I won't just limit the series to American films, though, of course they will be included. In the series films from France, Sweden, Russia, Germany, Hungary, b&w American films and silent films will be discussed.
But where to start with such a series? Of all the great films that have been made how do I select one title to start off the series? For some that may have been a tough question, for me, it was easy. I simply went with my favorite movie of all time, Vittorio De Sica's "The Bicycle Thief".
One of the major film movements in cinema has been the neo-realism movement in Italy. During the second world war much of the country was left in ruins. But this did not stop filmmakers in the country from making movies. Why not show this environment in their films? Cinema, after all, is a reflection of society. Films do not merely exist within their own universe. Cinema has the ability to make social commentaries. And people in Italy wanted to see films which dealt with the issues they were facing.
Of all the great films made during the period, which many believe started with Luchino Visconti's "Ossessione" and ended with De Sica's "Umberto D.", "The Bicycle Thief" is perhaps one of the best known films of the neo-realism movement.
To describe the plot of the film, it may sound boring. If the plot is summed up it is about a man who gets a job working for the city, putting up film posters around town. One day, his bicycle is stolen. The job requires that he have a bike as a form of transportation, and if his bicycke is stolen he will lose his job. So he, along with his son, search the streets of Rome trying to find his bike.
The bicycle now becomes a symbol for a better life. It is a way Antonio (played by non-actor Lamberto Maggiorani, who actually acted in a few films after this) can provide for his family and help them live a better life.
Watching the film again however I noticed how much the film is a film about poverty. Especially after such natural disasters in the U.S. and the images we see on TV of poor families trying to survive, I noticed a parallel between the two.
De Sica, for his part tries to create a lot of suspense in the film. He keeps making us think Antonio will find the bike. And in the beginning moments of the films keeps hinting the bicycle will be stolen, though, the title of the film kind of gives that part away.
Lets look at a scene in which Antonio takes his wife, Maria (Lianella Carell) to visit a fortune teller to tell her about her husband's new job. Maria is with the fortune teller for a long time as Antonio, waits outside, with his bike, impatiently. He finally leaves the bicycle and heads inside to get Maria. We keep going back to the bicycle as the two are inside. The thought enters our head, will someone steal the bike?
De Sica actually started out as an actor way back in the silent era. His first on-screen credit is dated back to 1917! He was even nominated for a best supporting actor Oscar in 1958 for the film "Farewell to Arms", but it is his work as a director which has given him a special place in cinema. Some of his other films include "Two Women", "A Brief Vacation" and "The Garden of the Finzi-Continis".
So what makes "The Bicycle Thief" my favorite film? Sometimes films are so powerful we forget it is only a movie. We identitfy so strongly with the characters on-screen their problems seem real to us. No film has been able to do that to me, to the extent in which "The Bicycle Thief" does. It has a raw power to transform beyond just being a movie. The fact that non-actors and real locations were used probably helped pushed this idea even further.
And that is what makes Vittorio De Sica's "The Bicycle Thief" one of the masterpieces of cinema.
I've decided to offer a film series regarding what I think are some of the greatest films ever made. Here I will be able to write about classics in world cinema. I won't just limit the series to American films, though, of course they will be included. In the series films from France, Sweden, Russia, Germany, Hungary, b&w American films and silent films will be discussed.
But where to start with such a series? Of all the great films that have been made how do I select one title to start off the series? For some that may have been a tough question, for me, it was easy. I simply went with my favorite movie of all time, Vittorio De Sica's "The Bicycle Thief".
One of the major film movements in cinema has been the neo-realism movement in Italy. During the second world war much of the country was left in ruins. But this did not stop filmmakers in the country from making movies. Why not show this environment in their films? Cinema, after all, is a reflection of society. Films do not merely exist within their own universe. Cinema has the ability to make social commentaries. And people in Italy wanted to see films which dealt with the issues they were facing.
Of all the great films made during the period, which many believe started with Luchino Visconti's "Ossessione" and ended with De Sica's "Umberto D.", "The Bicycle Thief" is perhaps one of the best known films of the neo-realism movement.
To describe the plot of the film, it may sound boring. If the plot is summed up it is about a man who gets a job working for the city, putting up film posters around town. One day, his bicycle is stolen. The job requires that he have a bike as a form of transportation, and if his bicycke is stolen he will lose his job. So he, along with his son, search the streets of Rome trying to find his bike.
The bicycle now becomes a symbol for a better life. It is a way Antonio (played by non-actor Lamberto Maggiorani, who actually acted in a few films after this) can provide for his family and help them live a better life.
Watching the film again however I noticed how much the film is a film about poverty. Especially after such natural disasters in the U.S. and the images we see on TV of poor families trying to survive, I noticed a parallel between the two.
De Sica, for his part tries to create a lot of suspense in the film. He keeps making us think Antonio will find the bike. And in the beginning moments of the films keeps hinting the bicycle will be stolen, though, the title of the film kind of gives that part away.
Lets look at a scene in which Antonio takes his wife, Maria (Lianella Carell) to visit a fortune teller to tell her about her husband's new job. Maria is with the fortune teller for a long time as Antonio, waits outside, with his bike, impatiently. He finally leaves the bicycle and heads inside to get Maria. We keep going back to the bicycle as the two are inside. The thought enters our head, will someone steal the bike?
De Sica actually started out as an actor way back in the silent era. His first on-screen credit is dated back to 1917! He was even nominated for a best supporting actor Oscar in 1958 for the film "Farewell to Arms", but it is his work as a director which has given him a special place in cinema. Some of his other films include "Two Women", "A Brief Vacation" and "The Garden of the Finzi-Continis".
So what makes "The Bicycle Thief" my favorite film? Sometimes films are so powerful we forget it is only a movie. We identitfy so strongly with the characters on-screen their problems seem real to us. No film has been able to do that to me, to the extent in which "The Bicycle Thief" does. It has a raw power to transform beyond just being a movie. The fact that non-actors and real locations were used probably helped pushed this idea even further.
And that is what makes Vittorio De Sica's "The Bicycle Thief" one of the masterpieces of cinema.
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