The approach to
cinema as an art form has been divisive from the very beginning, as the Lumiére
brother made films ground in documentary-style realism while George Méliès
would trail blaze the formalist approach shortly after. Another such moment of
stylistic crossroads in film history came with the formalism of Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane (1941) followed by the Italian
neorealist approach taken by Vittorio De Sica in Bicycle Thieves (1948). With non-professional actors, natural
lighting, and the use of real locations in post-WWII Italy
The story itself is fittingly simplistic, and
all the more heartbreaking because of the focus on characters over narrative. A
man named Antonio Ricci (Lamberto Maggiorani) is fortunate enough to be among
the very few to find a job placing advertisements in the recovering streets of
post-war Rome
When Antonio’s
bike is stolen right in front of him and the police are no help in getting it
back, he sets out on a mission across Rome to find the thieves, with his young
son Bruno (Enzo Staiola) trailing behind him. It is storytelling on the
smallest scale, especially considering the mass crowds we see within the film.
With the many stories occurring within the busy streets of Rome
If you look at Bicycle Thieves as a film about the
search for a stolen bicycle, it has a devastatingly bleak ending that feels
unjust. On the other hand, if the relationship between father and son is
treated as the most significant element of the narrative, there is a great deal
more hope in the final frames of the film. Knowing that De Sica was greatly
influenced by Charlie Chaplin also helps to understand the direction of these
final moments. Although it is missing the slapstick humor that Chaplin’s films
were known for, there is a similar melancholic optimism in the way it becomes a
film about relationships rather than material possessions. And despite being
played by non-professionals, these characters are so well embodied by the
actors that their performances feel wholly sincere, adding even more poignancy
to the melodrama.
The Blu-ray
release features a new 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural
soundtrack with much of the static removed. The special features include the
featurette “Working with De Sica,” which has interviews with screenwriter Suso
Cecchi d’Amico, actor Enzo Staiola, and film scholar Callisto Cosulich. There
is also a documentary from 2003 on screenwriter and De Sica collaborator, Cesar
Zavattini, as well as a television program on the history of Italian
neorealism. The booklet insert also has an essay by critic Godfrey Cheshire and
brief recollections on the filming by key cast and crew members, including
Sergio Leone, who was given a bit part in the cast while working for free as a
crew member.
Entertainment Value:
7/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 9.5/10
Historical Significance:
10/10
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