StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

Bicycle Thieves - Movie Review Example

Cite this document
Summary
Movie Review: Bicycle Thieves The film Bicycle Thieves (original Italian title Ladri di bicyclette) is an emotionally engaging film. Made in 1948 in the aftermath of the Second World War, the film gives a realistic account of war-ravished Italy. The economy is in a bad shape and social fissures are pronounced…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER97.4% of users find it useful
Bicycle Thieves
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Bicycle Thieves"

Download file to see previous pages

In many ways, the young boy represents a purity and moral fortitude that elders around him have difficulty to master. The young boy accompanies his father through his long, arduous and ultimately futile attempt to locate his stolen bicycle. But throughout these travails, he hardly betrays his immaturity. The poise and understated maturity of young Bruno is pleasing to see. I believe it is upon De Sica’s directorial discretion that Bruno’s character was drawn on those lines. There is one scene in particular where the young boy’s maturity comes to light.

It was when his frayed and tired father slaps him on the cheek out of his own inner frustrations. Bruno was hurt and he starts to cry. He moves away from his father and sulks. Yet, when his repentant father comes to him to console and cajole, he does not rebuke him. Instead of playing truant and throwing a tantrum, young Bruno allows his dad to make peace with him. Eventually, his father takes him to a restaurant to buy him a luxurious cake. In a subtle irony, De Sica showcases how the young can sometimes lead the old and display more maturity.

Neo-realist cinema might be passe for modern audiences, but when De Sica gave it full expression in Bicycle Thieves it was fresh and inventive. In fact, poverty as a theme for commercial cinema was thought unviable by many producers. Consequently, De Sica had difficulty garnering funding for his project. The fact of the availability of only a limited funding actually accentuated the neo-realist feel in the film. For example, the lead actors are all amateurs who barely had any acting experience prior to the film.

The scenes were all shot on location without using any studio settings. The material reality of poverty was well captured too. After all, it doesn’t require expensive props to execute a film based on the ordeals of poverty. Consistent with the neo-realist style the background music for the film is minimal. The idea is to let the story create its own sense of drama and poignancy without the aid of music. Moreover, an austere production philosophy resonates with the poverty and frugality at display onscreen.

(Wakeman, 1988) The film is good material for philosophical inquiry. In my view, the essence of the film is the last scene where the victim decides to become the victimizer. When Antonio Ricci (the protagonist) decides out of desperation that he would steal a bicycle to recompense what had been stolen from him, the title Bicycle Thieves takes on an added dimension. What was till that point in film a reference to the gang of burglars who steal bicycles and resell them in the market, now includes the aggrieved loser himself.

This is a powerful political statement on part of De Sica about the nature of poverty and the evaluation of morality in this economic realm. In other words, the film can be seen as an early exploration on the vicious cycle of poverty and crime. There is little doubt that the director’s take on these twin blights of society are rather sympathetic. This much is evident from the overall tone and effect of the film. In this sense, the film is a powerful social and political comment – something that is apt for further study from sociological perspectives.

(Ratner, 2005) In sum, Bicycle Thieves is an important work in the history of world cinema. Its appeal is universal because its theme is universal and based on humanism. Bicycle Thieves is an intense film that has an underlying engagement with humanist

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Bicycle Thieves Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words”, n.d.)
Bicycle Thieves Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/journalism-communication/1481190-bicycle-thieves
(Bicycle Thieves Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words)
Bicycle Thieves Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words. https://studentshare.org/journalism-communication/1481190-bicycle-thieves.
“Bicycle Thieves Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/journalism-communication/1481190-bicycle-thieves.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Bicycle Thieves

Comparison/Contrast Paper: Citizen Kane (Orson Welles) and Bicycle Thieves (DeSica)

Name Professor Course Date Comparison/Contrast Paper: Citizen Kane (Orson Welles) and Bicycle Thieves (DeSica) Observed in consideration, mlore of modern cinema can appear to flow from identical fountainheads: Orson Welles's Citizen Kane of 1941 and Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves of 1948.... Citizen Kane and The Bicycle Thieves Deep Focus The cinematic techniques are exhibited from the beginning of the movie and at that instance; the camera focuses on one element that is, the ice cube on the old man's hand....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

Bicycle Thieves (1948)

Review on Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) Name University Date Review on Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) Introduction This paper is a critique on one of the greatest films of all time, Ladri di biciclette, which is the epitome of neorealism and still remains the best example to the movement that changed the face of Italian cinematography.... Review on Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) Review on Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) Introduction This paper is a critique on one of the greatest films of all time, Ladri di biciclette, which is the epitome of neorealism and still remains the best example to the movement that changed the face of Italian cinematography....
3 Pages (750 words) Movie Review

Movie Techniques to Attract the Attention of the Viewers

On the other hand, DeSica's films, Bicycle Thieves has demonstrated the Italian realism through the different movement that took place in Rome, an Italian city in addition to use of the Italian names for its characters who have contributed to make the movie interesting in and good to view.... DeSica' Bicycle Thieves is the movie that I found was with the most interesting camera work as well as the story structure which could trigger a desire to watch it again....
3 Pages (750 words) Movie Review

Final Exam (communication)

Deep focus Task: Communication Question The Best Film this Semester The best film that I enjoyed this semester was Bicycle Thieves.... uestion 10: Bicycle ThievesThe director of Bicycle Thieves uses the plural form of thief to depict multiple thieves in the film.... Question 3: Italian Neorealism in bicycle ThievesThis is a film depicting a relationship between the rich and the poor.... For example, persons who could like bicycle thief are numerous within society....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Bicycle Thieves by Vittorio de Sica

This movie review "Bicycle Thieves by Vittorio de Sica" discusses the representative work of Italian neoclassical cinema.... The scene in which the workman and the son seek shelter from the rain and are being surrounded by the insensible young seminarians chattering, the scene inside the church, the scene in which the boy runs in front of a vehicle and has to stop as his father moves ahead unawares – all these are sufficient to prove that Bicycle Thieves is pure cinema, incorporating the real events into the fictional reality of it....
6 Pages (1500 words) Movie Review

Analysis of Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves Movie

The author analyzes Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves that is considered the representative work of Italian neoclassical cinema.... The scene in which the workman and the son seeks shelter from the rain and are being surrounded by the insensible young seminarians chattering, the scene inside the church, the scene in which the boy runs in front of a vehicle and has to stop as his father moves ahead unawares – all these are sufficient to prove that Bicycle Thieves is pure cinema,  incorporating the real events into the fictional reality of it....
8 Pages (2000 words) Movie Review

Bicycle Thieves by Vittorio DeSica

This paper "Bicycle Thieves by Vittorio DeSica" discusses De Sica's great work that is called Bicycle Thieves.... he scene of Bicycle Thieves where Bruno watches his father committing crime that he thinks his idol is remarkably commendable and from the aesthetic perspectives, is brilliantly created.... The scene recreated and analyzed closely is based on this particular scene of bicycle Thief (Movie Review Index, 2009)....
8 Pages (2000 words) Movie Review

Analysis of Vittorio De Sicas Bicycle Thieves and Erick Zonca in the Dreamlife of Angels

… Italian neorealism movement through Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) and modern French poetic realism of Erick Zonca in The Dreamlife of Angels (1999)Finding heart and humanity in films hardly come by these days.... And when it comes, it is Italian neorealism movement through Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (1948) and modern French poetic realism of Erick Zonca in The Dreamlife of Angels (1999)Finding heart and humanity in films hardly come by these days....
7 Pages (1750 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us