![]() ![]() Martin Scorsese does a glorious appreciation of it in his documentary on the Italian cinema, IL MIO VIAGGIO IN ITALIA. The fact that the film has almost never been out of circulation since its making and is constantly shown in revivals, festivals and film classes attests to its endurance. I have seen THE BICYCLE THIEF ("Bicycle Thieves" in England and plural as well in its original Italian title) hundreds of times since and never tire of it. I was only 13 at the time and somewhat of a precocious chooser of what films to go see. It changed it in the sense that after seeing it I developed a life-long passion for Italian films after first seeing it in 1955 when it appeared at a local movie theatre in a revival five years or so after its original appearance. Credit due to all parties involved, though I don't think the boy Bruno, played by Staiola, gets nearly enough considering his role as a minor coming of age (that moment after the father and son leave the church nearly brought tears to my eyes). While the score adds basic dramatic tension, everything else on the screen is done to such a pitch of neo-realism it's at times shattering, joyful (scene in the pizzeria the most note-worthy), and with a feeling of day-to-day resonance to those who may have not even felt at or below the poverty level in their lives. Very soon though, the bicycle is stolen, and from there a sad downward spiral unravels for the man and his son as they scour the streets for the bicycle. To do this he needs a bicycle, or the job will be lost, and he gets one following a pawning of linen sheets. Such a man as presented by De Sica is Maggiorani (an actor who really is the type of actor right off the street), a father of a little boy who gets a job putting up movie posters along some walls in Rome. In this case the elements are of a society that is often cruel and unforgiving, and that a job in post-war Rome is looked on as the luckiest of good luck charms. Vittorio De Sica's ground/heartbreaking motion picture, The Bicycle Thief, is based on a very simple ideal for a story- man against the elements. "The Bicycle Thief" is an excellent production that has aged well and allows the viewer to think about many subjects that go beyond ordinary cinematic depths. ![]() It examines the human condition and questions society, family, law enforcement, alliances and mental anguish perfectly. Director Vittorio De Sica crafts a film that is much deeper than it appears on the surface. ![]() The lengths and desperate measures that some go through is very evident here. It is still a production that strikes deep even today. "The Bicycle Thief" was originally released in 1948 and won an Honorary Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film the following year (the movie was not released in the U.S. Thus Maggiorani and young son Enzo Staiola take it upon themselves to look all over town to try and find the bicycle and bring the thief to justice. The police are little help, believing the bicycle is not as important as it really is. Naturally tragedy strikes immediately as the title character shows up the very first day Maggiorani is on the job. Things look up when he gets a job putting posters on walls in town, but he must sell what few meager possessions he and his family have to buy a bicycle to uphold his end of the business bargain. It follows one economically distraught man (Lamberto Maggiorani) who is heading down a desperate path fast. "Ladri Di Biciclette" (translated "The Bicycle Thief") is quietly one of the finest films ever produced. Work is scarce and the opportunities for employment are few and far between. In post-World War II Italy poverty is a dire reality for a large portion of the population. ![]()
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