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In post war Rome work is hard to come by as the economy tries
to revive itself. Antonio Ricci finally finds work as a bill
poster around the city; problem is he needs a bicycle to get
around. His wife comes up with the money but tragically the
bike is stolen. Unable to work without it he scours the streets
of Rome, with his son, trying to get it back. As desperation
takes hold he is forced to steal a bike in order to keep his
job. Not being a professional thief he is caught and faces
humiliation in front of his son...
Bicycle
Thieves (Ladri di Biciclette), was based on the
novel by Luigi Bartolini, and directed by Vittorio de Sica.
Screenplay was by Cesare Zavattini, one of the main proponents
of neorealim in post war Italian cinema. Neorealism was an
attempt to move away from what was seen as the fantasy elements
of film making, where everything seems to exist in a world
apart from the real world. To this end, none of the actors
in the film were in fact actors, rather they were ordinary
people recruited to fill the roles. All the filming was done
on location in and around the city of Rome and no effort was
made to show anything other than the real experiences of the
people involved or the slums that they lived in. The film
therefore has a kind of documentary feel to its cinematography.
However
laudable this idea, it creates a number of problems. The actors
are not in fact speaking with their own voices about their
own experiences, with a script in place they are actually
doing what trained actors would do. Nor does the cinematography
or lighting move so far away from its set bound predecessors.
Whilst there is use of hand held camera shots, a closer look
at the film reveals a lot of professional framing. That aside,
Thieves was a very important film and went a long way
in reinvigorating post war Italian cinema, paving the way
for the creation of Cinema Verite, in France, in the late
1950's and early 60's with directors such as Jean-luc Goddard.
One
would expect that with such an inexperienced cast that the
film would seem amateurish, so it's amazing just how effective
Lamberto Maggiorani is in the role of Antonio Ricci - considering
that he had no acting experience. Prior to his role he had
been a factory worker. Enzo Staiola, who plays his young son
Bruno, also turns in a fine performance. Although at the start
of the film Bruno looks like he is shaping up to be one of
those annoying kids. With his fathers eventual fall from grace
Bruno comes through as the moral conscious of the film.
Whilst
the plot is simple, it is the lives of the main characters
and those they encounter that makes this film a classic. As
much as poverty has destroyed these people's lives, and the
harshness of their condition hardened their souls, the film
has many standout moments of unexpected kindness and humanity.
These small acts of grace stop the world from imploding into
a morass of self pity and depression.
The
print is in good shape for such an old film, though there
is evidence of print damage and artefacts - though not enough
to spoil the film. Audio is naturally stereo, but very clear.
On the extras you get poster artwork (ironically enough),
lobby stills and a trailer. More interesting is the documentary
about Vittorio De Sica, with film of the great man talking
about his work as both an actor and director.
So,
a splendid disc for all lovers of great cinema. Pity they
didn't clean the print up though.
Charles
Packer
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