Psyched about the bike

What more can be said about a film that's virtually perfect in every aspect, one that's been studied and cherished for decades and which continues to inform and inspire new audiences all over the world, regardless of age, ethnicity or creed? Actually, plenty. Here's a recap of observations gathered during last night's CineVerse meeting on "Bicycle Thieves."

WHAT DO YOU FIND FASCINATING AND RESONANT ABOUT “BICYCLE THIEVES” 66 YEARS AFTER ITS INITIAL RELEASE?

·         There is not much action or plot: this is a very simple but effective story that evokes a strong emotional reaction in viewers primarily from its visual poetry and nonverbal storytelling.

·         The father and son, along nearly everyone else in the cast, are not professional actors—these are just everyday people. Yet, marvel at how expressive their faces are and how natural their acting—or nonacting, in this case—is.

·         This film attempts to depict true poverty and economic hardship as it really was in one city at a given time in history: postwar Rome in 1948, which had been bombed out and crippled following the war.

·         The film is consistent and believable in its approach to realism: there is no contrived happy ending or resolution, and bad things happen to good people.

·         To put the film in proper context, consider that Americans didn’t often get to view pictures about poor people in this clear and close a focus before; even films made during and set in the Great Depression often softened the blow when impoverished characters were showcased, and almost always a happy denouement was included.

·         The character of the stalwart and compassionate Bruno, the son, and what we see him observe and react to, is what helps give the film extra power and resonance.

·         The film does attempt to make a political statement—that we should be more concerned with our fellow man and that a fairer political system should exist that provides greater opportunities to everyday people—yet, the film is not so much about the hardships of poverty or the quest to reclaim a stolen bike but rather the relationship between a father and his boy.

·         Charles Burnett, essayist for the Criterion Collection version of this film, said: “I was moved by how ordinary people were able to express so much humanity. The story achieved in very simple terms what I was looking to do in film: humanize those watching. (It) has the quality and intention of a documentary. It is totally unromantic. The characters are just ordinary people, and the film gives the impression you are watching life unfold before you. It is entertaining, but that is not the goal. Its goal is to make audiences aware of a particular social condition that needs a political solution. It is clear that it was made as a tool for change.”

·         Ultimately, the film succeeds and impacts us so strongly because we identify and sympathize with Antonio and Bruno, despite the fact that they don’t overemote or turn to speeches or soliloquies. We see them as they truly are and it is their behavior and unspoken actions that inform us about them. Antonio’s taking down a peg in front of his son is heartbreaking and universally appreciated, regardless of the time, place or ethnicity.

·         The film also doesn’t give us black and white, good vs. evil tropes: even the young bicycle thief himself is depicted as the victim of poverty and a corrupt, unjust and misery-inducing political system, and his family defends him.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE HALLMARK CHARACTERISTICS OF ITALIAN NEOREALISM MOVIES?

·         Shooting in near documentary style, on location and often using nonfactors/nonprofessionals

·         The subjects are typically working class people and the impoverished

·         The messages are often bleak, realistic and plausibly pessimistic—without a glossy coating, sentimentalizing and tacked on happy endings

·         There is a deliberate focus away from big name stars, complex psychological themes and issues, and intricate plots and action.

·         Critic Glenn Erickson wrote: “(the) purpose was to strip away the artificiality of conventional filmmaking to show life as it really is.”

WHAT ARE KEY THEMES POSITED BY “BICYCLE THIEVES”?

·         The power of family unity and love over materialism, capitalism, and suffering

·         The search for hope and faith (not necessarily religious faith, but perhaps faith in humanity) in a world that seems faithless; consider that Antonio is hunting for a Fides (“faith” in Italian) bicycle

·         Social conscience: it’s our duty as neighbors, acquaintances, citizens and even bystanders to help our fellow man, regardless of his social stature

·         Class struggle: This is a film about the division and disparity among social classes—we are shown how postwar Italy classes coexist, including the poor, the bourgeois, and the rich.

OTHER MOVIES THAT COME TO MIND AFTER WATCHING BICYCLE THIEVES

·         The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

·         Rome, Open City (1945)

·         Germany Year Zero (1948)

·         Furrows (1951)

·         Pather Pachali (1955)

·         Films with cities featured as a major character, including “Wings of Desire” and “Berlin: Symphony of a Great City”

·         Children of Heaven (1999)

OTHER FILMS DIRECTED BY VITTORIO DE SICA

·         Shoeshine (1946)

·         Umberto D (1952)

·         The Earrings of Madame de… (1953)

·         Two Women (1960)