Bicycle Thieves -- What Makes This Movie Great? (Episode 35)
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- Опубліковано 14 гру 2024
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From Italian director Vittoria de Sica, it's the greatest example of "Italian neo-realism." It's the 1948 film "Bicycle Thieves."
I think Bicycle Thieves is a perfect movie that embodies a spirit of an age. That age is the post World War 2 era of poverty in major European cities, here in Italy's capital city of Rome.
The movie is about a poor man who needs a job. He has to have a bicycle for that job. When his bicycle is stolen, what will he do in order to feed his family?
In the video, I briefly discuss the problem of the individual versus the masses, of socialism in the mid 20th century, and of the question of what "neo-realism" might mean.
See joshmatthews.org for more great movie criticism.
I should The Bicycle Thieves to my teenage daughter, and at the end of the film, she burst into tears! After more than 70 yrs, The Bicycle Thieves retains its potent power to move audiences.
that's truly excellent and hopeful that younger people can appreciate this.
I have to disagree about the protagonist “coming from” or being identified with the crowds or even being a representative for the millions suffering in the crowds in some way. Repeatedly he is set against the crowds. In the beginning he’s off in his own world and has to be called into the crowd to receive his job, the crowd turns on him when he stalls about his bicycle. in the line for the bus the crowds complain that he is cutting. When he accuses the guy painting the bicycle, the crowd goes against him. In the mass, he only enters to pester the thief’s conspirator and again the crowd turns against him. When he confronts the eventual thief, the crowd once again goes against him. And again when he is apprehended the crowd goes against him and if not for the kindness of one man, he would be in jail. The crowds aren’t intended to show him as an Everyman but as an outside man who needs an advocate (his friend, the merciful msn at the end, and the individual cops are great example of this). The actual bicycle thief seems to be the one who identifies with the crowds. His community helps him, testifies for him, supports him. The protagonist on the other hand must rely on insiders and influential people (the pawnbrokers, his boss friend, the cops). The faceless crowds are portrayed as the enemy. I dunno i just watched it, I don’t mean to make it sound as cynical as i do.
that's fine. I thought I said he's both going against the crowd and also at times blending in with it. He's both. thank you.
just want to add this_
"The film tries desperately to explode the myth of the solidarity of the poor. It is Ricci's fellow poor-the thief himself, the Old Man, his helpless friends, the Party leaders (who only see the large-scale is-sues), even his son-who betray him constantly. The historical fact of worker solidarity is carefully elided in favor of a populism at best (the rehearsal), an intra-class antagonism (the thief) at worst. "
it is from Frank P. Tomasulo in his 1982 essay. and it is much related to this discussion.
I agree but I think they were going for both, he's the same as everyone else but still by himself
here in Italy we got a name for dudes like the protagonist: sfigato! loser, if you will-lol your break down of the movie nails it anyways
I think if you look at the opening and closing shots of the movie, the director is implying that Antonio’s story could just as easily be anyone’s story from that time. Particularly the final shot in which he and Bruno completely disappear back into the crowd.
At the end of the movie, at that epic scene, I almost clapped and kept shouting, "Do it. Do it motherfucker. Just do it. You deserve it. It's okay to do it. Do it. Come on."
I was assigned to watch and analyze this movie for film history, but I bawled my eyes out instead of analyzing it
somewhere on this channel is another analysis of the movie, of the opening scene, which might be more helpful to you.
@@LearningaboutMovies I've watched it, thank you so much !
same
It is funny how when some watch a movie, if it is nothing they can directly relate to, it is just a movie that passes through their consciousness without leaving a mark. However, I don't think one has to have kids or be poor to relate to the protagonist in this film. One just has to have had the feeling of knowing desperation and how it can motivate you to do certain things, and how it can affect others in your orbit. It is sort of a universal theme. That is why this film lingers with you because we all have been "Antonio" at least once in our lives. Maybe not experiencing the same circumstance, but definitely experiencing a similar feeling. I even could feel for the father-son relationship, even though I am neither a father or a son. Generally put, It is simply a story about human feelings and relationships based around a unique circumstance, and how those factors can affect a person's life in a profound way.
I watched this movie for the first time when I was 16, and I loved it. Recently I watched it again for one of my film classes and I compared it to "Life is Beautiful" for my final essays. It still really nice to hear your analysis and interpretation, excelent job Dr. Matthews.
thank you, Richard. Happy New Year!
For a film with so little dialogues, it sure conveys a lot in the few words it has used. Especially during the climax where acquainted with Ricci's misfortunes and bearing witness to the emotional tumult the character experienced before trying to commit the act, a lot of us would have excused the protagonist even if he stole the bicycle.
The old man upon catching up reprimands Antonio saying "Trying to ruin everything? That bicycle is all I have!" I felt extremely sorry for Antonio but everyone is just as out of luck in Rome as he is!
absolutely. well said.
When they hide under the roof cause rain is pouring down, you can see a young Sergio Leone. He is the young seminarist on the left of the main character.
no kidding? thank you for this.
Just saw this movie. Hit so hard as a working class man myself. I am actually happy (maybe not happy, but less stressed) that I don’t have a family in this time where we can work ourselves near death and still barely survive.
An Italian neorealism examplar, this film somehow thrives on its non-flashy performances and searing emotion. I give this a 9.4/10. A masterpiece of Italian cinema indeed. 😊😊👍👍
thank you.
If you liked this movie that much, then you have good taste.
But what I really don't get is why people are always rating movies. What 9.4 means? Maths, ratings and rankings have nothing to do with art.
(Sorry for my bad english)
Had marked this film for many months on recommendation of a friend and finally watched it two days back. It is indeed a masterpiece and moved me. I particularly loved the bond between father-son and I was with Bruno throughout the film and kept thinking how mature is this child and wants to help his father so desperately and understands him too. Every generation has seen this struggle in almost every country. This one is absolutely must watch! Thank you for sharing the thoughts.
Beautiful movie. As an Italian and a Roman I love him even more, recently I met little Bruno in my neighborhood (who obviously is no longer so little), he reminded me of this great masterpiece.
thank you.
for me its a very inspirational and life changing film.. thank you for review this beautiful cult cinema..
you're welcome.
“Bicycle Thieves”, has an”universal truth”, that was quoted by Pulitzer Prize Winner,Kenrick Lemar,in the song,”The Heart Part 5”: “in a land where hurt people hurt people…”
The thing about this movie different from other Italian movies of this time is that it grabbed me emotionally within the first 10 minutes. I was all in. Riveted. It is also completely of one piece. Organic. No wasted scenes. Everything works in sync. Reinforcing the importance of one action. To retrieve the stolen bike. The movie feels as if it embraces the 3 classic unities of ancient Greek drama: unity of place, time and action. The very tightness is one of its many strengths. As well as the universality of its theme, as you have laid out so well.
The first film to “humanize” our enemy for my generation (99 years old)
At the time this film came out we knew the names of the beaches, Monte Casssinp, and when the Germans declared Rome an open city,
we suddenly saw their sufferimg.
thank you.
This channel is a gem!
thank you.
The Iranian films of the last forty years seem to me to have been entirely from the neorealism movement. In particular, I think of Majid Majid's "Children of Heaven" in which the poor father is trying to make a few extra bucks doing gardening. He takes his son on a broken down bicycle to north Teheran (the rich part of the city) to look for work. The father is too tongue-tied to speak to these upper class people and his son has to break the ice. In any case, this poor Iranian father-son duo seemed to have come out better despite their harrowing experiences than this poor Italian father-son duo in "The Bicycle Thieves." In the Iranian film, one feels hopeful despite the son's wistfulness. In the Italian film, the last scene is just heartbreaking. How can one not feel for the plight of the common (wo)man?
excellent, thank you.
I wanted to see some thriller instead of some old BW films. But i only had an hour and a half. So i was like "the hell just go with it". 1h30' later my eyes hurt due to crying
yes, this movie can do that to anybody.
i was 21 when i saw this film and boy...it will haunt you forever.
thank you.
been looking for a channel like this, as i'm going through my old film studies films and experiementing with production, classic films are great, but half the time i'm not sure what to be looking for , or if the big idea has gone over my head. Super helpful, thanks for all your work DR. Matthews
glad you are here. thank you very much.
Prayed Antonio's success at last in stealing the cycle but he failed. This is reality. We can't win against a crowd and fate. But end of all if we have one like Bruno, we will surelyovercome any trouble.
Just watched this for the first time. It kind of reminds me of Old Man And The Sea, in a sense that the material and presentation is so concise. There is absolutely nothing superfluous in this film, and the economy of means with which De Sica works lends itself to far deeper levels of interpretation than what appears on the surface. Like the old iceberg metaphor. Heck, I've been thinking that damn bike for an hour now.
Great movie. Nice description and interpretation.
thank you.
Thank you so much for the review me and my friend had great trouble while writing a review for this movie.
you are welcome.
Great movie! Thanks for the review! In India neo-realism was ushered in the 40's by directors associated with the "Indian People's Theatre Association" which was the cultural wing of Communist Party. Bimal Roy made "Udayer Pothey/Towards Dawn" which was the first Indian movie on trade union movement! It's considered a classic! Chetan Anand made Neecha Nagar/Lower Depth(Gorky) which is arguably the greatest political film ever made in India and is till today the only Indian film to win Palm d'or! Uday Shankar's Kalpana/Imagination is unique in its form..unrealistic in manner but in content like neo-realist cinema discusses socioeconomic problems..oppression of working class etc! As a great experimental movie it's aught to be placed in the category of "Intolerance"! But it's Do Bigha Zameen/Two Acres of Land by Bimal Roy which is considered the quintessential India neo-realist movie which I think presents a deeper picture of society and the individuals than The Bicycle Thief, despite its rough edges. I hope you will explore these little known Indian movies which I believe would be rewarding. ❤👍
excellent, thank you!
I'm 20, and I have had the opportunity to watch these great films in my childhood. Do Bigha Zameen, Upkar, Mother India, Apur Sansar, Mahanagar, Aan, etc. use to air on DD National. It's bad to see that film makers have been uprooted from the reality.
Il piccolo "bruno" di ladri di biciclette è mio padre...un 👋 da roma
I recognized the tunnel located in downtown Rome not far from the Tiber.
Why should anyone need any explanation for why this film is great?
Would that be for people who have no empathy for other people?
no. everything ever needs explaining. only a few will get it on their own. for the rest, instruction is necessary. this is obvious for anybody in any school setting. It's not that people are psychopathic if they don't get it, either.
No need to be so mean.
@@linkbiff1054 I agree. I was assuming too much
Even empathy must be taught
I don't thing I have been so angry at a movie ending soo much as I have seen this , not only anger but hopelessness , sadness and dread this movie is heavy , I even go to say I regret watching with all of the stuff going in my life it is possibly the worst timing ever
I'm sorry to hear that. Generally, I think a strong reaction, including anger, is quite good, as it means the artwork is speaking strongly to us. How rare that experience is. But I am sorry it was too personal.
@@LearningaboutMovies i mean it's a strong proof that the movie is a masterpiece , I lost my self completely and I kept preying plz make this overwhelming injustice stop plz don't fail , but I didn't make any difference at all so it hit me back especially the last act as it answer one my questions about revenge or payback the same way we got hurt (repaying stealing with stealing) because I wanted for the story to be hopeful just to conter balance what I'm going through but it didn't and it made me angry at the movie at my self and my circumstances ( I love this movie but this isn't the time for it at all )
What a beautiful movie it is🔥❤️
amen.
@@LearningaboutMovies
Amen 🙏🙏
Great job! Thanks
you're welcome. thank you for watching.
One of My Daughters was bullied as a kid in grammar school by a couple of other girls who would hit her or bump into Her forcefully on purpose. I told Her to stand up to them , Hit back and let them know they could not do that to Her with impunity. The yard teacher’s would never notice the bullies activities only seeing My Daughter fending for Herself and interpreting that as aggression. This movie also dramatizes how effectively criminal perpetrator’s seduce and beguile other’s like a conjurer’s shell game. The aggressive thief suddenly becomes the poor disadvantaged person being picked on , feigning a debilitating disorder brought on by seemingly overwhelming mental stress and persecution. This Movie shows us prejudice and discrimination. The victim is subjected to prejudice because He is seen as one who should suck it up accept His Misfortune and forget about it because He is somehow viewed as better off and better able to absorb such a devastating loss . He is discriminated against when the thief enjoys being pre judged as the more indigent one being persecuted and unfairly picked on when the reality is the thief is the one who is arrogant , selfish and entitled believing the satisfaction of His wants and needs should take precedence over those of all others. There is a twisted self righteousness among the criminal elements like the old Man who fences stolen goods . Goods that are the fruit of others labors that are disregarded with contempt for the earner and His adversities as He struggles to survive while obeying Gods Teaching’s ( see the Bible on thieves for pertinent verses) . The criminal offender’s continue their denial of wrongdoing while lining up for charitable food offerings compounding their abominations to God. Their recalcitrance contempt and self righteousness is only exposed to the audience that has seen the full scope of events and factors. In real life people really have a more Myopic view from which they base their opinion’s and judgements. When the original victim breaks down in bitterness and decides that “ when in Rome do as the Romans do” the crowd only see’s that part of His story and judges Him to be a dirt bag. We often consider a Man stealing a loaf of bread to be a “ honest thief” just wanting to eat and feed His family. How many loaves of bread and other seemingly trivial goods can merchants and grocer’s sustain losses before they go broke or decide to pass that loss on to society in higher prices to compensate for those losses. Thieves steal from us all. They pay nothing while We pay more. Frederick Douglas once remarked on how much people can endure transgression’s against them before ultimately coming to blows. Thieves may enjoy a temporary boon but there will com a day when they are caught and to everyone in a crowd that one thief will be the thief who robbed each member and they will all want to inflict harm for their frustration’s. Another Italian classic is Chains. The child actors were very good.
A great and unique movie. Thanks for an excellent review.
you're welcome.
You were saying you are more into encyclopedic works that deal with the bigger questions. any recomendations?
What comes to mind immediately are 2001, The Decalogue, Rashomon, The Tree of Life, Tarkovsky's oeuvre (as a set of works), the Apu Trilogy. Probably I should do more digging on this list for titles: letterboxd.com/joshmatthews/list/my-favorite-movies/
I don't think Antonio is a representative for the crowds. While the film denounces the socio-economic conditions of post war Italy, unemployment and the economic crisis which impacted much of the proletariat, the movie also focuses on the loneliness and isolation of individuals who were considered victims of Italian society. It has a fatalistic and pessimistic view of the human condition: Antonio has no support, he is isolated and the film shows that people's lives are ruled by chance which also aligns with De Sica's catholic beliefs. The brand of the bike is "fides" which means faith in Latin, and the events take place over a three day period (Friday to Sunday) aligning with the three day period of the Passion of Christ. Even though the film seems to suggest the solution or salvation to the narrative is family, it also shows that it doesn't change the tragedy/absurdity of life. De Sica shows that fate triumphs and not human solidarity. It's one of the huge differences between films like Ladri di Biciclette and Riso Amaro. I think people should really watch Visconti's Ossessione, De Santi's Riso Amaro and Fellini's La Strada to really see the progression of realism, neo-realism and beyond of these auteurs and how they moved from social commentary to a more psychological introspection in their films.
so then Antonio is a representative of the victims, or the human condition? I agree with you, but that is certainly what I meant by him blending into crowds, and I am not clear on how what you are saying is too much different than what is in the video. Your recommendations in the end are all excellent.
@@LearningaboutMovies Depends which side of the fence you're sitting on. 😅 I think De Sica was very much against the idea of human solidarity in this film. I think Antonio is represented of the people who are ridiculed and overlooked by Italian society, and the film as a whole is representative of the human condition. That's my interpretation anyway.
your observation about the name 'fides' is excellent, i failed to pick up on that, which actually should be a pretty obvious point. i think your arguments are strong about the dilemma between solidarity, faith, and fate ... the issue is never clear nor certain. thank you
Nice explanation ..
thank you.
Hats off to Vittorio De Sica...I'm speechless...you'll always be remembered Sir...
yes!
Loved the movie.
A heartbreaking film
yes indeed.
Surely it's one of the best movies of all time.
yes!
No bicycle for Antonio in the end. Similarly the Red Balloon (1956) burst in the end. I must make a list of European Debbie Downer movies.
I'm of the notion that about 90% of the great European movies are "Debbie Downers." The large-scale wars did not help that.
@@LearningaboutMoviesEspecially, Italy couldn’t ever quite stabilize politically. We just began watching Bertolucci’s 1900. Beautifully shot movie, but switched to Seinfeld after 20 minutes or so. That being said, at this point, I would probably pick La Conformista over Happy Feet on a weekend day. Hollywood totally lost its way.
Perfect eh,,, The first things to go is always always the bed sheets.
The movie is very watchable, the flow overall is very good, as is the camera work and the mise en scene. Of course an example of early neoreal euro humanism in film. There are these reoccurring motifs, where Antonio keeps butting into groups and there are always large masses of people showing up out of nowhere. Bruno tagging along makes it feel like an early Charlie Chaplin melodrama. The poverty and depiction of post WWII Rome is interesting in itself, although feels more staged as the film goes into the 2nd half. The ending note of lingering alienation and ambiguity I suppose will be a hallmark of much of the cinema of the 2nd half of the 20th century. Antonio first dismissing and then seeking out superstitious advice I suppose is also a sign of the general confusion of the times.
thank you.
Is John Ford's The Grapes of Wrath (1940) a neorealistic movie?
not by film historian's definitions. More like a "classical" Hollywood drama based on a novel, because it uses sentimentalism and expressionism. However, yes, it's hard not to see it and a bunch of others like it as a influence on neorealism. This is openly talked about in "Sullivan's Travels," especially the opening scene, about whether films should be more realistic or not. (that's worth watching!)
awesome film
yes!
You said that you were a fan of epics in this Video. I wonder if you are huge fan of David Lean?
massive admirer. Lawrence and Zhivago especially.
Both great. I also love his adaptations of Great Expectations and Oliver Twist.
💯✔️Should be in Colour format instead of B&W
it was 1948?
@fermi-dirac So what, nowadays, better AI tools available
adapt to the circumstances and have your bike stolen in New York City
vittorio de cycles
Malheureusement ce film n'est pas en français.. Cest super dommage
A surrealistic revision of this movie in 2022.
A black woman is prevented from reaching greatness by stealing her Vespa. She discovers that she has superpowers which can be used to subdue supremacist white men. She becomes the new Messiah, establishes a new religion of LGBTQS and then anhilates anyone who opposes her. Then the movie ends with her erect middle finger and a big F...You...
Okay by today's standards I guess
Nice movie but there is so much better than it... Also, have you seen the Italian movie Life is Beautiful? I think you should watch it because it is the best movie
It’s pronounced Dee Seeka 😕
I thought it was a great film
thank you.
I watched this movie yesterday and I'm 22😂
Tbh I kinda hated this movie🤷♂️
that is okay.
Not a fan of the abusive protagonist. He should have stood his bike upside down and kept a closer eye on it. But then we have no movie. A good flick.