Bicycle Thieves

After being unemployed for two years, Antonio Ricci gets offered a job putting up posters on the walls of post-war Rome, but only if he has a bicycle. Attaining one is extremely difficult, but he succeeds, and his wife Maria and his young son, Bruno, are thrilled for him. However, on his first day at work Antonio’s bicycle is stolen and he spends the rest of the film trying to get it back. This tale ends up having the emotional resonance of classic tragedy by capturing the awful effect of how one mans life is destroyed before your eyes. For most, a bicycle is a cheap item that at worst case can be replaced if lost or stolen. However, for Antonio he doesn’t have the money or means to purchase himself a new bicycle. By being stuck in the grips of poverty the movie grips the hearts of the audience tugging at the emotional strings. The Bicycle Thief places us right in the action, allowing us to live what turns out to be a cruel experience with these people, letting us feel for them in a deep and caring way that is almost beyond describing. The difference in this film setting it apart from films at the time were the hints of neorealism, a movement that took place in Italy in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The film is beautifully captured by Carlo Montuori and De Sica who put every scene together for maximum effectiveness. The realistic approach into the lives of Antonio along with the cinematic cues used by De Sica create a marvelous neorealism film.