Bicycle Thieves (1948) and Umberto D (1952) Analysis

hertz Thieves (1948) and Umberto D (1952) analytic thinkingTwo films from the neorealism attempt are Bicycle Thieves (1948) and Umberto D (1952) both directed by Vittorio De Sica. Both films in their own way cross-file the real-life hardships that were faced during this time of need and more particularly display it from the point of view of normal unremarkable people. The most pronounced thing ab break neorealism that decides it apart from other cinematic fronts is its birth from necessity. During a time when everything was scarce films were produced utilize whatever was at hand, take out on the streets and using non-professional actors, a reason why these films are so genuine in their authenticity. They dont show the past or the future they show the struggles of the present.1Vittorio De Sica said his goal was to look for the dramatic in ordinary situations, the wonderful in the smallest, the tiniest news item, in the material everybody considers insignificant. It was wit h this goal in mind that he created Bicycle Thieves. This film is a key example of the neorealism movement and can be argued to be the most notable. It shows the journey of a man and son as they search for his stolen rhythm. A bicycle which is key in the father getting the job he needs to support his family during a time in which jobs were scarce. This bicycle represents their livelihood and stealing the bicycle excessively steals this familys hope of surviving.2 Bicycle Thieves can be described as shockingly authentic in two principal(prenominal) ways the way in which the film has been shot and the message that the write up expresses.Figure 1 Bicycle Thieves (1948)At the start of the film we see the maintain and wife pawn their bedding to be able to get their bicycle back, here De Sica gives us a glimpse of not just our on-screen family, but others when he shows the shot of the high shelves completely full of bed sheets as shown in Figure 1, each representing a family which h as d one(a) the same. It shows the amount of people that were in poverty after the war and that there is a harsh reality outside this world that De Sica shows us. A reason why his films were so impacting is that he released films based on the post-war era during the post-war era. A time when the audience themselves may have had to pawn something to support their family. Filming at this time meant everything was scarce, films in the post-war era were created using the strip necessities. We can see this by Bicycle Thieves as its it almost completely filmed out on location and any inside shots are cramped, De Sica was also known for his use of non-professional actors, another way of making use of what was available and at the same time making his characters more believable.3When looking at the Mise-en-Scne of the film De Sica uses very little expressive camera techniques, tterminus just to show straight on, wide and mid shots apart from this scene with the bed sheets which is interpr eted from a low angle and pans up as if to express the largeness of the scale of the shelves. He just shows the scene for what is happening and communicates mostly through the narrative alone. in that location are few interesting camera movements to catch the audiences attention and no more than simple cuts between scenes. The scenes in Bicycle Thieves tend to be long takes as if De Sica is trying to keep cuts to a minimum, this could explain his fondness for wide shots as it intromits more actions to happen in the frame, these long shots also allow for a lot of background movement to be in the frame in these real-life locations expressing De Sicas wish to show the outside world. He also relies on innate lighting while filming out on location. These techniques, or lack of, work together to show the films authenticity.De Sica takes us on a journey of ups and downs in the search for the bicycle and the relationship between father and son, the addition of the son is very important i n expressing this shock authenticity. A child adds sentiment with their white and makes an audience more emotionally invested in the film. We see throughout the film however, a strange relationship between them. Antonio ignores Bruno throughout the film, being so set on his search for his bicycle and young Bruno is there to witness his father at his lowest point. De Sica avoids the idea that Antonio should realise that his son is whats important, not the bicycle. This ignorance could be De Sica exhibit that this is not a luxury that the poor can afford.4 Knowing his fate is directly proportional with his fathers and that of the bike shows a harsh reality of the time, that not blush children were not safe from the hardships of the post-war era. De Sica gives us reprieve from the bleakness of the narrative by introducing short moments of happiness, such as our main character Taking his son out for lunch. It almost seems they can forget their troubles for a moment, however the table next to them with the multiple servings of food break them from the illusion. This parallels the unjust support the bike thief receives from his neighbours, whereas the devoid man from which it has been stolen is the one who truly needs it for survival, it shows the unfair world of the post-war era.5 The end scene is the most defining for our main character. He looks around him at a sea of bicycles and he lowers himself to do what has been done to him throughout the entirety of the film. it gives us an idea that no one at this time is below the acts of others, this era has goaded this man to do what he initially found immoral. During our ending scene, we see the owner of the bike let him go when he sees the young boy, video display his disposition of the hardships of others and that the end of the day everyone is in some way in the same boat. Father and son inevitably walk home defeated, De Sicas brutal honesty lasts through to the end, he doesnt shy away from the harsh reality, he makes this film shockingly authentic by showing that happy endings arent inevitable in real life.De Sica go on to work in the neorealism movement and moved onto the film Umberto D. This film has recognisable similarities to Bicycle Thieves in the way both were filmed and the fact that they both show the struggles of the time. We see the main character Mr Umberto being thrown out of his home by his indifferent land lady. A man who comes into solitude apart from his dog. There is an idea through Umberto D of the wish of the main character to live his life by his own terms, with dignity, and being unable to. He is left with no home, no family and no health. Although the narrative of Umberto D is different it still portrays the same era as Bicycle Thieves and can also be described for its authenticity. When It comes to using the bare necessities, this is where we see the greatest similarities. Umberto D also uses real locations for filming as well as non-professional actors, they ma ke use of everything around them with a work out that was most likely close to nothing, again portraying an authenticity for the time.6Looking at Umberto Ds Mise-en-Scne we see a little more conceptualisation through camera work but not a lot. An example would be the scene where Mr Umberto looks out of his window and we see the sudden zoom in on the street below with this hard hit of non-diegetic music to accompany it. This was De Sicas way of showing the thoughts of our main character, that he has this sudden idea of jumping to his demise rather than live in this world he feels he has no control over. Again, De Sica tends towards wide shots and mid shots, showing the streets that hes filming in, showing the people and including the outside world. De Sica again uses simple cuts in between his scenes and opts for long takes which these wide shots manage to capture with the odd pan to include the surroundings more. In accordance with the neorealism movement Umberto D takes advantag e of natural lighting whilst out on location, one of the bare necessities and making the most of what was available.Figure 2 Umberto D (1952)When It comes to the characters that De Sica portrays they arent loved for their paragon or their beauty. Mr Umberto is left with only his dog and a maid who has her own troubles. He is almost completely alone. This movement means a camera that shows things for only how they are, the character if Mr Umberto isnt romanticised yet he is loved by the camera and it sticks with him through an ordinary experience.7 The actor himself is one which was chosen from a sea of thousands, like this beginning scene in Figure 2, showing the men marching demanding fair pension, any one of them could have been De Sicas muse, all of them in a way are Mr Umberto. This would be the first and last film that this non-professional actor would play and yet this man manages to create such an emotion because he is authentic, and this is what the camera captures.8Like in Bicycle Thieves we see a character going on a journey, however, in bicycle thieves it is a journey looking for life whereas Umberto D center onses on a man searching for his death. This is however complicated by his dog Flike which he loves above anything else. He cant bear to abandon him. He finds himself at times having to beg on the street something which he cant stand to do himself, hence using Flike, but even when Flike is recognised by an champion he claims he is only messing around in the hopes of saving his own dignity. Mr Umberto represents the middle class, one which is concerned with the protection of outward appearances. He is more afraid(p) looking poor than actually being so.9 Everything is taken from him so only Flike and his dignity remain, he represents a character which doesnt want to be defined a nuisance by a post-war society. A society which already sees a group of men marching down the street in protest as a pest.In the ending scene, we see Mr Umberto wal king straight onto the rail tracks with Flike with the intention of ending both their lives, this is accompanied by dark music and an incident atmosphere. However, last minute Flike jumps out of his arms and Mr Umberto chases him, missing the train that would have ended his life. In chasing after Flike Mr Umberto chooses life. The music in changes from one of despair to one of buoyancy, for the first time in the film we see a happy and carefree Mr Umberto as he jogs off into the distance with Flike, escaping the manipulation of society and showing an understanding that his fate Is truly in his own hands. Even though the ending is ambiguous it leaves an audience with hope, a different yet preferable ending to that of Bicycle Thieves. One which shows that even though an individual may feel hopeless for a time they may find themselves again in the end, a true reflection of the damage yet survival of the war (Lu, 2010).10In conclusion both these films capture a true authenticity for th e time that they were released. Since the neorealism movement meant filming using a scarcity of resources and a reliance on real world locations, and the fact that both narratives tell stories that were incredibly impacting and realistic for this time. So much so that they could be described as documentary like in their depiction of real places and real people.ReferencesBradshaw, P. (2008). Film review Bicycle Thieves. online the Guardian. functional at https//www.theguardian.com/film/2008/dec/19/film-review-bicycle-theives Accessed 3 Mar. 2017.Eggert, B. (2009). Umberto D.. online Deep focussing Review. Available at http//deepfocusreview.com/definitives/umberto-d/ Accessed 4 Mar. 2017.Haaland, T. (2009). Bicycle Thieves (Ladri di biciclette) (review). Project Muse, online 16, pp.463-465. Available at http//muse.jhu.edu/ expression/263879 Accessed 3 Mar. 2017.Hamzaki, Z. (2010). The Bicycle Thief. online Twocentsworthafilm.blogspot.co.uk. Available at http//twocentsworthafilm.blog spot.co.uk/2010/06/bicycle-thief.html Accessed 3 Mar. 2017.Kartal, E. (2013). Defining Italian Neorealism A Compulsory Movement. Cinej Cinema Journal, online 2.2(2158-8724). Available at http//cinej.pitt.edu Accessed 4 Mar. 2017.Lannone, P. (2016). Deep focus The roots of neorealism Sight Sound. online British Film Institute. Available at http//www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/features/deep-focus/roots-neorealism Accessed 4 Mar. 2017.Lu, J. (2010). Film Analysis on Umberto D. Media Studies. online Jennylu.qwriting.qc.cuny.edu. Available at http//jennylu.qwriting.qc.cuny.edu/2010/10/21/film-analysis-of-umberto-d/ Accessed 4 Mar. 2017.Snyder, S. and Curle, H. (2000). Vittorio De Sica. 1st ed. Toronto University of Toronto Press.1 Esma Kartal, defining Italian Neorealism A Compulsory Movement, Cinej Cinema Journal, 2.2.2158-8724 (2013) .2 Pasquale Lannone, Deep Focus The Roots Of Neorealism Sight Sound, British Film Institute, 2016 accessed 4 March 2017.3 Zulfiya Hamzaki, The Bicycle Thief, Twocentsworthafilm.Blogspot.Co.Uk, 2010 accessed 3 March 2017.4 Peter Bradshaw, Film Review Bicycle Thieves, The Guardian, 2008 accessed 3 March 2017.5 Torunn Haaland, Bicycle Thieves (Ladri Di Biciclette) (Review), Project Muse, 16 (2009), 463-465 accessed 3 March 2017.6 Brian Eggert, Umberto D., Deep Focus Review, 2009 accessed 4 March 2017.7 Stephen Snyder and Howard Curle, Vittorio De Sica, 1st edn (Toronto University of Toronto Press, 2000).8 Brian Eggert, Umberto D., Deep Focus Review, 2009 accessed 4 March 2017.9 Esma Kartal, defining Italian Neorealism A Compulsory Movement, Cinej Cinema Journal, 2.2.2158-8724 (2013) .10 Jenny Lu, Film Analysis On Umberto D. Media Studies, Jennylu.Qwriting.Qc.Cuny.Edu, 2010 accessed 4 March 2017.