Film: Bicycle Thieves (1948, 82 min) Dir: Vittorio De Sica Script: Cesare Zavattini
My Rating: 9/10
Synopsis (my way)
Antonio’s Character in Bicycle thieves
of a poor father struggling to get his family together after the war, is the
perfect example of an evolving character who goes through a self-enlightening
process in just one day.
Antonio is an honest person, who is jobless
and still strongly believes in the society and the institutions of police, law
and work. He also has utter disbelief and disregard for superstitions and
discourages his wife in the beginning.
By the end of the film, as a result of
the long and tiring chase for the stolen bicycle, on which his life depended,
he has had many experiences that tears him apart and help his character develop
as he goes through different situations and social institutions of church,
police station, the trade union, and various other such everyday circumstances,
which are somehow not that simple and assisting anymore.
He is forced, as a last chance, to visit a fortune teller to ask about
his bicycle. Also, he doesn't believe as much as he did in the police anymore,
and in the end he himself, as if in a vicious circle of wrongdoings, is forced
to steal a bicycle as a last recourse, only to be caught and beaten up, and let
go of only because of the presence of his son, in whose eyes he seems to have
fallen. However, that is not the case for his son understands the father’s
dilemma and shares his pain. This is perhaps symbolic that the New Generation
forgives their ancestors for the pains of War, and the last scene of holding
hands signifies that they would go hand in hand to mend the destruction.
What is the film about ?
Some will tell you that it is mainly a film about the relationship
between a father and his son, soon after the war days in Italy. They would also
tell you that it is an elaborate tale in which father and son are put into a
tumultuous condition where the task at hand, of finding the stolen bicycle is
of prime importance.
However, this is only partially correct, and the description couldn't be more wrong.
However, this is only partially correct, and the description couldn't be more wrong.
Though I wouldn't blame the person. Years of Hollywood movie going and
seeing the almost larger than life story of a larger than life character going
through super human and unabashedly exaggerated circumstances is what draws
this lofty yet narrow conclusion.
No. This film is about a trivial side story of a newspaper. A petty
crime story involving a stolen bicycle that deserves not more than 2 lines on
the sideliner of the dullest page of a newspaper. It is a story woven around the
lives of the most insignificant and apparently invisible characters of Italy.
Yet, it is through these characters that De Sica introduces the society and the
state of affairs in Italy. The brilliance and ingenuity of the film lies in its
making. Being one of the most polished Neo Realist films, it is made in true Neo Realist ways. Shot on location with previously unknown faces, Bicycle
Thieves manages to bring out the reality of Italy, and thus achieve the
objective of Neo Realism. The Most important thing though, is the Layers of
action achieved in the film. Unlike most of other films, and in stark contrast
to Hollywood film where only the central action and characters were scripted
and there was an almost complete lack of anything in the background, here,
scripting was done in three layers: . The Foreground, the Mid ground, and the
Background. For this, the film can be seen three times seeing only one of the
layers at a time. The film was less about the two main characters and more
about the society they were living in. Vittorio De Sica’s remarks and views of
the society and institutions of superstition, church, marriage, trade union,
etc. can be seen at every juncture.
Verdict: See the Film for its brilliance.
DID YOU KNOW?
Satyajit Ray saw ‘Bicycle Thieves’ 36 times, and this is what inspired
him to finally start making films. In fact, he also said that if he will ever
make ‘Pather Panchali’, he will make it in the way this was made. Such was the
effect of this film on the best Director of Indian Cinema.
