Bicycle Thief

Vittorio De Sica's "The Bicycle Thief" is my first foray into Italian neo-realism but has the qualities I've always been partial to when it comes to movies. Movies where good doesn't triumph and circumstances rarely work out the way we all hope not because we should all view the world through pessimistic glasses but rather because this is the sad reality of the world. The human condition some call it.

In post war Italy, Antonio (Lamberto Maggiorani) manages to get a job which requires he have a bicycle. He has recently hocked it for extra money but through some ingenious moves by his wife manages to get it out for his job. Things are looking up. Antonio has a promising job that pays well enough to support his family and things might just work out. Until a horrible day when a man steals his bicycle. The movie then follows Antonio and his little son as they try to track down the thief and the bike.

Given the premise of neo-realism you can guess how it ends and yet there were these moments of genuine hope that are created that had even I with all my jaded ideas about the world thinking that maybe everything would turn out okay. There are some wonderful scenes such as one where Antonio and his son eat and drink wine in a local eatery while a table full of a rich family dines nearby.

Maggiorani, an amateur when cast does a deft job of playing Antonio. De Sica fills the film with downtrodden streets and markets that are only briefly clashed with the rich upper half and then only intensifying the desperation of the characters. And Enzo Staiola as the son Bruno is so fascinating to watch as a little boy who can only half know of the real disaster they are trying to rectify and Antonio can only attempt to keep the veil of "everything will be alright" up as much as possible. Although this is not a film to watch if you are in a sad mood (unless you like watching depressing when you are depressed).