Original Title: Ladri di biciclette
Directed by: Vittorio De Sica
Starring: Lamberto Maggiorani, Enzo Staiola, Lianella Carell, Vittorio Antonucci
Run Time: 93 minutes
Everytime I read some lists of greatest film of all time this one always appeared. Then I wonder what is so great about this film. Well, after I seen it, I am stunned and amazed, it really lives into one of the biggest question I always had in my life: why does bad things happens to good people? This well known neo-realist film really catch me from the inside.
The story is just like the title, it is just about a bike and its huge impact on a simple family trying to make ends meet. A very important one for Antonio (Lamberto Maggiorani), a struggling family man, who finally gets a job after being unemployed for a long time. The job requires his bicycle and what happened when his bicycle got stolen? It is as if the sky fell into his head. So in the search for his bike, he stroll the city of Rome still devastated by the remnants of the war by his son; Bruno (Enzo Staiola).
The journey itself cuts deep into Rome's society as they enter slums, brothels and churches. We get to see the suffering of everyday people and how each of them try so hard to be alive day by day. Finally after hours of searching but no luck Antonio's moral compass get a challenge: is it okay to be bad if your family is starving? Driven by economic need and class struggle, will Antonio switch to the dark side? and if yes, is it justified?
What makes this film great? The simplicity and universality of the problems posed here can be felt by anyone, regardless of their cultural background. It is so emotionally harrowing without the use of cheesy melodrama and sixty years plus plus after the release this one is still relevant for us to be thankful for what we have and to have greater sympathy for those who are unlucky in this life.
Is it inspiring? To some extent yes but it is also hopeless and cruel. But hey, some people say life is a bitch and here; life is a bicycle and then you lose.
Directed by: Vittorio De Sica
Starring: Lamberto Maggiorani, Enzo Staiola, Lianella Carell, Vittorio Antonucci
Run Time: 93 minutes
Everytime I read some lists of greatest film of all time this one always appeared. Then I wonder what is so great about this film. Well, after I seen it, I am stunned and amazed, it really lives into one of the biggest question I always had in my life: why does bad things happens to good people? This well known neo-realist film really catch me from the inside.
The story is just like the title, it is just about a bike and its huge impact on a simple family trying to make ends meet. A very important one for Antonio (Lamberto Maggiorani), a struggling family man, who finally gets a job after being unemployed for a long time. The job requires his bicycle and what happened when his bicycle got stolen? It is as if the sky fell into his head. So in the search for his bike, he stroll the city of Rome still devastated by the remnants of the war by his son; Bruno (Enzo Staiola).
The journey itself cuts deep into Rome's society as they enter slums, brothels and churches. We get to see the suffering of everyday people and how each of them try so hard to be alive day by day. Finally after hours of searching but no luck Antonio's moral compass get a challenge: is it okay to be bad if your family is starving? Driven by economic need and class struggle, will Antonio switch to the dark side? and if yes, is it justified?
What makes this film great? The simplicity and universality of the problems posed here can be felt by anyone, regardless of their cultural background. It is so emotionally harrowing without the use of cheesy melodrama and sixty years plus plus after the release this one is still relevant for us to be thankful for what we have and to have greater sympathy for those who are unlucky in this life.
Is it inspiring? To some extent yes but it is also hopeless and cruel. But hey, some people say life is a bitch and here; life is a bicycle and then you lose.
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