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Bicycle Thieves

In a time where most films ended with the lead character getting the girl or triumphantly walking off into the sunset, there was Bicycle Thieves; director Vittorio De Sica’s neo-realist masterpiece. Bicycle Thieves is set in a post-World War II Rome, and features everyday people, rather than professional actors. All of the scenes are shot on location and the war-ravaged streets of Rome create the perfect atmosphere for the desperate times the city’s inhabitants are facing.

Lamberto Maggiorani, who was a factory worker prior to his role in this film, portrays Antonio Ricci, a working-class citizen who finds a job posting fliers. However, in order to keep this job, Antonio needs to purchase a bicycle so he can travel around the city more efficiently. Maria, Antonio’s wife, sells her wedding sheets to the pawnbroker to raise enough money for her husband to buy a bicycle. Unfortunately, Antonio’s bicycle is stolen, and throughout the film he faces numerous moral dilemmas, while searching for the thief with his son, Bruno, leading up to an utterly heart-breaking conclusion.

De Sica’s decision to use ordinary people as opposed to trained actors could have potentially been disastrous, but the cast offers an excellent performance. The sullen and empty look that Maggiorani wears throughout Bicycle Thieves seems as though it came naturally, when considering the condition of Italy and its people post-World War II. Bicycle Thieves is an extremely realistic and well-made depiction of the lives of working-class citizens in war-torn nations, and spares the audience of a lofty ending in which all of the problems the main character faces throughout the story are resolved.

Written by: Wayne Raymondo

Reviewers Rating: 9.5
Reader's Rating: 10.00
Reader's Votes: 1

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