Bicycle thieves
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Bicycle thieves |
| Original title | Ladri di biciclette |
| Country of production | Italy |
| original language | Italian |
| Publishing year | 1948 |
| length | 90 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Vittorio de Sica |
| script |
Cesare Zavattini Vittorio de Sica Suso Cecchi D'Amico Adolfo Franci Gerardo Guerrieri |
| production |
Giuseppe Amato Vittorio de Sica |
| music | Alessandro Cicognini |
| camera | Carlo Montuori |
| cut | Eraldo Da Roma |
| occupation | |
| |
Bicycle thieves (original title: Ladri di biciclette ) is a 1948 neo-realistic film by Vittorio de Sica based on a novel by Luigi Bartolini .
action
To support his family, Antonio Ricci works as a day laborer in Rome. He finally gets a long-awaited job as a poster sticker from an employment agency. To exercise, however, he is dependent on possession of a bicycle, which he only recently pledged.
On the spur of the moment, Antonio's wife takes the bed linen to the pawnbroker to release the bike again. So Antonio drives off and puts up the first posters. His bike is stolen. He pursues the thief, but cannot catch him.
Antonio sees his work in jeopardy and searches all over Rome for the bicycle thief . In his search he is accompanied by his little son, who watches his father in his helplessness, but also stands by him. A beggar's tip leads him on the trail of a young man who he believes is the thief. The alleged thief lives in a similarly precarious situation as Antonio himself. Neighbors, acquaintances and family protect him. When Antonio fetches a police officer, the young man he has accused suffers an epileptic seizure , although it remains to be seen whether this is just faking. Antonio finally has to leave, threatened by the men from the neighborhood. The viewer remains unclear as to whether the accused is actually the perpetrator.
If you look carefully at the film, it becomes clear that it is indeed the real thief. He acted in collaboration with two accomplices. Together they scouted the situation, whereupon the first Antonio stopped briefly during the theft and the second put him on the wrong track. Both accomplices are also present at the confrontation. An elegantly dressed gentleman who surprisingly appears in the poor neighborhood gives the impression of a mafioso, the patron saint of local petty criminals.
Because Antonio can no longer see a way out, he ends up becoming a thief himself: he gets on a bicycle and drives away. But he is caught up by a group of men who run after him, thrown to the ground and beaten. His son watches what is happening in horror. The men take him to the owner of the bike, who, however, in view of the crying boy, decides not to report anything. The men let him go, shouting “thief” and “rascal”. Antonio walks deeply ashamed, his son next to him. A voice from the off expresses the hope that the son will grow up in a society in which “Christian solidarity” among people will be important again.
background
De Sica shows the people of post-war Italy in an unaffected manner and without embellishment. He shows the environment as he has probably experienced it himself. An atmosphere of poverty and petty crime that never gives the impression that it is actually about vicious theft. The film is counted among the masterpieces of neorealism . It was shot almost exclusively on the original locations, and most of the roles are played by amateur actors in their own clothing. This pursuit of realism is typical of Italian neorealism.
The still unknown Sergio Leone played a seminar student without being mentioned in the credits.
Reviews
- “A masterpiece of Italian neorealism that had a lasting impact on international cinema in the 1950s.” - Lexicon of international film
- "Lively narrative style, sensitivity, human warmth and a social statement without sentimentality made the film, shot with laypeople in original locations, a masterpiece of Italian neorealism." - film-dienst
- “[...] film of neorealism, in which everyday life is reproduced soberly and without makeup; with romantic overtones, clearly composed, socially critical; Film classics […] ”(rating: 3½ stars = exceptional) - Adolf Heinzlmeier and Berndt Schulz in the lexicon“ Films on TV ” (expanded new edition). Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1990, ISBN 3-89136-392-3 , p. 212
On the Rotten Tomatoes review website , the movie Bicycle Thieves has a positive rate of 98% (based on 54 reviews). The film is on a Vatican leaderboard that mentions films that reflect humanist values.
Awards
The film won an honorary award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 1950 Academy Awards . He was also nominated in the Best Screenplay category. The film received the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Film , the British Film Academy Award for Best International Film , the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Foreign Language Film , the Japanese Kinema Junpo Award also for Best Foreign Language Film and the Danish Bodil for Best European film . The National Board of Review recognized him in the categories of Best Director and Best Picture (Any Language) .
The film was awarded the special prize of the jury at the Locarno Film Festival . The Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani honored bicycle thieves in the categories of Best Film , Best Director , Best Screenplay , Best Story , Best Cinematography and Best Music .
In the first survey of film critics for the best films of all time conducted by the renowned film magazine Sight & Sound in 1952, bicycle thieves took first place.
Remakes
In 2001 the film was reinterpreted by the Chinese filmmaker Wang Xiaoshuai in a contemporary version under the title Beijing Bicycle .
A satirical alienation of the material can be found in the film Die Seifendiebe by Maurizio Nichetti (Italy, 1988). Numerous film quotes are reminiscent of bicycle thieves . At the same time, the constant interruptions of the action with today's commercials create a second level of action.
literature
- Hans-Jürgen Kubiak: The Oscar Films. The best films from 1927/28 to 2004. The best non-English language films from 1947 to 2004. The best animated films from 2001 to 2004 . Schüren, Marburg 2005, ISBN 3-89472-386-6
Web links
- Bicycle Thieves in theInternet Movie Database(English)
- Film trailer (Italian) ( YouTube video)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bicycle thieves. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ^ The Bicycle Thief (1949) . Rotten tomatoes . Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- ↑ United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website, 2008. Last accessed: May 20, 2008.