Umberto D.

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Movie
German title Umberto D.
Original title Umberto D.
Country of production Italy
original language Italian
Publishing year 1952
length 91 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Vittorio De Sica
script Vittorio De Sica
Cesare Zavattini
production Vittorio De Sica
Giuseppe Amato
Angelo Rizzoli
music Alessandro Cicognini
camera Aldo Graziati
cut Eraldo Da Roma
occupation

Umberto D. is an Italian neorealism film directed by Vittorio De Sica in 1952.

action

Italy after the end of World War II . The lonely pensioner Umberto Domenico Ferrari lives with his dog Flike, a beagle , in a shabby rented apartment. Since he cannot pay the rent with his low pension, the cold-hearted landlady Antonia threatens to show him outside.

The only person he can confide in is his neighbor, the young housemaid Maria, who is pregnant by a soldier (but she doesn't know which one). In order to escape his misery, Umberto is admitted to the hospital on false pretenses. When he comes home, his apartment is occupied and Flike has disappeared. Umberto finally finds him in an animal shelter.

He desperately needs money. However, his shame and sense of honor prevent him from begging on the street. In complete desperation, Umberto decides to kill himself.

When he can't find a place to stay for his dog, he abandons him in the park, but Flike finds his owner again. Umberto realizes that he doesn't have the heart to leave his best friend and decides to take him with him to death.

He goes to the railroad tracks to throw himself in front of a train. At the last moment, Flike snaps out of his grip and runs away. Umberto follows him, but at first the dog doesn't want anything more to do with his master. Finally there is a reconciliation and you can see Umberto and Flike playing happily and exuberantly in the park. Your future remains open - but basically the viewer knows: Umberto D. has no future.

background

The film belongs to Italian neorealism and is considered to be one of the last representatives of this era. It shows the situation in Italy shortly after the end of the Second World War. Money is tight and the rate of inflation is high. Umberto D. begins with a march of numerous pensioners who demonstrate for a higher pension.

In the following, the misery of the post-war years is told based on the individual fate of Umberto D. Ferrari, who lives in social isolation and alienation. The film shows his dreary everyday life in several episodes. We see him having lunch in a soup kitchen , trying to sell his watch, and talking to old acquaintances who cannot or will not help him.

His poor living conditions are shown in detail. His apartment is sparsely furnished, the wallpaper torn from the walls. When he is out of the house, the landlady makes his room available to befriended lovers. Despite all setbacks and defeats, Umberto always retains his dignity and his reserved friendliness. The way in which the landlady's fake cordiality turns into cruel coldness towards Umberto D. in a split second is unmasking and an accusation against the selfishness and cold feeling of the bourgeoisie. It is difficult to say how exemplary Umberto D. was for a certain type of person at that time. Umberto D. has no familial and friendly relationships except with his dog and the housemaid Maria; he is so caught up in the corset of his dignity that he cannot help it; he is broken and weak.

Vittorio De Sica shot exclusively on original locations and without artificial light. He cast most of the roles with amateur actors who had no acting experience (Lina Gennari was an exception). All of this adds to the authentic atmosphere of the film. Rome looks poor and run down, there are no tourists. Even the pantheon , in front of which there is a famous scene in which Umberto D. uses his dog to beg, is dirty and gray.

Because of its subliminal anti-government message, the Italian government described the film as "anti-national" in 1952 and tried to censor it . When it was first published, Umberto D. was a commercial failure, which some see as a cause of the decline of neorealism. Today the film is considered a classic of Italian cinema and Vittorio De Sica's best film. In 1999 it was extensively restored and shown again in some cinemas.

De Sica dedicated Umberto D. to his father.

criticism

  • “The tragedy of an impoverished and lonely old man who believes he cannot go on living in the anonymity and indifference of big city society. (...) The realistic, unsentimental film combines sharp social criticism with a shocking, insight-mobilizing accusation of modern man. ” Lexicon of international film

Awards

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Umberto D. In: Lexicon of the international film . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used