Umberto D. (1952)

Umberto Ferrari, aged government-pensioner, attends a street demonstration held by his fellow pensioners. The police dispense the crowd and Umberto returns to his cheap furnished room which... See full summary »

Director:

Vittorio De Sica

Writer:

Cesare Zavattini (story)

Stars:

Carlo Battisti, Maria Pia Casilio, Lina Gennari

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview:
Carlo Battisti	...	Umberto Domenico Ferrari
Maria Pia Casilio	...	Maria, la servetta
Lina Gennari	...	Antonia Belloni - la padrona di case
Ileana Simova	...	La donna nella camera di Umberto
Elena Rea	...	La suora all' ospedale
Memmo Carotenuto	...	Il degente all' ospedale

Storyline

Umberto Ferrari, aged government-pensioner, attends a street demonstration held by his fellow pensioners. The police dispense the crowd and Umberto returns to his cheap furnished room which he shares with his dog Flick. Umberto's lone friend is Maria, servant of the boarding house. She is a simple girl who is pregnant by one of two soldiers and neither will admit to being the father. When Umberto's landlady Antonia demands the rent owed her and threatens eviction if she is not paid, Umberto tries desperately to raise the money by selling his books and watch. He is too proud to beg in the streets and can not get a loan from any of his acquaintances. He contracts a sore throat, is admitted to a hospital and this puts a delay on his financial difficulty. Discharged, he finds that his dog is gone and, following a frantic search, locates him in the city dog pound. His room has been taken over by the landlady and the now-homeless Unberto determines to find a place for his beloved dog, and ...

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Plot Keywords:

dog | landlady | servant | rent | prostitute | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

7 November 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

A sorompók lezárulnak

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$1,664 (USA) (17 May 2002)

Gross:

$74,308 (USA) (20 September 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rizzoli Film, Produzione Films Vittorio De Sica, Amato Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Vittorio De Sica dedicated this film to his father.

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Goofs

The position of Umberto's bag on the seat changes between the scenes whilst he is trying to give Flike way and when he returns from the railway line.

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Connections

Referenced in L'uomo dal sigaro in bocca (1997)

User Reviews

An unforgettable masterpiece

This is storytelling at its simplest and most beautiful. An old man - his sole companion, a dog - tries to survive on a fixed, tight income while being mistreated by his landlady.

DeSica brilliantly captures the despair of his protagonist and makes this film unforgettably powerful. This film deserves to be seen by everyone, not just those who enjoy foreign-language films.

This film is touching, memorable and manages to draw us into Umberto's life without ever becoming maudlin. The denouement is heartbreaking, but the film never lapses into sentimentality. "Umberto D" truly is one of the greatest films ever made.