Bicycle Thieves (1948)

In post-war Italy, a working-class man's bicycle is stolen. He and his son set out to find it.

Director:

Vittorio De Sica

Writers:

Cesare Zavattini (story), Luigi Bartolini (novel)

Stars:

Lamberto Maggiorani, Enzo Staiola, Lianella Carell

Top Rated Movies #97 | Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 18 wins.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lamberto Maggiorani	...	Antonio
Enzo Staiola	...	Bruno
Lianella Carell	...	Maria
Elena Altieri	...	The Charitable Lady
Gino Saltamerenda	...	Baiocco
Giulio Chiari	...	The Beggar
Vittorio Antonucci	...	The Thief
Michele Sakara	...	Secretary of the Charity Organization
Fausto Guerzoni	...	Amateur Actor
Emma Druetti
Carlo Jachino	...	A Beggar

Storyline

Ricci, an unemployed man in the depressed post-WWII economy of Italy, gets at last a good job - for which he needs a bike - hanging up posters. But soon his bicycle is stolen. He and his son walk the streets of Rome, looking for the bicycle. Ricci finally manages to locate the thief but with no proof, he has to abandon his cause. But he and his son know perfectly well that without a bike, Ricci won't be able to keep his job.

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Plot Keywords:

bicycle | thief | job | italy | search | 

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Taglines:

The Prize Picture They Want to Censor!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

13 December 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bicycle Thieves

Filming Locations:

Citta Valmelaina, Via Salaria, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$133,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,845, 4 October 1998, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$332,930, 5 September 1999

Company Credits

Production Co:

Produzioni De Sica (PDS), Produzioni De Sica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min 80 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

It took careful planning and rehearsing to give the film its realistic look. Crowd scenes were meticulously staged and drilled, including one for which Vittorio De Sica hired 40 street vendors. The Roman fire department provided a "surprise" rainstorm for another scene. In addition, De Sica shot with as many as six cameras at once to get the untrained actors' spontaneous performances from several angles. Although the film looked like a documentary in places, the director's painstaking methods drove him over budget.

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Goofs

[All goofs for this title are spoilers.]

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Quotes

Antonio Ricci: I've been cursed since the day I was born.

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Connections

Featured in Reel Radicals: The Sixties Revolution in Film (2002)

User Reviews

Powerful and dramatic

It is post-war Rome and much of the city's residents are impoverished and desperate for work. One man named Ricci who haunts the job lines day after day to provide for his wife and two children, when suddenly his name is called for a well-paying city job. The only catch is that he needs a bicycle for the job, and he has just pawned his bicycle in order to feed his family. Thus begins `The Bicycle Thief', Vittorio de Sica's gritty study in realism. Ricci and his wife sell the sheets off of their beds to get the bicycle back, only to have the bicycle stolen on his first day on the job. In order to keep the job, he and his young son walk around Rome, desperate to find the thief, and more importantly, the bicycle before his next day of work.

de Sica chose non-actors to portray the characters in the film, favoring a further realistic vision by casting amateurs. The result is remarkable, because the pain and emotions conveyed are so true. The relationship between father and son is also compelling and endearing, in that for the most part, Ricci treats his son as an equal, letting him in on his innermost thoughts and fears, until the end, when a particular event causes him to be ashamed, and the roles become defined once again.

`The Bicycle Thief' personifies the refreshing fact that European cinema was more daring and also true in their reaction to post-war life. While America was trying to paint a heavy coat of rosy paint on the times by churning out the saccharine MGM musicals by the dozen, Europe was showing that the effects of a war fought on their home turf did not inspire moments of spontaneously breaking into song, or a choreographed dance number, rather life pretty much sucked, but survival, as difficult and ugly as it can be, is most important. `The Bicycle Thief' has been a critical favorite for decades, and for good reason. It is a must-see film for any cinephile.

--Shelly