Umberto D. (1952)

An elderly man and his dog struggle to survive on his government pension in Rome.

Director:

Vittorio De Sica

Writer:

Cesare Zavattini (story and screenplay)

Stars:

Carlo Battisti, Maria Pia Casilio, Lina Gennari

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

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Carlo Battisti	...	Umberto Domenico Ferrari
Maria Pia Casilio	...	Maria
Lina Gennari	...	Antonia Belloni
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 | rent | landlady | pension | old man | 

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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:

Umberto D.

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,664, 17 May 2002, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$74,308, 22 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

There are two dogs used in the film. The trained one has a black head and its right side is white. Another dog, with a white muzzle and a black spot on its right flank, is used in two scenes - firstly, when Umberto is hiding from the police after the demonstration and, secondly, when he reclaims Flike from the pound.

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Goofs

In the confrontation with his landlady after he returns with Flike, the position of the landlady changes between shots, so that a set of film posters appears behind her and her fiancé in the later shots.

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Quotes

[repeated line]
Umberto Domenico Ferrari: Flike!

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Connections

Referenced in Pennies from Heaven (1981)

User Reviews

Neorealist Classic (A story of an old man and his dog)

Umberto D was made towards the end of the Neo-realist period in Italian cinema, following on from Roma Citta Aperta (1945),Riso Amaro (Bitter Rice 1946),Paisa (Paisan 1946) and Ladri di Biciclette (The Bicycle Thieves 1948). Many critics see Umberto D has the finest example of the genre and Vittorio de Sica, the director, himself considered it to be his best work. Set in post-war Italy, it is the story of a retired public worker, trying to survive on a meagre state pension and being threatened with eviction from his landlady. His only friends are his small dog 'Flick' and his landlady's young maid Maria who has just discovered she is pregnant. Filled with despair over his situation he finally contemplates suicide.

The film sticks firmly to the neorealist conventions; the lead actor is a non professional actor (a college Professor who agreed to play the role), the use of studio sets is kept to minimum and the everyday lives of people are examined in minute detail. One could say that for long parts of the film nothing much happens, for instance when we follow Maria's early morning routine of grinding some coffee, but from these detailed vignettes, we learn a great deal of the thoughts feelings and emotions of the characters. These sequences are why it is a great film. The acting is wonderful, the impossible situations of the old man and of the unmarried but pregnant Maria are really brought to life for the audience. Although a tragic tale it does include many moments of humour and the ending although non-committal is uplifting. All in all a classic.