The movement known as Italian Neorealism was a movement “that achieved a limited but influential popularity from the mid 1940s until some time in the early or late 1950s” (Shiel, 2006, p. 1). It was born as a reaction to the oppressed everyday man by the fascist rulers of the time, coming out of the Second World War. One of the first films considered as being part of the neorealism movement Rome, Open City (Rossellini, 1945) came only weeks after the Second World War had ended.
The cinema of Italian Neorealism had a very distinct look to the picture, which is why a film of the movement is easy to decipher amongst the bourgeoisie “White telephone films” (Landy, 2000, p. 50) that were popular in Italy at the time. In contradiction to these lavish productions, Italian neorealism was gritty with a focus on realism. “This was typified by a preference for location filming, the use of non-professional actors, the avoidance of ornamental mise-en-scene, a preference for natural light, a freely moving documentary style of photography, a non-interventionist approach to film directing, and an avoidance of complex editing and other post-production processes” (Shiel, 2006, pp. 1-2). The picture at the top left of this post shows the two main characters from Bicycle Thieves (De Sica, 1948). Before making the film they had never acted before. The father, played by Lamberto Maggiorani, was in fact scouted from the factory that he was working in at the time to add to the realism of the film.
The cinema of Italian Neorealism had a very distinct look to the picture, which is why a film of the movement is easy to decipher amongst the bourgeoisie “White telephone films” (Landy, 2000, p. 50) that were popular in Italy at the time. In contradiction to these lavish productions, Italian neorealism was gritty with a focus on realism. “This was typified by a preference for location filming, the use of non-professional actors, the avoidance of ornamental mise-en-scene, a preference for natural light, a freely moving documentary style of photography, a non-interventionist approach to film directing, and an avoidance of complex editing and other post-production processes” (Shiel, 2006, pp. 1-2). The picture at the top left of this post shows the two main characters from Bicycle Thieves (De Sica, 1948). Before making the film they had never acted before. The father, played by Lamberto Maggiorani, was in fact scouted from the factory that he was working in at the time to add to the realism of the film.
In terms of influence on cinema outside of Italy, Italian neorealism was hugely influential in all corners of the map. The influence can be seen in the “anti-formulaic tendencies and low budget aesthetics of some American film noirs such as They Live by Night (Ray, 1948)” (Shiel, 2006, p. 124). Also in the video above this post there is a video featuring Martin Scorsese talking about the influence he gained from watching these films at a young age, and how he used it in his popular Hollywood film Raging Bull (1980). But influence can also be found in Chinese contemporary cinema, where the political situation is not too distant from that of Italy’s, which caused the filmmakers to react in such a way in the beginning. Chinese filmmaker Jia Zhangke was particularly influenced by the previously mentioned Italian neorealism film Bicycle Thieves. “His cinematic approach to time, the way of connecting history, memory and the present, his use of regional languages and non-professional actors and the choice of marginal characters are part of the neorealist influence on his work. In fact, Jia Zhangke’s debut film Pickpocket or Unknown Pleasures (1997) has come to epitomise the impact of Neorealism on contemporary Chinese cinema” (Pollacchi, 2014, p.10).
To conclude it can be easily said that Italian neorealism has been influential in cinema from across the globe, reaching as far away as China. What started off as a small movement reacting to the social pressures of the time in Italy, morphed into one of the most influential movements of all time, acting as a watershed for the emergence of realism in mainstream cinema.
Word Count 519
Bibliography
Landy, M. (2000). Italian Film. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Pollacchi, E. (2014). Spaces and bodies: The legacy of Italian cinema in contemporary Chinese film-making. Journal of Italian Cinema & Media Studies, 2(1), 7-21.
Shiel, M. (2006). Italian neorealism: Rebuilding the cinematic city. London: Wallflower Press.
To conclude it can be easily said that Italian neorealism has been influential in cinema from across the globe, reaching as far away as China. What started off as a small movement reacting to the social pressures of the time in Italy, morphed into one of the most influential movements of all time, acting as a watershed for the emergence of realism in mainstream cinema.
Word Count 519
Bibliography
Landy, M. (2000). Italian Film. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Pollacchi, E. (2014). Spaces and bodies: The legacy of Italian cinema in contemporary Chinese film-making. Journal of Italian Cinema & Media Studies, 2(1), 7-21.
Shiel, M. (2006). Italian neorealism: Rebuilding the cinematic city. London: Wallflower Press.