Neorealism's Evolution In Film

Julia Rodrigue 

Joe Sapphire 

COM 126 

10/11/20

Neorealism In Film 

The film Bicycle Thief began as one of the first pieces of the first wave of neo realism film in Italy. Neorealism wanted to capture the reality of life with a realist film perspective. This style of film was directly impacted by the echoes of WW2, which changed how filmmakers wanted to send a message. As film continued to evolve it is easy to see how The Killer of Sheep and Moonlight were directly influenced by the neorealist movement. We can also see how neorealism has evolved since bicycle thieves to include different communities. The realistic ways all three films show the reality of their individual societies and reflect back social issues within them. 

Bicycle Thieves follows the story of Antonio who is desperate for work, during a world war two italy. He is able to find it work hanging up posters, however he needs a bike to be able to work. As the title implies Antonio’s bike is stolen from him and he spends the film searching for it. The direct impact of the war can be seen in the plot as Antonio attempts to do the right thing involving the police. However it is obvious that the film maker is showing how the world is not so simple. The police do nothing even though Antonio is attempting to make the righteous choice. I think this is directly related to the war, as the world is shown to be unfair. This is a realistic depiction of how life really is, as many hollywood films even today tend to sugar coat life. This film has allowed for a different type of style of filmmaking, that allows the audience to see the world as it actually is. 

The Killer of Sheep is a more modern american version of this original neorealism style of filmmaking. The movie is filmed in a way that makes it feel almost like you're spying on the characters life. I felt as I watched the film that I was peaking into another person’s home. This film takes neorealism and runs with it, filming almost in a documentary style. For example many of the scenes are filmed as if the audience isn’t watching. Sam’s life is filmed in a similar way to which life is actually experienced which I really enjoyed. There's a scene where a little girl dresses herself and argues with her brother. Another scene shows a tender moment between a husband and wife  as they slowly dance together. Similar to Bicycle Thieves, this film reflects back it’s community and societal problems. Unlike blaxploitation films of the time, Burnett showed his community in a realistic way. 

Moonlight again updates neorealism to a more modern setting of miami following Chiron as he navigates growing up. Unlike the other two films Moonlight is more stylized adding in different types of more modern filmmaking style. However the content of the movie very much still falls in line with the ideas of neorealism. Instead of dealing with poverty in a post ww2 italy, Chiron is instead navigating poverty within our modern society. We can see this within his struggle of dealing with his mothers addiction, navigating his sexuality. He also must deal with falling into the trap of what his community believes being a man is. We can see this evolution as he goes from being Little, as he models his masculinity off of Jaun as he comes into his adulthood as Black. 

All three of these films show the way in which the neorealist style of filmmaking has evolved but kept the same principles. All three main character struggle with very similar issues within their communities. Reflecting back to the audience an authentic depiction of how life is truly experienced by people.