Film History and Criticism lecture Italian Neo-Realism (1944-49) Week 3, January 22nd Italian Neorealism: Readings: Thompson & Bordwell Chapter 16 Neorealism and its Context pp.330-341 and Visconti, Rossellini Box, p338 Supplementary Readings: Hayward, S Key Concepts: Italian NeoRealism pp.191-2 Corrigan, Timothy, White, Patricia, with Meta Mazaj, Critical Visions in Film Theory; Classical and Contemporary Readings Part Modernism and Realism: Debates in Classical Film Theory Andre Bazin “The Evolution of the Language of Cinema” pp 309-325 & Cesare Zavattini “Some ideas on the Cinema pp 915 -924 Screening: Rome, Open City (Roberto Rossellini dir 1945) and clips from Miraculo a Milano (Miracle in Milan) (1950) and Ladri di Biciclette (Bicycle Thieves, 1948) dir Vittorio De Sica www.robertorossellini.it/ official site Introduction Key Questions: • When did it begin and end? • What were its sources? • Characteristics? • Was it new/neo? • How Italian was it? • How realistic? Responses Term as a movement closely tied to the social-political situation in post-war Italy Neo-realism coined by Italian Critic Umberto Barbaro French poetic realism Marcel Carne’s late films: Port of Shadows (1938) Daybreak (1939) and Jean Renoir, Rules of the Game (1939), and Grand Illusion (1937) Characteristics of neo-Realism a) b) c) d) e) Location shooting Post-synchronized sound shooting Use of non-professional actors Not interested in entertainment A commitment to representation of social reality/actuality f) The narrative reflects actual duration g) Racked focus and long takes c.w Renoir Major Figures Roberto Rossellini (1906-1977) Rome Open City, (1945); Paisan (1946) , Germany Year Zero (1947) Vittorio De Sica (1902-1974) and Script writer Cersare Zavattini (1902-1989) Shoeshine, Bicycle Thieves, Miracle in Milan and Umberto D (1952) Luchiano Visconti (1906) Ossessione (Obsession 1942), The Earth Trembles (1948) Guiseppe de Santis (b1917) Riso Amaro (Bitter Rice 1949) Tragic Hunt (1948), No Peace for Under the Olives (1950) Characteristics continued Was it New as the term Neo suggests – yes and no for the reasons cited earlier How Italian? Very, although there are also similar elements in earlier French cinema within poetic realist films How realist? With emphasis on location shooting more so than studio cinema To the Italian neo-Realists, reality and truth are not the same: reality (considered that which is possible to observe in everyday life) is the way to truth, and truth is the set of production relationships that rules society - the Marxist inspiration is evident here Roberto Rossellini b May 8, 1906, -d June 3, 1977, Rome, Italy “The father of neo-realism” • With no money available to produce his films, De Sica initiated the use of real locations and nonprofessional actors Using available light and documentary effects, he explored the relationship between working and lower-class characters in an indifferent, and often hostile social and political environment Vittorio De Sica died in 1974 at the age of 72 Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, of Lonate Pozzolo (November 2, 1906 - March 17, 1976) was an Italian theatre and cinema director and writer, best known for films such as The Leopard (1963) and Death in Venice He died in Rome of a stroke at the age of 69 There is a museum dedicated to the director's work in Ischia Visconti was born in Milan into a wealthy family (one of the richest of northern Italy) Visconti’s father was the Duke of Grazzano, and V had six siblings Visconti was exposed to high culture, to art, music and theater, and met some of the major Italian figures in each discipline, including the composer Giacomo Puccini, the conductor Arturo Toscanini, and the writer/poet Gabriele D'Annunzio After World War II Visconti joined the Italian Communist Party Together with Roberto Rossellini, Visconti joined the salotto of Vittorio Mussolini (the son of Dictator Benito Mussolini, who was during the fascist period the national arbitrator for cinema and other arts) and here presumably met also Federico Fellini With Gianni Puccini, Antonio Pietrangeli and Giuseppe De Santis he wrote the screenplay for his first film as director: Ossessione (Obsession) (1943), the first neorealist movie and an adaptation of the novel The Postman Always Rings Twice Visconti Neo -Realist Films Ossessione (1943, based on James M Cain's 1934 novel The Postman Always Rings Twice) La Terra trema (1950) Bellissima (1951) Siamo donne (We, the Women) (1953) (episode Anna Magnani) Senso (Livia), 1954 Le notti bianche (White Nights), 1957 Rocco e i suoi fratelli (Rocco and His Brothers), 1960 Films continued Boccaccio '70 (1961, based on Boccaccio's Decameron) (episode Il lavoro) The Leopard (Il Gattopardo), 1963 - based on Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's novel Il Gattopardo) Vaghe stelle dell'Orsa (Sandra of a Thousand Delights), 1965) Vaghe stelle dell'Orsa (Sandra of a Thousand Delights), 1965) The Stranger (Lo straniero), 1967 - based on Albert Camus' novel L'Étranger) Le streghe (The Witches), 1967 (episode La strega bruciata viva) The Damned (film) (La caduta degli dei), 1969 (TV movie, 1970) Death in Venice (Morte a Venezia), 1971 Based on Thomas Mann's novel) Ludwig (1972) Conversation Piece (Gruppo di famiglia in un interno, 1974) L'Innocente (1976) Visconti Quote “I believe in life, that is the central point I believe in organized society I think it has a chance” Next week • Film Noir: Thompson & Bordwell (2nd edition) • pp 228, 233-235; and Chapter 17 pp 373-390 • Supplementary Readings: Leo Braudy “Genre: The Conventions of Connection” (613-629) • Screening: Scarlet Street (1945) Fritz Lang; The Big Sleep (1946) Howard Hawks; Rebel without a Cause (1955) Nicholas Ray ... creation of the Best Foreign Film category, for Shoeshine (1947), and The Bicycle Thief in 1949, and Best Foreign Film Awards for Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (1964), and The Garden of the Finzi-Continis... Patricia, with Meta Mazaj, Critical Visions in Film Theory; Classical and Contemporary Readings Part Modernism and Realism: Debates in Classical Film Theory Andre Bazin “The Evolution of the Language... for Italian television and a 90-minute 35mm feature Later he began a four year period producing war films, and he also began exhibiting disenchantment with cinema Cultural history (1964-1977):