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Wednesday, June 8, 2016

The Golden Age of Italian Cinema


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The Golden Age of Italian Cinema. . .


The period between 1943 and 1950 in the history of Italian cinema is dominated by the realistic atmosphere of neorealism, which is defined as a period of time of Italian post-war film . It had great impact on Film Noir and French New Wave Cinema. This Golden Age of Italian cinema influenced film directors all over the world.

 

         The Bicycle Thief" directed by Vittorio De Sica (1948)


One of the most recognized films of this era is "The Bicycle Thief." The film follows a man (Lamberto Maggiorani) wandering the streets to find his stolen bicycle. Attempting to steal another bicycle he is caught and labeled as a thief himself. This film captures post-war Italy and the daily desperation they were facing. It is interesting to note that Maggiorani was a factory worker before getting the role. All the scenes were shot on location, grounding the film in realism.



Roberto Rossellini directed "Stromboli" starring Ingrid Bergman. (1950)



    Federico Fellini directed "The Nights of Cabiria" (1957)


Neorealism became famous globally in 1946 with "Rome, Open City." Directed by Robert Rossellini, this movie was filmed during the time period directly following the Nazi occupation of this region of Italy (1945.)  Rossellini shot mostly outdoors amidst the war aftermath. The war was still going on in the rest of Italy! This movie was filmed using actual left-over tanks, soldiers, extras from the streets. . . It is all real! This gives the viewer an eerie feeling. Rossellini captured it. . .the post war surreal reality that people found themselves in. Definitely a movie to add to your viewing list!



The screenplay of Rome Open City was written by Sergio Amidel with the help of Federico Fellini in his kitchen. Shooting started on January 18, 1945. They had to use abandoned film scraps found here and there. Rossellini, little by little, sold all he owned so the film could go on.

Audiences reacted with enthusiasm and it became the first hit of the year. It was the beginning of "neorealism"  --an opening onto reality, onto the human predicament.


                                     Roberto Rossellini



The neorealistic movement created a new audience for stories of lower-class struggles. But the movement fell apart in the early 1950s, as Italy began to show signs of recovery and there was a demand for more positive films.

Here is a list of movies from this time period:

1.    Ossessione (Luchino Visconti, 1942)

2.    Open City (Roberto Rossellini, 1945)

3.    Shoeshine (Vittorio De Sica, 1946)

4.    Passion (Roberto Rossellini, 1946)

5.    Germany Year Zero (Roberto Rossellini, 1948)

6.    Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio De Sica, 1948)

7.    The Earth Trembles (Luchino Visconti, 1948) 

8.    Bitter Rice (Giuseppe De Santis, 1952)

9.    Stromboli ( Roberto Rossellini, 1950)

10.  Bellissima (Luchino Visconti, 1951)

11.  Miracle in Milan (Vittorio De Sica, 1951)

12.  Rome 11:00 (Giuseppe De Santis, 1952)

13.  Europe '51 (Roberto Rossellini, 1952)

14.  Umberto D. (Vittorio De Sica, 1952) many historians date the end of the neorealist movement with the public attacks on this film.

15.  Journey to Italy (Robert Rossellini, 1954)

16.  Nights of Cairia (Federico Fellini, 1957)  

 

This "Golden Age" of film making was created out of need and struggle, nearly impossible circumstances. Maybe that is why it is so special and inspires filmmakers of today to study it with reverence. 





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We automatically send you a comprehensive list of "film noir" movies both classic and newer ones and where they are streaming for FREE when you follow us with your e-mail. It is in PDF file form. 

For more study here are some great sites:

AMC               http://www.filmsite.org

IMDB              http://www.imdb.com         

Roger Ebert    http://www.rogerebert.com 

Criterion         http://www.criterion.com

  


  Some of our other articles you might like are:

"Hong Kong Cinema"; "Japanese Anime"; "Dark Comedy"; "Surrealism"





 

Monday, June 6, 2016

EarthOceanFire: Film Noir

EarthOceanFire: Film Noir:                                                     http://www.earthoceanfirejewelry.com Film Noir. . .                            ...

Classic Film Noir and Neo Noir

                                                 

Film Noir. . .

The term "film noir" (film n'war), literally black and white film, was coined by French film critics (first by Nino Frank in 1946) who noticed the trend of how dark and down beat the looks and themes were of many American films released in France following the war.

  Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall 

These two were madly in love in real life and Bogart divorced his wife and married Bacall.  They stayed married for 10 years until his death (Jan 14, 1957.) They starred in several great films together. I have seen all of these and I recommend you taking the time to watch them on your next movie night!

"To Have and Have Not" (1944) they met on this set

"The Big Sleep" (1946) considered one of the greatest "film noir"

"Dark Passage" (1947)

"Key Largo" (1948)

Photos below are Fred MacMurrey and Barbara Stanwick

 

  

 

 "Double Indemnity" (photo above) is another one of the most famous "film noir"movies, starring Fred MacMurrey, Barbara Stanwick and Edward G. Robinson. An insurance investigator falls for a woman who talks him into a fraud scheme involving murder. Barbara Stanwick is the "film noir femme fatale" in this one.

 Classic film noir developed during and after World War II, taking advantage of the post-war atmosphere of anxiety, pessimism and suspicion. It was a style of black and white American films that first evolved in the 1940s and lasted until about 1960 (marked by the last film of the era, Orson Wells' "Touch of Evil" 1958.)

Usually murder in addition to greed and jealousy are elements of "film noir." Before the term "film noir" was widely accepted in the 1970s, many of these classic films were referred to as "melodramas."


                                      Kirk Douglas

"Out of the Past" is one of my favorite "film noir" films starring Kirk Douglas and Robert Mitchum along with Jane Greer. 

Robert Mitchum (Jeff) a private eye, escapes his past and runs a gas station in a small town, but his past catches up with him. Now, he is pulled back into a dangerous world by a crime boss, Kirk Douglas (Whit) and a double-crossing dame Jane Greer (Kathie.) Jane Greer is playing a stellar role as a "film noir femme fatale." (photo below)

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You can find many of these movies streaming online. 

 

We have made a PDF file for you of a comprehensive list of "flim noir" both classic and a few newer ones. The info includes Title, date, brief description, actors and where to find streaming. It is a list of about 7 pages for you to print out and use for your movie watching list. 

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Here are a few very good sites for more study:

AMC                  http://www.filmsite.org/filmnoir    

IMDB                http://www.imdb.com    

YouTube            http://www.youtube.com   

Also Roger Ebert, for individual film reviews. 

Roger Ebert       http://www.rogerebert.com