: Bicycle Thieves by De Sica, Citizen Kane, and Birth of a Nation by D.W. Griffith - Movie Review Example

What impressed me most about the movie is that it has captured the exact economic, social, political, and psychological conditions of the victims of the post world war era by showing ladies who stand in queues to get water, ruined buildings, the behavior of the society when the lead character accuses the boy of stealing his bicycle, etc. The visuals all point to the torn-apart post-war city and the dialogs of the characters further exemplify the economic situation of that era. This is evidenced when the protagonist, Antonio, tells his wife that he feels “like a man in chains” (Bicycle Thieves, 1948).

This dialog right here is the epitome of the helpless situation of the working class people, that is, although they were ready to work hard for a living, they were constrained by various elements thus entailing in their jobless state and miserable life. However, on the other hand, the movie also portrays the selfless love a wife must possess towards her husband and illustrates the concepts of familial relationships and sacrifices giving them the most importance. As far as I am concerned, familial relationships are of great prominence and it is these kinds of relationships and concepts that I value the most, and since the movie deftly demonstrates this, it appeals the most to me.

Therefore, according to me, this was the best film I have seen as compared to other movies shown this semester. 2) Name some of the special effects, camera techniques, and camera composition used in “Citizen Kane” and how was this evidenced in the film itself? The camera techniques used in the movie “Citizen Kane” (1941), directed by Orson Wells who also performs in the title role, become evident from the scene presenting Xanadu, Kane’s old age retreat. The protagonist withdraws to this location in his old age as a symbol of his isolation from society.

The audience is first given a long-shot view of the old fortress-like residence with its gates towering over the frame. By providing such a view of his home, the audience receives a sense of Kane’s power through the overbearing view of the gate that separates the home from the rest of the world. Again, in the scene where the animals are shown, the camera pans onto the cage, giving the viewers a sense of Kane’s power that has enabled him to create his world, by eschewing the American way of life.

Many similar cases can be seen in the movie which exemplifies the deft use of camera and angles. 3) We watched De Sica’s “Bicycle Thieves” this semester. What was so important about Italian Neorealism and how was this evidenced in the film itself? Italian Neorealism was the first post-war cinematic movement that freed filmmaking from the realm of perfect worlds portrayed in the movies, thus its significance cannot be overlooked. Before this movement, Italian films were greatly influenced by Hollywood movies, with which little could the people of Italy relate to.

However, once this new trend surfaced, it transformed cinematography and boosted it into a new phase that brought to the fore movies reflecting the real-life conditions of the working class people from all aspects including economic, psychological, social, moral, political, etc.