1952
Directed by Vittorio de Sica
The above video clip sums up my views on this film perfectly. I mean, this was one of the sappiest, most nauseating, and over the top films I have ever seen.
Let me give you a quick glimpse of the plot. An old man is kicked out of his apartment with his dog. He wants to kill himself but wants to find a home for his dog first. As if that sentimentality of that summary doesn't sicken you enough, he loses his dog and must find him before he gets put into a pound. Oh, brother.
Let me clarify. I am not one of those young people that is screaming for the gore and action in every film. Hell, I will watch Shakespeare in Love and The English Patient and shed a few tears. But this was just absurd. I felt as though the director was showing me a slide show of sad things. Look at dying puppies! Look at lonely old men! Look at someone crying! Give me break.
And my hatred for the Italian films on this list continue.
RATING: *----
Interesting Facts:
Nope, I couldn't find anything.
I totally agree. And I know we are supposed to hate the landlady and she does treat him really badly (and she may be a Madame?) but like...she needs his rent money. That's what she does! I don't think it's unreasonable for people to demand that their tenants pay rent!
ReplyDeleteI agree! The landlords are always evil in movies when they ask our hero for rent. What are they supposed to do?
DeleteHere is the totally absurd thing: Umberto has absolutely no reason to stay in this apartment. There are no children, hardly any friends and no job to keep him there. Hell, he hardly has any possessions. However he does have his pension and although it is a pittance he could, you know, move to a village where a) people are nicer, b) the air a lot healthier for him, c) his dog can run free and d) rent is far cheaper.
ReplyDeleteInstead this deucebag insist on staying in a place where he is not welcome. Go figure.
I must be a sap then. This went nowhere but I found it far more absorbing and powerful than, say, Europa '51 which tried to make many of the same points on a grander scale to lesser effect.
ReplyDeleteAgreed on the principle of the landlady. It's like cheering during wildlife documentaries when the wildebeest escapes, whilst ignoring the fact that the lion's got a family to feed. But in this case she just wanted to turn his room into an expanded living room for when she got married.
Haha I love the responses to this one. He was a douche... I love your analogy Dessie. It's Crime and Punishment all over again...Weren't we trying to figure out what movies made you cry? Did this one do it?
ReplyDeleteI refuse to cry at movies based upon shallow principle, but the opening sequence of Up pushed me pretty close.
DeleteI wouldn't say this made me want to cry, but it did a good job of making me 'feel his pain', which is a slightly different thing.