{"product_id":"bicycle-thieves","title":"Bicycle Thieves","description":"\u003cp\u003eVittorio De Sica’s \u003ci\u003eBicycle Thieves \u003c\/i\u003e(\u003ci\u003eLadri di biciclette\u003c\/i\u003e, 1948) is unarguably one of the most important films in the history of cinema. It is also one of the most beguiling, moving, and seemingly simple works of narrative ever made. The film tells the story of one man and his son as they search fruitlessly through the streets of Rome for his stolen bicycle; the bicycle which had offered the possibility of escape from the poverty and humiliation of long-term unemployment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne of a cluster of extraordinary films to come out of post-war, post-Fascist Italy, loosely labelled ‘neorealist’, \u003ci\u003eBicycle Thieves \u003c\/i\u003ewon an Oscar in 1950, topped the first\u003ci\u003e Sight and Sound\u003c\/i\u003e poll of the best films of all time in 1952 and has been hugely influential throughout world cinema ever since. It remains a necessary point of reference for any cinematic engagement with the labyrinthine experience of the modern city, the travails of poverty in the contemporary world, the complex bond between fathers and sons, and the capacity of the camera to capture something like the essence of all of these.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRobert S. C. Gordon’s study shows how \u003ci\u003eBicycle Thieves\u003c\/i\u003e is ripe for re-viewing, for rescuing from its worthy status as a neorealist ‘classic’. It looks at the film’s drawn-out planning and production, the vibrant and riven historical moment in which it was made, and the dynamic geography, geometry and sociology of the film that resulted.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn his afterword to this new edition, Gordon assesses the film’s enduring resonance, close to eighty years after its release, and its potential to help us understand precarity and care in our troubled present day.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bloomsbury Publishing PLC","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57298389926232,"sku":"9781805750918","price":18.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0278\/1295\/4195\/files\/9781805750918.jpg?v=1780120845","url":"https:\/\/agendabookshop.com\/products\/bicycle-thieves","provider":"Agenda Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}