A Conversation about Moving Images from the Last Century into the Next.
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
Fides
When Antonio's bicycle is stolen, he loses more than a bike. The brand name of the bicycle "Fides" (Faith in Latin) suggest it has symbolic value. What is the significance of that symbol? What does Antonio lose? Are there other symbols in this film?
In Bicycle Thieves, the brand name of the bicycle, Fides, definitely has significance to it. Very early in the movie it is evident that Antonio and his family are struggling financially and he is doing everything he can to make enough money to support his family and send his child to school. We see the desperation he has to be able to take any job when he sells all his bed sheets in order to buy a bike. When he got this bike, it gave him and his family hope. He would be able to take the job which would make him a decent amount of money. When the bike was stolen, Antonio lost his faith. Not only in those around him but also the faith that he will somehow be able to support his family. When his bike is stolen we see Antonio slowly start to break down. First he threatens a man in a church to help him find the man who stole his bike because he saw them together, then he slaps his own child out of anger, and finally, he tries to steal a bike when he thinks he has no other options. When his bike was stolen, it caused Antonio to lose faith and eventually lose his morals. By trying to steal the bike, Antonio was going against what he believed because he no longer had faith, Antonio’s bike was not only a symbol of faith, but also hope. When the bike was stolen, so was Antonio’s hope of the future.
As an Italian neo-realist film, Bicycle Thieves captures the ups and downs of everyday life. The movie was written in 1947 and produced in 1949, right after the devastating World War II. Italy was harshly impacted: jobs were scarce, the economy was in shambles, and many of the poor resorted to crime in order to survive. Within this struggle Italian neo-realism was created and Bicycle Thieves shows all elements of struggle. When things are starting to become better, something happens to bring down the happiness. In the movie, the protagonist Antonio Ricci played by Lambert Maggiorni loses his beloved bicycle. The brand of the bike, Fides, is much more than a name and symbolizes Ricci’s chases to find faith. The plot of the movie is about Ricci and his son Bruno searching for the all-important Fides bike. Whenever they have a lead to the bicycle thief the momentum picks up, but then they either lose their lead or get set back. There are many close ups of Ricci and Bruno’s long and disappointed faces. There are multiple times such as after they lose the old man in the church that shows Ricci wanting to give up. Throughout the movie life gives Ricci obstacles, and his reactions are very realistic. Ultimately his grief leads him to steal someone’s else’s bike. The movie does a great job building up the frustration until he finally snaps and commits a crime. Overall, I believe that fides is symbolic to Ricci’s struggle to find faith.
I believe the bicycle represents Antonio’s life as a whole. In the movie, the bike is his outlet to a job which provides him with money to buy food for his family. Without that bike, he loses his job and then all of his money and then doesn’t have food to support his family and they starve. This bike is a complex symbol of life not just for Antonio but every poor Italian at the time in a time of crisis following World War II. It is quite interesting that the brand of the bike means “faith” from the Latin word “Fides”. This could simply mean that Antonio, in losing his bicycle, loses all faith or hope. The bike acts like his key to a better life with a job and money but without it he gets nothing. There is no in between. Either you have money or you don’t. This shows the contrast between the poor and middle class. The scene in the restaurant is very important because while it cuts to the middle class boy that gets to eat away with no trouble, Bruno sit and guiltily eats his sandwich knowing he isn’t deserving of it or can’t afford it. At the end, stealing the bike was a desperate attempt to revive his life because he had no other way. At this point he has nothing to lose. He has already hit an all-time low and will do anything to bounce back. Again, this represents the poor of Italy as a whole where they are forced to commit crimes. I feel that when Antonio partners with the Communist party to help him, it represents all of the poor in support of Communism because they are the only ones to support the poor.
In the movie Bicycle Thief the bicycle represents many important aspects of Antonio’s life. When Antonia was offered a job he was very pleased but the job required that he own a bicycle. Antonio realizes that if he does not have a bike he will lose his job, which at that time was very hard to come by. On his first day at work Antonio’s bicycle is stolen. He realizes that without his bicycle he will be jobless and his family will suffer greatly. To Antonio the bicycle represents his ability to provide a stable life for his wife and son. In order for him to make money and feed his family he knows his bicycle is indispensable. The name of the bike is “Faith” and as the story evolves we see Antonio losing his faith in ever finding the bicycle. At first we see Antonio very eager and positive about finding the bicycle but as the movie progresses he loses his faith and becomes uncertain of his fate. He starts to make irrational decisions, such as stealing another bicycle, which would merit punishment towards himself as well as his family. We also see Antonio being very firm and angry with Bruno which could be a reflection of how he is feeling about his situation and himself. Antonio knows that he is deceiving his family and projects his emotions onto Bruno. Overall when the bicycle is stolen Antonio feels as if he has no control over the situation. As a male, back in those days, you were expected to provide for your family and knowing that losing the bike meant losing his job. Antonio was lost.
The bicycle brand name ‘Fides’ has huge meaning in the entire movie and Antonio’s life as a whole. From a very early point in the movie, it is clear that the Ricci’s are struggling financially. It is clear that Antonio is in desperate need of a job and wants to take whatever he can get to feed his family because without it they may not be able to eat. Antonio had to sell his bike at the beginning for food and then gets offered a job where he needs a bike. Out of desperation he sells his bedsheets to buy back his bike. After his bike gets stolen, he stops at nothing trying to get it back because if he can’t get it back, he won’t have a job. Antonio knows that without that bike he won’t be able to support his family. He never loses his faith of getting his bike back and neither does his son, Bruno. But slowly as the film progresses, Antonio starts to fade little by little and starts to lose his patience. This is seen when he starts to chase the old man in the church shouting questions at him in the middle of a service. After he had lost all hope, that is when he truly lost his bike and he got the idea in his head to steal someone else’s bike and there was no going back. As soon as he got on that bike, he became something he once hated and his son saw him in the same light as he once saw the original bike thief. He lost his faith and lost his Fides.
The analysis of what Antonio Ricci truly lost when his bicycle was stolen transcends the physical properties of the bicycle itself; its monetary value and even its ability to serve as a mode of transportation at a time when the Italian working class needed it most. Instead, what the original bicycle thief stripped of Antonio was something far more emotional: his pride and social purpose in supporting his wife and children at a time of Italian depression and turmoil. However, emotionally, Antonio is proven to be a very strong, persevering character, because despite his bike being stolen, he seems to go to whatever lengths possible to not only reclaim the pride and purpose he originally stood for (aka his bike), but also to maintain his “faith”/fides in morality. He questions what seems to be the entire town regarding whether they know anything about the whereabouts of his bike; anything to not stoop down to the level of his original bike thief. His pride during this arduous time is also especially important in serving as a role model for his son, Bruno. However, as times became more grueling and more and more obstacles are thrown his way, Antonio begins to reach his breaking point. This ends up in him accusing and threatening other citizens and their responsibility in his lost “bike”, and it causes him to slap his own son in the face. However, nothing ends up being more symbolic in Antonio reaching his breaking point than when he finally stoops down to the level of the original bike thief. In the moment, the viewer feels as if Ricci’s theft of the bike is at least somewhat justified, because he has taken too much of an emotional beating, and it seems to be the only way out at this point. The viewers will not perceive Antonio’s theft as immoral as the actions of the original theft, but this is only because we were taken along Antonio’s entire journey. Antonio may just have lived through the original thief’s journey all over again. And so, the cycle of “The Bicycle Thief”, a never-ending backward karma, continues.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” - MLK.
In the movie bicycle thieves, the brand name fides symbolize the faith that Antonio has in the system of government. In a country that has been very recently torn by war, there is not much hope going around. When Antonio has his bike stolen, it is devastating to him and his family. I see the bike modeling the faith that he has in the government and community throughout his journey. In the beginning, when he still has his bike, he has a lot of faith and hope. Antinio has just gotten a job, been able to unpawn his bike, and his life is going well. However after his bike is stolen, the faith he has steadily declines with each setback until he is left broken. For example, the first set back he encounters is at the police station. This is Antonio’s first insight into this government that doesn’t really care about his well being. The next setback is with the mob of people when he finally has found the thief. The country is so broken and war torn, people in communities would go as far as to defend a guilty man rather than to have justice. Antonio is ganged up upon and nothing can be done. Finally, when Antonio must finally make the choice between suffering for himself and family due to poverty, or risk being caught and thrown in jail, Antonio is left so void of faith that he turns to crime. In this way, as Antonio’s hope for finding the bike decreases, so does his faith in the community and government.
ReplyDeleteIn Bicycle Thieves, the brand name of the bicycle, Fides, definitely has significance to it. Very early in the movie it is evident that Antonio and his family are struggling financially and he is doing everything he can to make enough money to support his family and send his child to school. We see the desperation he has to be able to take any job when he sells all his bed sheets in order to buy a bike. When he got this bike, it gave him and his family hope. He would be able to take the job which would make him a decent amount of money. When the bike was stolen, Antonio lost his faith. Not only in those around him but also the faith that he will somehow be able to support his family. When his bike is stolen we see Antonio slowly start to break down. First he threatens a man in a church to help him find the man who stole his bike because he saw them together, then he slaps his own child out of anger, and finally, he tries to steal a bike when he thinks he has no other options. When his bike was stolen, it caused Antonio to lose faith and eventually lose his morals. By trying to steal the bike, Antonio was going against what he believed because he no longer had faith, Antonio’s bike was not only a symbol of faith, but also hope. When the bike was stolen, so was Antonio’s hope of the future.
As an Italian neo-realist film, Bicycle Thieves captures the ups and downs of everyday life. The movie was written in 1947 and produced in 1949, right after the devastating World War II. Italy was harshly impacted: jobs were scarce, the economy was in shambles, and many of the poor resorted to crime in order to survive. Within this struggle Italian neo-realism was created and Bicycle Thieves shows all elements of struggle. When things are starting to become better, something happens to bring down the happiness. In the movie, the protagonist Antonio Ricci played by Lambert Maggiorni loses his beloved bicycle. The brand of the bike, Fides, is much more than a name and symbolizes Ricci’s chases to find faith. The plot of the movie is about Ricci and his son Bruno searching for the all-important Fides bike. Whenever they have a lead to the bicycle thief the momentum picks up, but then they either lose their lead or get set back. There are many close ups of Ricci and Bruno’s long and disappointed faces. There are multiple times such as after they lose the old man in the church that shows Ricci wanting to give up. Throughout the movie life gives Ricci obstacles, and his reactions are very realistic. Ultimately his grief leads him to steal someone’s else’s bike. The movie does a great job building up the frustration until he finally snaps and commits a crime. Overall, I believe that fides is symbolic to Ricci’s struggle to find faith.
ReplyDeleteI believe the bicycle represents Antonio’s life as a whole. In the movie, the bike is his outlet to a job which provides him with money to buy food for his family. Without that bike, he loses his job and then all of his money and then doesn’t have food to support his family and they starve. This bike is a complex symbol of life not just for Antonio but every poor Italian at the time in a time of crisis following World War II. It is quite interesting that the brand of the bike means “faith” from the Latin word “Fides”. This could simply mean that Antonio, in losing his bicycle, loses all faith or hope. The bike acts like his key to a better life with a job and money but without it he gets nothing. There is no in between. Either you have money or you don’t. This shows the contrast between the poor and middle class. The scene in the restaurant is very important because while it cuts to the middle class boy that gets to eat away with no trouble, Bruno sit and guiltily eats his sandwich knowing he isn’t deserving of it or can’t afford it. At the end, stealing the bike was a desperate attempt to revive his life because he had no other way. At this point he has nothing to lose. He has already hit an all-time low and will do anything to bounce back. Again, this represents the poor of Italy as a whole where they are forced to commit crimes. I feel that when Antonio partners with the Communist party to help him, it represents all of the poor in support of Communism because they are the only ones to support the poor.
ReplyDeleteIn the movie Bicycle Thief the bicycle represents many important aspects of Antonio’s life. When Antonia was offered a job he was very pleased but the job required that he own a bicycle. Antonio realizes that if he does not have a bike he will lose his job, which at that time was very hard to come by. On his first day at work Antonio’s bicycle is stolen. He realizes that without his bicycle he will be jobless and his family will suffer greatly. To Antonio the bicycle represents his ability to provide a stable life for his wife and son. In order for him to make money and feed his family he knows his bicycle is indispensable. The name of the bike is “Faith” and as the story evolves we see Antonio losing his faith in ever finding the bicycle. At first we see Antonio very eager and positive about finding the bicycle but as the movie progresses he loses his faith and becomes uncertain of his fate. He starts to make irrational decisions, such as stealing another bicycle, which would merit punishment towards himself as well as his family. We also see Antonio being very firm and angry with Bruno which could be a reflection of how he is feeling about his situation and himself. Antonio knows that he is deceiving his family and projects his emotions onto Bruno. Overall when the bicycle is stolen Antonio feels as if he has no control over the situation. As a male, back in those days, you were expected to provide for your family and knowing that losing the bike meant losing his job. Antonio was lost.
ReplyDeleteThe bicycle brand name ‘Fides’ has huge meaning in the entire movie and Antonio’s life as a whole. From a very early point in the movie, it is clear that the Ricci’s are struggling financially. It is clear that Antonio is in desperate need of a job and wants to take whatever he can get to feed his family because without it they may not be able to eat. Antonio had to sell his bike at the beginning for food and then gets offered a job where he needs a bike. Out of desperation he sells his bedsheets to buy back his bike. After his bike gets stolen, he stops at nothing trying to get it back because if he can’t get it back, he won’t have a job. Antonio knows that without that bike he won’t be able to support his family. He never loses his faith of getting his bike back and neither does his son, Bruno. But slowly as the film progresses, Antonio starts to fade little by little and starts to lose his patience. This is seen when he starts to chase the old man in the church shouting questions at him in the middle of a service. After he had lost all hope, that is when he truly lost his bike and he got the idea in his head to steal someone else’s bike and there was no going back. As soon as he got on that bike, he became something he once hated and his son saw him in the same light as he once saw the original bike thief. He lost his faith and lost his Fides.
ReplyDeleteThe analysis of what Antonio Ricci truly lost when his bicycle was stolen transcends the physical properties of the bicycle itself; its monetary value and even its ability to serve as a mode of transportation at a time when the Italian working class needed it most. Instead, what the original bicycle thief stripped of Antonio was something far more emotional: his pride and social purpose in supporting his wife and children at a time of Italian depression and turmoil. However, emotionally, Antonio is proven to be a very strong, persevering character, because despite his bike being stolen, he seems to go to whatever lengths possible to not only reclaim the pride and purpose he originally stood for (aka his bike), but also to maintain his “faith”/fides in morality. He questions what seems to be the entire town regarding whether they know anything about the whereabouts of his bike; anything to not stoop down to the level of his original bike thief. His pride during this arduous time is also especially important in serving as a role model for his son, Bruno. However, as times became more grueling and more and more obstacles are thrown his way, Antonio begins to reach his breaking point. This ends up in him accusing and threatening other citizens and their responsibility in his lost “bike”, and it causes him to slap his own son in the face. However, nothing ends up being more symbolic in Antonio reaching his breaking point than when he finally stoops down to the level of the original bike thief. In the moment, the viewer feels as if Ricci’s theft of the bike is at least somewhat justified, because he has taken too much of an emotional beating, and it seems to be the only way out at this point. The viewers will not perceive Antonio’s theft as immoral as the actions of the original theft, but this is only because we were taken along Antonio’s entire journey. Antonio may just have lived through the original thief’s journey all over again. And so, the cycle of “The Bicycle Thief”, a never-ending backward karma, continues.
ReplyDelete“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” - MLK.
In the movie bicycle thieves, the brand name fides symbolize the faith that Antonio has in the system of government. In a country that has been very recently torn by war, there is not much hope going around. When Antonio has his bike stolen, it is devastating to him and his family. I see the bike modeling the faith that he has in the government and community throughout his journey. In the beginning, when he still has his bike, he has a lot of faith and hope. Antinio has just gotten a job, been able to unpawn his bike, and his life is going well. However after his bike is stolen, the faith he has steadily declines with each setback until he is left broken. For example, the first set back he encounters is at the police station. This is Antonio’s first insight into this government that doesn’t really care about his well being. The next setback is with the mob of people when he finally has found the thief. The country is so broken and war torn, people in communities would go as far as to defend a guilty man rather than to have justice. Antonio is ganged up upon and nothing can be done. Finally, when Antonio must finally make the choice between suffering for himself and family due to poverty, or risk being caught and thrown in jail, Antonio is left so void of faith that he turns to crime. In this way, as Antonio’s hope for finding the bike decreases, so does his faith in the community and government.
ReplyDelete