Five Modern Films Inspired by Italian Neorealism

As one of the most important movements in cinematic history, the influence of Italian Neorealism rippled across the industry for decades, with key films by its founding figures becoming inimitable classics and seminal masterpieces.

Echoing the country’s societal and cultural changes during World War II and the post-war years, filmmakers sought to present audiences with relevant, socially conscious and thematically resonant stories, prioritizing authenticity to evoke a sentiment that was spreading across Italy at an increasing pace.

By highlighting the everyday lives of the average citizen, amateur actors and location shooting contributed not only to the aesthetic but also to the mindset that would come to define neorealism. The best examples may reflect a certain moment in history, but the films themselves have become timeless.

The legacy of the greatest names in European cinema has not only revolutionized European cinema, it has had a lasting impact that has been felt for generations. Without Alberto Lattuada, Giuseppe De Santis, Luchino Visconti, Roberto Rossellini, Vittorio De Sica and the other titans, this art form would look very different today.

The DNA of Italian neorealism eventually spread to America and greatly influenced the era of “New Hollywood,” where another group of auteurs rose to prominence by upending established norms and telling stories on screen that spoke directly to an audience that lived them.

Even today, films are regularly made that perpetuate the spirit of neorealism and explain why it has played such a vital role in the ongoing evolution of cinema. The following five must-sees are for anyone who is enamored with the movement and wants to delve deeper into their obsession.

Five films evocative of Italian neorealism:

5. The sound of metal (Darius Marder, 2019)

At first glance, a film about a heavy metal drummer dealing with the effects of hearing loss doesn’t have many similarities to Italian neorealism, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some.

Co-writer and director Darius Marder’s background as a documentarian grounds the film in authenticity, as the filmmaker uses non-professional actors and members of the deaf community in a way that is reminiscent of the way the great neorealists used real people to illuminate their tangible sense of reality.

Think of it as a spiritual successor to Bicycle Thieves, both of which focus on the devastating effects of losing prosperity. In the neorealist classic, it’s about the loss of a bicycle, while in The sound of metalIt’s Ruben Stone, played by Riz Ahmed, who finds himself helpless as his livelihood slips away from him.

4. Mountain without trees (So ​​Yong Kim, 2008)

One of the hallmarks of neorealism was the desire to leave the escapism of cinema at the door and focus on concrete, relevant stories and characters that transcend cultural and national barriers to delve into issues affecting humanity around the world.

In this regard, writer and director So Young Kim Mountain without trees has those bases well and truly covered. The story follows two young sisters taken in by their aunt when the mother goes looking for their father, and they soon discover that their best chance at thriving is to take charge of their own lives in a social environment that has repeatedly left them neglected.

Narratively and thematically, Mountain without trees addresses many of the motifs and undercurrents inherent in the Italian neorealist movement, telling a story that would have had the same impact if it had been told in exactly the same way half a century earlier on the other side of the world.

3. Rome (Alfonso Cuarón, 2018)

The masters of Italian neorealism could not have comprehended Netflix’s existence, but the streaming service has nonetheless produced the work of a determined auteur who carries many of the same sensibilities.

Alfonso Cuarón’s meditative and self-reflective thinking Rome looks inward to create a semi-autobiographical story of the governess of a middle-class Mexican family, inspired by the filmmaker’s own upbringing, a street-level social parable that wouldn’t have been out of place in post-war Italy.

Steeped in themes of family closeness, the struggle between poverty and privilege, and the divisions caused by class and gender, even RomeThe title of ‘s evokes the Italian capital. But beyond that, it is on the same wavelength, both visually and thematically.

2. Me American (Edward James Olmos, 1992)

One of the main foundations of Italian realism was stories that limited the scope of cinema to ordinary people, often left to the whims of a world that doesn’t care about them, and this is a sentiment true for Blade Runner the star Edward James Olmos Me American.

In a story spanning 30 years and inspired by true events, Me American was filmed almost entirely on location and follows the lives of Hispanic gang members as they evolve from rebellious children into hardened adults shaped for better and worse by their environment.

Films rooted in the personal experiences of the people who made them were intrinsic to the neorealist movement, a sentiment that is on full display in Olmos’s achingly powerful drama that examines a trajectory that has engulfed so many over the years.

1. Unknown pleasures (Jia Zhangke, 2002)

One of the greatest creators of modern cinematic realism, Chinese director Jia Zhangke has built his career largely on capturing the feelings of a generation caught in an endless sea of ​​change that it can either accept or deny.

Unknown pleasures spotlights a trio of disaffected young people who are part of the so-called “birth control” generation, with the film used as a way to highlight the inherent dangers and detachment from reality that can come from too much technology, screen time and outside cultural influences.

Zhangke has even acknowledged the influences that the legends of Italian neorealism have had on his own output, and it’s something he’s embraced across a series of acclaimed features that channel the spirit of the movement in a distinctly localized way that’s entirely his own.

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In Pursuit of the Real: Italian Neorealism_ is at the BFI Southbank from 1 May to 30 June, with selected films also available to watch on the BFI Player.

Rome, Open City is being re-released by the BFI in selected theaters from May 17.

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