Umberto D. (1952)

To me, de Sica’s best film that I’ve seen to date. I personally find it to be a more compelling story than Bicycle Thieves. It is an utterly devastating film that only cascades upon itself, capturing an old man financially trapped in a corner. Umberto D. is a portraiture of human desperation and suffering within urban society. The film is an unraveling of a tragic tale: a tale of the old pensioner who is reduced to begging in the street and letting go of his most treasured possessions. His room becomes more disheveled, more torn down as Umberto’s stripped further of his dignity. Yet, even in times of total despair, there are moments of levity that accurately reflect the human experience.