Highest-Rated Movies about 'Neorealism'

The Wide Blue Road (1956), The Exiles (1961), Aparajito (1956), The Bicycle Thief (1948), The Nights of Cabiria (1957), Shoeshine (1946), Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958), La Dolce Vita (1960) ... Let's take a look at the ranked list of the best Neorealism movies.

#2. The Exiles (1961)

Storyline: In a Native American neighborhood in Los Angeles, Homer (Homer Nish) lives with his pregnant wife, Yvonne (Yvonne Williams), in a crowded apartment. While Homer goes drinking with his friend Tommy (Tom Reynolds), Yvonne is left at a movie by herself. As the men get progressively drunker, Yvonne realizes her husband is not coming home. Meanwhile, Homer and Tommy wander through the nighttime city, looking for fights, playing poker and discussing their problems as Native Americans.

Plot Keywords: independent film, documentary style, los angeles, urban life, social realism, 1960s, black and white ...

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#3. Aparajito (1956)

Storyline: After living awhile in Benares, 10 year old Apu and his mother move in with her uncle in a small Bengali village. Apu enters a local school, where he does well. By the time he graduates, he has a scholarship to study at a college in Calcutta. So off he goes. His mother is torn by his leaving, and by his growing independence. She loves her son very much and wants him to succeed, but she does not want to be left alone.—John Oswalt <jao@jao.com>

Plot Keywords: india, black and white, drama, coming of age, family, poverty, rural life ...

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#5. The Nights of Cabiria (1957)

Storyline: Rome, 1957. A woman, Cabiria, is robbed and left to drown by her boyfriend, Giorgio. Rescued, she resumes her life and tries her best to find happiness in a cynical world. Even when she thinks her struggles are over and she has found happiness and contentment, things may not be what they seem.

Plot Keywords: italian cinema, 1950s, prostitute, social outcast, humanity, hope, redemption ...

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#6. Shoeshine (1946)

Storyline: At a track near Rome, shoeshine boys are watching horses run. Two of them, the orphan Pasquale and his younger friend Giuseppe, are riding. The pair have been saving to buy their own horse. They meet Attilio, Giuse's much-older brother, and his shady friend at a boat on the Tiber. In return for a commission, the boys agree to deliver black-market goods to a fortuneteller. Once the woman has paid, Attilio's gang suddenly arrives, pretending to be cops, to shake the woman down. With a payoff from Attilio, the boys are able to make the final payment and stable their horse in Trastevere over the river. The fortuneteller identifies Pasqua and Giuse. Held at an overcrowded boys' prison, they are separated. Giuse falls under the influence of an older lad in his cell, Arcangeli. During interrogation, Pasqua is tricked into betraying Giuse's brother to the police. With their trial still in the future, the two friends are driven further apart.—David Carless

Plot Keywords: italian cinema, post-war, poverty, children, friendship, tragedy, social criticism ...

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#7. Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958)

Storyline: Caught red-handed for a crime he swears he didn't commit, the hopeful criminal mastermind and--for now--small-time thief, Cosimo, entrusts the square-jawed boxer, Peppe, with the plan for a seemingly fail-proof pawnshop heist on the quiet Madonna Street. However, as the news of this lucrative job spreads like wildfire, instead, it's Cosimo's band of maladroit petty criminals--including a destitute photographer with fatherly obligations--who will take action for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But, will things work as planned?—Nick Riganas

Plot Keywords: comedy, crime, italian cinema, black comedy, heist, classic, farce ...

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#8. La Dolce Vita (1960)

Storyline: Journalist and man-about-town Marcello struggles to find his place in the world, torn between the allure of Rome's elite social scene and the stifling domesticity offered by his girlfriend, all the while searching for a way to become a serious writer.

Plot Keywords: italian cinema, classic film, 1960s, high society, journalist, celebrity culture, existentialism ...

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#9. The Conformist (1970)

Storyline: This story opens in 1938 in Rome, where Marcello has just taken a job working for Mussollini and is courting a beautiful young woman who will make him even more of a conformist. Marcello is going to Paris on his honeymoon and his bosses have an assignment for him there. Look up an old professor who fled Italy when the fascists came into power. At the border of Italy and France, where Marcello and his bride have to change trains, his bosses give him a gun with a silencer. In a flashback to 1917, we learn why sex and violence are linked in Marcello's mind.

Plot Keywords: political thriller, psychological analysis, fascism, moral dilemma, identity crisis, betrayal, power ...

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#10. La Strada (1954)

Storyline: Sad story of a waif, Gelsomina, who is sold by her mother to Zampano for 10,000 lire and a few kilos of food. Zampano is a traveling showman who exhibits feats of strength by breaking a chain wrapped around his chest. He performs in village squares and then passes the hat for whatever the normally small crowd is prepared to give. He teaches Gelsomina a drum roll as part of his introduction. He doesn't treat her well and when she tries to run away, he beats her. They eventually join a small traveling circus where they meet a tight-rope walker who convinces Gelsomina to question her choices.

Plot Keywords: drama, romance, tragedy, italian cinema, circus, underclass, loneliness ...

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#11. The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1978)

Storyline: The life inside a farm in Italy at the end of the 19th century. Many poor country families live there, and the owner pays them by their productivity. One of the families has a very clever child. They decide to send him to school instead of make him help them, although this represents a great sacrifice. The boy has to wake up very early and walk several miles to get to the school. One day the boy's shoes break when returning home, but they do not have money to buy another pair. What can they do?—Michel Rudoy <mdrc@hp9000a1.uam.mx>

Plot Keywords: drama, rural life, italian cinema, poverty, family, faith, tradition ...

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#12. Germany Year Zero (1948)

Storyline: Edmund, a young boy who lives in war-devastated Germany after the Second World War, must do all kinds of work to help his family get food and survive. One day he meets one of his former teachers and hopes to get support from him, but this man's ideas don't lead Edmund into a clearer or safer way of living.—Hugo <transit@cam.org>

Plot Keywords: child's perspective, struggle for survival, moral dilemma, social criticism, black and white, war trauma, berlin ...

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#13. L'Eclisse (1962)

Storyline: In the suburbs of Rome, the translator Vittoria breaks her engagement with her boyfriend, the writer Ricardo, after a troubled night. Vittoria goes downtown to meet her mother, who is addicted to the stock market, and she meets the broker Piero on a day of crash. The materialist Piero and the absent Vittoria begin a monosyllabic relationship.

Plot Keywords: italian cinema, french cinema, romance, alienation, existentialism, cold war era, black and white ...

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#14. L'Avventura (1960)

Storyline: A group of rich Italians head out on a yachting trip to a deserted volcanic island in the Mediterranean. When they are about to leave the island, they find Anna, the main character up to this point, has gone missing. Sandro, Anna's boyfriend, and Claudia, Anna's friend, try without success to find her. While looking for the missing friend, Claudia and Sandro develop an attraction for each other. When they get back to land, they continue the search with no success. Sandro and Claudia proceed to become lovers, and all but forget about the missing Anna.

Plot Keywords: drama, romance, mystery, art film, italian cinema, existentialism, psychological ...

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#15. Bellissima (1951)

Storyline: Film director Blasetti is looking for a little girl for his new movie. Along with other mothers, Maddelena takes her daugther to Cinecittà, hoping she'll be selected and become a star. She is ready to sacrifice anything for little Maria, even if her husband would prefer they save their little money for the rent, instead of paying teachers, hairdressers or bribes for her illusions.—Yepok

Plot Keywords: drama, italian cinema, motherhood, talent show, poverty, dreams, social criticism ...

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