Neorealism/Realism/Reality

Neorealism is a way of representing reality. Realism is the state of experience how things appear to us. Neorealism tries to predict more than one meaning of reality and that to be deciphered which makes it interesting. It is not having certain fixed rules of presenting reality, neither it exist in pure state. It can be combined with other aesthetic tendencies. It connects small disconnected parts lasting for very short time that produces purely optical illusion among the viewer, which makes them to become aware of their senses by using sound, image, light etc.

Italian Neorealism was introduced after the World War 2. The neorealist style was developed by a circle of film critics that revolved around the magazine Cinema, including Luchino Visconti, Gianni Puccini, Cesare Zavattini, Giuseppe De Santis and Pietro Ingrao.

STORYLINE

Neorealism was a sign of cultural change and social progress in Italy. An emphasis on the value of ordinary people - in particular the poor. The topic involves the idea of what it is like to live among the poor and the lower working class. The focus is on a simple social order of survival in rural, everyday life.

LOCATIONThe use of actual locations, especially city exteriors, rather than studio sets. It opened the door to filming on location rather than in a studio, it demonstrated that you could make great films inexpensively with your own country’s landscape and people without lavish sets natural sets instead of using artificial sets. Documentary-like visual style with an avoidance of special effects or unnatural lighting

ACTING It has non-professional actors, children, capable of seeing and showing rather than acting. Screenwriting featured conversational, everyday speech rather than literary or over-dramatic dialogue.

CHARACTERSIt has characters related to daily life. It have emotions that looks similar from where it is inspired from, film must never add anything to the existing character or reality.

CAMERA SHOTSImages, perceptions, and actions goes in such a disturbance because of introduction of a new elements in the scene which stops human mind going to think or taking out some conclusion. Lead character are not always followed by camera, instead of that it also focuses on other element going side by side in the scene. Camera movements take place less and less frequently, tracking shots slow, low camera is always fixed, frontal or at an unchanging angle.

EDITINGDuring editing shots other than lead character or subject are not deleted. There are long shots of character reaching to its destination they kept as an essential part and vital to build scenes more close to reality.

COMPARISON -BICYCLE THIEFAND PATHER PANCHALISatyajit Ray movies are inspired from Italian movies and have touch of neorealism. Ray’s first movie Pather Panchali is about poor family living in Bengal. The perfect reflection of people living in Indian villages and circumstances they face in terms of climate, food, economic, social. Harihar Roy is unemployed and his family living in very bad condition. Durga and Apu were main character of the movie. The story revolves around their living conditions. Ray influence of neorealism is shown in the style Pather Panchali is made and there are many similarities in terms of storyline, characters, shots, sound image connections, symbols used to predict story to make it more close to reality. Character in the movie like Durga and Apu are influenced by Bruno in De Sica’s Bicycle thief. The same way as wife of Ricci cares, express, understanding the situation, her frustration is somehow like Sarbajaya wife of Harihar Roy.

Ray chooses the same location about which Bibhutibhushan has described in his novel. This results in connecting more to the story and makes it more close to reality. He uses sound image more creatively to present the situation combining results in more impact on viewer. Extra characters in shot which is one of the styles of De Sica that he used in Bicycle thief. This inspires Ray also as they are vital in predicting

reality that can’t be neglected. The shots in Pather Panchali are wide that results in movie of very long duration, but this will engage the viewer to engage to be with character and gives you time to think what he is going to do next instead of editing it very short from one character to other. In Bicycle thief there are very long shot to come more close to reality and camera angle are not changed frequently. De Sica uses a lot of symbols to present an expression or condition of the character. Example – In a scene Maria taking two bucket of water from outside towards her apartment that shows there is shortage of water supply .Ricci is so much engaged and busy regarding his unemployment that he don’t even notice that his wife getting problem in getting two buckets.

Similarly Ray tries to express feeling through some symbols that has to be decoded to understand the real essence of his films. In Pather Panchali also he tries to do it by showing tress, train, etc. In one of scene, Apu’s sensibility of throwing necklace which is stolen by Durga is to keep that secret from his parents. Instead of using melodramatic things Ray Tries to express the love and care of a brother towards her sister is shown through this act. The style telling a story and movements of reality which makes this movie more like an art form.