Umberto D.
- 1952
- Tous publics
- 1h 29min
NOTE IMDb
8,2/10
30 k
MA NOTE
Un retraité et son chien se battent pour survivre avec sa maigre pension à Rome.Un retraité et son chien se battent pour survivre avec sa maigre pension à Rome.Un retraité et son chien se battent pour survivre avec sa maigre pension à Rome.
- Réalisation
- Scénario
- Casting principal
- Nommé pour 1 Oscar
- 3 victoires et 3 nominations au total
Alberto Albani Barbieri
- L'amico di Antonia
- (non crédité)
De Silva
- Battistini
- (non crédité)
Avis à la une
This movie from director Vittoria de Sica is a heartbreaking story of a destitute pensioner named Umberto Ferrari and his pet dog. The pensioner cannot bring himself to tell anyone of his difficult existence or to ask for help. Set in post-war Italy of the 1940's and 50's, the neo-realist movies of this period with their on-location shooting show the grinding poverty of many people at the time. With this vivid background, we see some very tender moments in the story that illustrate the bond between the man and his dog. We also get a sense of the mood in Rome at the start as police break up a protest by pensioners fighting for a decent income. Other scenes take the viewer into a hospital where patients recite the Rosary from their beds, have lunch at a pasta diner and go home to a walk-up apartment. With Umberto pitted against his cold-hearted landlady, we see how his life is made almost unbearable. In fact, the movie is very sensitive in its depiction of this man, one of many elderly people who were by themselves with little money. In this case, the elderly man, played by Carlo Battista, has a reason for living because of his canine companion. De Sica used amateur actors and Battista was a university professor in Florence who has captured the essence of his character. De Sica made his mark as the foremost director of the neo-realist school of cinema and as an accomplished character actor in his own right. I noticed the dedication to Umberto DeSica, who was apparently his father. In this film, DeSica has certainly produced an outstanding work of art about the plight of one aged citizen in a particular time and place. Thanks to TCM for its recent showing this neo-realist classic.
A sad but at the same time, touching and meaningful, movie like few I have seen, I came across this gem in the cable today. But instead other movies which use all kind of possible gestures to invoke the tears of the public, this movie is a real show of humanity like I've hardly seen before.
Geez, 50 years after, this movie has not dated in its subject of loneliness and aging. In the age of selfishness, a simple display of profound human feelings like this is completely necessary.
Would hope everyone was ready to appreciate this magnificent piece of Human Art. Thanks, Vittorio.
Geez, 50 years after, this movie has not dated in its subject of loneliness and aging. In the age of selfishness, a simple display of profound human feelings like this is completely necessary.
Would hope everyone was ready to appreciate this magnificent piece of Human Art. Thanks, Vittorio.
An elderly retired civil servant in Rome is about to be forced onto the streets due to the loss of his pension, with only his little dog to comfort him. I'm not even a dog lover and this movie STILL got to me. I rented this on video when I was in high school and my mom ended up watching it with me. The ending (which I won't spoil for those who haven't seen it yet) is the only time I can remember when we have both been crying at the same time during a movie. This is truly a beautiful film and I have to see again soon.
Enough has been said about this wonderful movie already and I'm not going to repeat what others have written at length except to say that I've just come to this film totally unprepared and now feel emotionally shattered. I've watched it as the 44th movie in a collection of 50 so-called art-house films in a DVD collection from Criterion. These allegedly "essential" movies are presented alphabetically and that is how I've viewed them, so it's taken me quite some time to get to the letter U. If I'd started with this De Sica classic I may have felt disinclined to watch any of the others!
Indeed, in a lifetime of over 50 years of watching movies - everything from the truly execrable to the totally inspirational - this is the first and only film I've ever sought to review on this site. I know there are a few detractors out there on the message-boards who cannot see beyond their own cynicism, but I pity them. This movie remains timeless, as potent as when it was made in 1952. You don't have to be old, you don't have to be a dog-lover (although it helps), and you certainly don't have to be a fan of neo-realist Italian cinema. All you have to be is a good human being. Watching this movie is a sort of 'humanity test' and thankfully most of the reviewers here have passed it.
I'm sorry, "Cinema Paradiso", you've just been relegated to Second Best Foreign Film.
Indeed, in a lifetime of over 50 years of watching movies - everything from the truly execrable to the totally inspirational - this is the first and only film I've ever sought to review on this site. I know there are a few detractors out there on the message-boards who cannot see beyond their own cynicism, but I pity them. This movie remains timeless, as potent as when it was made in 1952. You don't have to be old, you don't have to be a dog-lover (although it helps), and you certainly don't have to be a fan of neo-realist Italian cinema. All you have to be is a good human being. Watching this movie is a sort of 'humanity test' and thankfully most of the reviewers here have passed it.
I'm sorry, "Cinema Paradiso", you've just been relegated to Second Best Foreign Film.
10kwongers
Vittorio DeSica's wonderful "Umberto D" was one of the last films of the Italian neo-realism movement and by far its best one. It is also one of my favorite movies ever. The movie's premise is simple: it is a slice of the life of a poor lonely pensioner, Umberto. Throughout the movie, we see Umberto struggle to find money to pay rent to his horrible landlady, love his dog Flike, and deal with the loneliness and disillusionment of the postwar era.
"Umberto D" is a character-driven film. It works very well because of its sharp observations on loneliness and poignant gestures. The gestures evoke powerful feelings without necessitating dialogue. Many of the scenes, even the ones that do not necessarily advance the plot, are hypnotically beautiful in their simplicity. Take, for example, a beautiful scene where Umberto finally needs to beg for money but cannot physically bring himself to do it. He extends his palm up, but when a passer-by stops to give him money, Umberto quickly flips his hand over, as if testing for rain. The film is full of these small gestures that quietly emphasize the desperate loneliness and poignancy of Umberto's situation.
The acting in this film is absolutely superb. Carlo Battisti, despite having never acted before, is wonderful as the titular character; his face is a fascinating blend of stubborn dignity and weariness of life. Maria Pia-Casilio, who plays the maid, is just as good as evoking life's loneliness and quiet desperation. The supporting cast is also very strong.
One of the very few criticisms I have heard of this film is that it is too sentimental and borderline sappy. While some scenes with Umberto and his dog Flike are sentimental, never is it "too" sentimental. DeSica knows how far he can push his film without making it sappy, and he wisely shows it as it is. Nothing feels forced. The subject material itself and the simplicity in which it is presented will bring tears. (If you don't cry in this movie, you need to have your heart professionally de-thawed.) But "Umberto D" is never dumbed down into sappiness and clichéd corniness. It is a very powerful film.
"Umberto D" is the masterpiece of the Italian neo-realist era. It's a rather bleak and very realistic movie, but it makes some fascinating commentary on the human condition, specifically the loneliness we face. Highly, highly recommended. 10/10.
"Umberto D" is a character-driven film. It works very well because of its sharp observations on loneliness and poignant gestures. The gestures evoke powerful feelings without necessitating dialogue. Many of the scenes, even the ones that do not necessarily advance the plot, are hypnotically beautiful in their simplicity. Take, for example, a beautiful scene where Umberto finally needs to beg for money but cannot physically bring himself to do it. He extends his palm up, but when a passer-by stops to give him money, Umberto quickly flips his hand over, as if testing for rain. The film is full of these small gestures that quietly emphasize the desperate loneliness and poignancy of Umberto's situation.
The acting in this film is absolutely superb. Carlo Battisti, despite having never acted before, is wonderful as the titular character; his face is a fascinating blend of stubborn dignity and weariness of life. Maria Pia-Casilio, who plays the maid, is just as good as evoking life's loneliness and quiet desperation. The supporting cast is also very strong.
One of the very few criticisms I have heard of this film is that it is too sentimental and borderline sappy. While some scenes with Umberto and his dog Flike are sentimental, never is it "too" sentimental. DeSica knows how far he can push his film without making it sappy, and he wisely shows it as it is. Nothing feels forced. The subject material itself and the simplicity in which it is presented will bring tears. (If you don't cry in this movie, you need to have your heart professionally de-thawed.) But "Umberto D" is never dumbed down into sappiness and clichéd corniness. It is a very powerful film.
"Umberto D" is the masterpiece of the Italian neo-realist era. It's a rather bleak and very realistic movie, but it makes some fascinating commentary on the human condition, specifically the loneliness we face. Highly, highly recommended. 10/10.
Le saviez-vous
- AnecdotesThis is the first and only film for non-actor Carlo Battisti, who plays the leading role in the film. His real occupation was that of a Professor of Linguistics at the Università degli Studi di Firenze.
- GaffesNear the beginning when he is eating with the other old men he hands the plates of everyone near to him to the waitress. In the next shot everyone has plates in front of them again.
- Citations
Maria, la servetta: What's the matter, Mr. Umberto?
Umberto Domenico Ferrari: I'm tired.
Maria, la servetta: Of her?
Umberto Domenico Ferrari: it's a little of everything.
- ConnexionsEdited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: La monnaie de l'absolu (1999)
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Détails
Box-office
- Montant brut aux États-Unis et au Canada
- 71 816 $US
- Montant brut mondial
- 72 433 $US
- Durée1 heure 29 minutes
- Couleur
- Rapport de forme
- 1.37 : 1
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By what name was Umberto D. (1952) officially released in India in English?
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