- Host: If you ever have any doubt about the power of movies to effect change in the world, to interact and fortify the soul, then study the example of neo-realism. So, what is neo-realism? Was it a genre? Was it a style? Was it a set of rules? More than anything else, it was a response to a terrible moment in Italy's history. The neo-realists had to communicate to the world everything their country had gone through. They needed to dissolve the barrier between documentary and fiction, and in the process they permanently changed the rules of movie making. All together, these movies mounted to a prayer, that the rest of the world look closely to the Italian people their sense of humanity. That's why they had to be truthful - there was no choice.