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Miracle in Milan (1951) Vittorio De Sica
De Sica does it again. This is the third De Sica film that I've watched thus far (the other two being "The Bicycle Thief" and "The Children Are Watching"), and so far he has never, for a moment, let me down. Once I go through his entire canon of work, I might just find him to be the most consistent director ever.
"Miracle in Milan" follows the life of a baby, who was found in a cabbage patch by an old widow. She dies when he is a child, and he ends up growing into a sort of savior for the homeless. When the capitalistic businessmen come in to force the homeless off of their little plot of land, he becomes a bit of a Napoleon (or Moses), and fights them off.
The ghost of his dead mother comes down, and gives him a magical dove. The dove will give holder of it all that he/she wishes for. Many hilarious antics ensue, when he uses that power against the capitalists, and the policemen.
For a film in the fifties, it really pushed the envelope with the special effects. Throughout, we notice jump cuts, double exposures, and even some sequences that seem like they were blue screened. De Sica seemed to borrow from great filmmakers like Stroheim, Chaplin and even Buster Keaton. A really heartwarming film, that had me wearing a perpetual grin for it's entire duration.
"Miracle in Milan" walked away with the Grand Prize of the Cannes Film festival, and the Best Foreign Language Film from the New York Film Critics Circle.
I urge all film lovers to seek out all of Vittorio De Sica's masterpieces.
De Sica does it again. This is the third De Sica film that I've watched thus far (the other two being "The Bicycle Thief" and "The Children Are Watching"), and so far he has never, for a moment, let me down. Once I go through his entire canon of work, I might just find him to be the most consistent director ever.
"Miracle in Milan" follows the life of a baby, who was found in a cabbage patch by an old widow. She dies when he is a child, and he ends up growing into a sort of savior for the homeless. When the capitalistic businessmen come in to force the homeless off of their little plot of land, he becomes a bit of a Napoleon (or Moses), and fights them off.
The ghost of his dead mother comes down, and gives him a magical dove. The dove will give holder of it all that he/she wishes for. Many hilarious antics ensue, when he uses that power against the capitalists, and the policemen.
For a film in the fifties, it really pushed the envelope with the special effects. Throughout, we notice jump cuts, double exposures, and even some sequences that seem like they were blue screened. De Sica seemed to borrow from great filmmakers like Stroheim, Chaplin and even Buster Keaton. A really heartwarming film, that had me wearing a perpetual grin for it's entire duration.
"Miracle in Milan" walked away with the Grand Prize of the Cannes Film festival, and the Best Foreign Language Film from the New York Film Critics Circle.
I urge all film lovers to seek out all of Vittorio De Sica's masterpieces.
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"I know a man who was born with his heart on the outside. Every man's worst fear, he also had heavy hands. he couldn't touch his lovers face, he couldn't hold a baby." - Buck 65
"I know a man who was born with his heart on the outside. Every man's worst fear, he also had heavy hands. he couldn't touch his lovers face, he couldn't hold a baby." - Buck 65
