NEOREALISM

 The Neorealism movement was an international film movement started in Italy. It was also known as the Golden Age of Italian Cinema.

This movement in film was most often characterized by stories set amongst poor characters and setting, filmed on location, and usually utilizing non-professional actors.

Neorealism films often centered their stories around the harsh impoverished conditions of post WWII Italy. They often took place and were shot in run down, poor cities, to add to the effect.

The movement was used as a sort of commentary on the cultural and social progress in the world.

Despite its cultural impact and popularity, the movement began to decline in the 1950s. Liberal and socialist parties were having a hard time presenting their message. Levels of income were gradually starting to rise and the first positive effects of the Italian economic miracle period began to show. As a consequence, most Italians favored the optimism shown in many American movies of the time. The vision of the existing poverty and despair, presented by the neorealist films, was demoralizing a nation anxious for prosperity and change. The views of the postwar Italian government of the time were also far from positive, and the remark of Giulio Andreotti, who was then a vice-minister in the De Gasperi cabinet, characterized the official view of the movement: Neorealism is "dirty laundry that shouldn't be washed and hung to dry in the open."

Some notable directors of the era include Roberto Rosselini, Vittorio De Sica, Cesare Zavattini, Luchino Visconti, Guiseppe de Santis.