What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know a sympathetic lead character in this notoriously downbeat drama is driven to commit a crime at the climax, and the picture ends on a melancholy note, with no sense of justice being done. There is talk about getting drunk, though nothing comes of it. The film is in black and white, and seeing it the way the filmmakers intended requires subtitle reading (though dubbed versions are available). In Roman Catholic circles and Web sites this film is highly regarded (one subplot concerns a charity church service), though the emphasis is on suffering more than salvation.
- Families can talk about the way the main characters behave. Ask kids what they think of Antonio's actions. What about what Bruno goes through?
- Speculate on what happened to the characters after the movie ends. Ask kids if there was ever a low time in their life when they felt as helpless as the people here. How did things turn out?
- Discuss conditions in Europe right after WWII, when rationing, poverty, refugees, and unemployment hit even the victorious countries (like Britain). Compare and contrast that with the war's aftermath in the USA.