Before sleeping, I was reading a thread on Reddit on old movies. Someone suggested Bicycle Thieves (Italian: Ladri di biciclette) of Vittorio De Sica.
It is a textbook and well known example of Italian neorealism, and considered one of the masterpieces of Italian cinema.
We have watched this movie back in college for our intermediate Italian class. It was quite a depressing film set in post-WWII about the working family man Antonio Ricci, his adorable son Bruno, and their search of their missing bicycle around Rome, which he needs for work.
I have rewatched it before going to Rome, and even visited Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II on our third day just to see the area. I’ve had a look again at the movie last night and got goosebumps exactly at this point on YouTube.
I realized we had been EXACTLY where this scene is at!
My goosebumps just won’t quit.
I immediately recognized the arches to the right, as well as the street. I had a quick look at my photos at the corner of Via Machiavelli, and then checked the street view of Google Maps. The metal railing I was sitting at was where those three workers were sitting by the gutter in the film, just before the father and son passed them.
I almost cried just now. I have loved, LOVED this movie for so long. It is not exactly a feel good movie, but somehow brings me back to the time I had been learning the language.
I recall asking Mon to accompany me to Via Machiavelli as I’ve seen it on the map (because I was once an IR student). There was a certain draw to me to visit this exact spot, and just have a photo of the ‘Via Machiavelli’ street sign.
We just entered Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II that time, with no specific area to visit (unlike how purposefully aware I was to recreate shots of Audrey Hepburn from Roman Holiday at the Spanish Steps and Piazza Barberini).
So just imagine my surprise when it dawned on me that I have accidentally visited the exact area where Ladri di biciclette was shot. It was such a happy moment for me, despite being a couple of months late!
Oh, Roma. You are still surprising me.