Review of Shoe Shine Jasper (1947) by Bradley B — 15 May 2009
A neorealist masterpiece, Shoeshine has De Sica's fingerprint all over it. It's a beautiful story of two boys in postwar Italy whose friendship is all they each really have and their trip together to a juvenile prison for a crime they were duped into participating in.
The relationship between these two - the love, the betrayal, the dramatic final showdown - is astonishing to watch, especially considering these boys were never actors before this film. You truly feel the pain that these boys are enduring as they try relentlessly to convince the adults they are innocent.
It is much like the plight of the father in The Bicycle Thief but in children. Shoeshine is a wonderful, classic Italian film that I highly recommend for anyone interested in Italian Cinema.
This review of Shoe Shine Jasper (1947) was written by Bradley B on 15 May 2009.
Shoe Shine Jasper has generally received very positive reviews.
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