Take him to see yesterday's dogs - Umberto D.

Italian Neorealism - tough to watch when one is no longer clinically depressed. But the quality of the cinematography, the acting which seems to me from my largely untrained and ill-informed perspective to be of superior quality to most of what was coming out of Hollywood at the same time make these films compelling.

Lawerence Russell provides a thorough synopsis for anyone interested.

Umberto Domenico Ferrari. Umberto D. a retired pensioner who is forced to contemplate begging and suicide to escape financial hardships.

Cinematography:

Showing the sweat on Umberto's brow while the landlady is singing entertaining her friends.

Showing the horizontal blind shadows across Umberto and the maid.

The ants (formica) and the fire.

The dog extermination chamber.

Not being able to bring himself to beg, instead having the dog do so.

The cake remains uneaten.

The three sets of locks on the doors - the landlady named "Olga" - a clear reference to Germany.

Maria Pia Casilio had a great quote about her sudden rise to stardom after her first movie role in Umberto D. at the age of 15, "They called me Parsley because I was everywhere". De Sica put her in most of his films after Umberto D. On the Criterion Collection DVD, there is a short interview with her which was edited so that it is only her telling her story.