Influence
Wang Xiaoshuai's 2001 film Beijing Bicycle explores similar themes of poverty and alienation, set in late 20th-century Beijing. Such similarities, and the bicycle theft driving the plot, have led critics to see parallels in the films. The relationship between Bruno and Antonio displays the strong bond between a father and his son.
Bicycle Thieves also influenced several Indian films. It was cited as an influence on several early Indian art films, including Bimal Roy's Do Bigha Zamin (Two Acres of Land, 1953) and Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali (1955). Indian director Anurag Kashyap cites this film as his inspiration for becoming a director. At least one critic cited it as an influence on Zeze Gamboa's Angolan film O Heroi (The Hero, 2004), in which a war veteran's prosthetic leg is stolen.
Filmmakers from the Iranian New Wave such as Dariush Mehrjui and Jafar Panahi have cited the film as an important influence on their work.
The film was also parodied in the 1989 film The Icicle Thief.
The film was also on TCM's top 15 most influential films list.
It was ranked #4 in Empire magazines "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema" in 2010.
Read more about this topic: Bicycle Thieves
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—Korean proverb, quoted in Alan L. Mackay, The Harvest of a Quiet Eye (1977)
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)