neorealism

American  

[nee-oh-ree-uh-liz-uhm] / ˌni oʊˈri əˌlɪz əm /

noun

1. (sometimes initial capital letter) any of various movements in literature, art, etc., that are considered as a return to a more realistic style.

2. a philosophy developed chiefly by 20th-century American philosophers, including Montague and Santayana, characterized by a presentationist epistemology and by the assertion of the real status of universals.

3. Movies. a style of filming prominent in Italy after World War II, characterized by a concern for social issues and often shot on location with untrained actors.

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neorealism British  

/ ˌniːəʊˈriːəlɪzəm /

noun

1. films a movement to depict directly the poor in society: originating in postwar Italy

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Other Word Forms

• neorealist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of neorealism

First recorded in 1915–20; neo- + realism

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

neorealism

They borrowed from French New Wave, Italian neorealism and Brazil’s Cinema Novo to offer an unblinkered look at everyday Black life, often filming in Watts and other Black neighborhoods in and around Los Angeles.

From New York Times ● Feb. 6, 2024

Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” an exuberant, sometimes exhaustingly clever piece of Mattelian neorealism, opens with an extended, heavily trailer-spoiled homage to “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2023

Grittily poetic works such as Roberto Rossellini’s “Rome, Open City” and Vittorio De Sica’s “Bicycle Thieves” were masterpieces of neorealism that turned themes of deprivation and desperation into high art.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 16, 2023

The second season does all that while incorporates the lovely longing intrinsic to Italian neorealism; it drifted, but never stalled.

From Salon ● May 23, 2021

One reason Italian neorealism caught on worldwide was because it was cheap to make.

From The Guardian ● May 6, 2020