neorealistic
Raw, documentary-style aesthetic
Neorealistic describes art, film, or literature that follows the principles of neorealism—a movement emphasizing ordinary people, everyday settings, and social conditions rather than glamour or escapism.
The term most often applies to Italian cinema of the 1940s and 50s, which used non-professional actors and location shooting to depict postwar life: The film's neorealistic style captured the struggles of working-class Romans.
In original state
- unpolishedLacking finish or refinement
- grittyCoarse or courageous
- grainyRough with particles
- starkSevere and unadorned
unflinching · unvarnished · documentary · observational · naturalistic · unstaged · improvised · handheld
Severe lack of resources
- working classManual laborers collectively
- unemploymentBeing without paid work
- social injusticeUnfair treatment by institutions
- survivalRemaining alive against odds
dignity · human struggle · urban decay · displacement · everyday life · class struggle · alienation · moral ambiguity
Resembling the real thing
- naturalismWorldview excluding the supernatural
- authenticityQuality of being genuine
- truthfulnessHabit of not lying
- believabilityCapacity to seem true
plausibility · fidelity · mimesis · slice of life · unscripted · candid · genuine · unfeigned
- location shootingFilming at real places
- long takesUnbroken filmed sequences
- natural lightingLight from natural sources
- documentary styleRealistic, unscripted filmmaking method
auteur · cinematography · screenplay · film theory · working class · everyday life
raw
In original state
- unpolishedLacking finish or refinement
- grittyCoarse or courageous
- grainyRough with particles
stark · unflinching · unvarnished · documentary · observational · naturalistic · unstaged · improvised · handheld · ambient sound
poverty
Severe lack of resources
- working classManual laborers collectively
- unemploymentBeing without paid work
- social injusticeUnfair treatment by institutions
survival · dignity · human struggle · urban decay · displacement · everyday life · class struggle · alienation · moral ambiguity · disillusionment
lifelike
Resembling the real thing
- naturalismWorldview excluding the supernatural
- authenticityQuality of being genuine
- truthfulnessHabit of not lying
believability · plausibility · fidelity · mimesis · slice of life · unscripted · candid · genuine · unfeigned · credible
Federico Fellini
- location shootingFilming at real places
- long takesUnbroken filmed sequences
- natural lightingLight from natural sources
documentary style · auteur · cinematography · screenplay · film theory · working class · everyday life
neorealisticfantastical
Extravagantly unreal or imaginary
Hollywood · escapist · expressionistic · stylized · surrealistic
neorealisticescapist
Seeker of distraction
fantastical · idealized · romanticized · utopian · mythological
neorealisticlavish
Abundant beyond necessity
glossy · spectacular · star-studded · blockbuster · Technicolor