The Bicycle Thief - The Plot
Part 2.
The plot continues at a pace showing everyday life at the school, including a jumble sale (to swell school coffers), now, at this point there are no lines of enquiry which might lead to the villain being apprehended, then the thief makes a fatal error of judgement and the plot takes an unexpected turn. So confident that he will never be brought to book the thief attends the jumble sale (which is being held in the Art Room) looking for a bargain to purchase or, as is more likely, to steal.
Whilst the thief is perusing the merchandise on offer, which, it has to be said, is rather sparse (The Props Dept performed very badly in this regard), anyway, an eagle-eyed pupil spots a huge boil plaster on the back neck of a shady looking character and the alarm is raised, the thief, now seeing the jumble sale visit was ill-conceived, exists stage centre with, what appears to be, the entire population of the school, in hot pursuit.
The thief's determined efforts to escape are thwarted when the pursuing posse corners him on a nearby bomb-peck (I bet that's something you've not heard for a while, there were a number of bomb sites still littered around the city, in the 60s (courtesy Adolf Hitler) waiting to be redeveloped.
The posse performs a citizen's arrest, the thief is taken into custody and the stolen bike is recovered.
So, is the movie up there with epics like Gone With The Wind, War and Peace and How The West Was Won? No. But it was well received by the viewing public and representatives of The Parent-Teacher Association when it was premiered on School Speech day November 1964.
Coming soon, Film Production Credits......