‘Bicycle Thieves’ Reborn as a Modern Immigrant Tale

“Anywhere Anytime” is, quite overtly and unapologetically, a re-tread of the beloved classic “Bicycle Thieves.” However, in modernizing Vittorio De Sica’s neorealist landmark, Iranian-born director Milad Tangshir imbues his version with both contemporary cultural nuances and a unique perspective as an immigrant to Italy, resulting in a remake that stands apart.

The film follows Issa (Ibrahima Sambou), an undocumented Senegalese immigrant, who works odd jobs in Turin while evading the watchful eye of the police, just in case. When the pressure of evading the law (or paying mounting fines) becomes too great for Issa’s boss, he lets the diligent youngster go from his low-paying flea-market job, leaving him to the mercy of the gig economy.

Over-the-table work is hard to come by, given his legal status, but friend and fellow immigrant Mario (Moussa Dicko Diango) sets him up with a food delivery app and even lends Issa his smartphone. The only problem is Issa doesn’t have a bicycle, and must haggle just to get one second-hand — one of just several indignities wrought upon him. Following De Sica’s original, Issa’s bike is eventually stolen, leaving him with few options but to try to track it down.

While the film’s broad premise resembles “Bicycle Thieves,” its cultural specifics ensure that the film plays out differently. For one thing, Issa can’t involve the police in his search, for fears that he might be deported. For another, there are linguistic and racial barriers at every turn. Although he knows Italian, he’s much more comfortable speaking Wolof, and the local population has a tendency to view him with suspicion.

These existing tensions also impact the way the film plays out compared to De Sica’s original — departures that, while small, seem to be entirely Tangshir’s point. Italy and its problems have changed since 1948, as has the face of its population. “Anywhere Anytime” seeks to inject these changes into a broadly familiar cultural verbiage, though it’s hardly didactic about its approach. Issa, for instance, certainly acts out of desperation, the way “Bicycle Thieves” protagonist Antonio Ricci (Lamberto Maggiorani) once did, but the intended response to Issa isn’t just pity, but understanding. He acts equally out of anger and frustration, given his circumstances, and he makes morally questionable decisions along the way.

With quiet, lengthy stretches interspersed with popular African and Middle Eastern songs, “Anywhere Anytime” creates a soundtrack to immigrant labor, with space for thought, anxiety and reflection broken up by vivid cultural memories. This is perhaps the movie’s most unique aesthetic flourish, though perhaps its only notable one. It’s never ugly to look at — Giuseppe Maio’s cinematography makes Turin feel as vivid and alive as any of the movie’s characters — though it doesn’t necessarily innovate beyond this acoustic showcase, the way “Bicycle Thieves” left an impression with its novel naturalism.

This is by no means a necessity for any film, though it does render “Anywhere Anytime” more of a pastiche than an analytical remix. However, even as an homage with a modern software update, it works just fine. Cinematographer Giuseppe Maio’s night scenes are bathed in bokeh and gentle soft-focus, creating a sense of living, breathing texture around the characters (this is the biggest and most poetic visual departure from “Bicycle Thieves” and its deep-focus photography by Carlo Montuori).

Notably, while “Anywhere Anytime” sticks to the original’s structure, its minor changes ensure that it also departs thematically. Tangshir swaps the original’s father-son dynamic for a romantic subplot, between Issa and fellow refugee Awa (Success Edemakhiota), though theirs is a courtship built on dreams of comfort. Issa’s bike isn’t just an object of economic liberation, allowing him to perform deliveries for a meager salary and tips. It’s also recreational, and allows Issa and Awa to go on intimate rides in the middle of the night, as an escape from their cramped, temporary housing. The film has no qualms about the fact that not only Issa’s desire to work, but his desire to truly live, ought to be reason enough for us to care.