Portraying the plight of the elderly dispossessed in an acknowledged masterpiece of the neorealist style, De Sica's "Umberto D." may surpass his own "Bicycle Thieves" for heartbreaking poignancy. What in less skillful hands could have been syrupy melodrama becomes instead a wrenchingly honest tale about a forgotten human being, searching in vain for some shred of human kindness. Half a century later, "Umberto D." remains a monumental achievement of simple, eloquent storytelling.