Rossellini's nightmarish portrait of Berlin in the immediate aftermath of WWII   follows a 12-year-old boy whose family is struggling to survive. His father is   fatally ill, his brother is a former Nazi soldier in hiding, and his sister      has turned to prostitution. In this bleak, unforgiving world, the boy easily   loses what little balance he has when he falls under the influence of a Nazi   propagandist, leading to tragedy. A neo-realist classic, employing             non-professional actors and a deep feel for the hopelessness of the time and     place. "...a seminal psycho-visual assault, shutting the door on the           traditional film-audience relationship and creating a space of unresolved      uncertainty in its raw-edged immediacy" (Tina Marie Camilleri, Senses of    Roberto Rossellini---Italy/West Germany/France---1947---75 mins.