Bicycle Thieves Typography


Screen Capture from Bicycle Thieves

Screen Capture from Bicycle Thieves

Screen Capture from Bicycle Thieves

Screen Capture from Bicycle Thieves

Screen Capture from Bicycle Thieves

Screen Capture from Bicycle Thieves

The typography in the title sequence and credits of the 1948 Italian film Bicycle Thieves caught my attention. It caused me to pause the film and linger a little while longer. The condensed sans looks like a hand-made version of Plak designed by Paul Renner. In 2018, designers at Monotype revived the typeface and expanded the family. I found some lookalikes of the script, but nothing quite like the original. Additionally, I found an advertisement (below) for the film on a website of posters from Budapest.

Neue Plak, a revived version of Renner’s Plak typeface. Source: Monotype

Neue Plak, a revived version of Renner’s Plak typeface. Source: Monotype

Source: Budapest Poster Gallery

Source: Budapest Poster Gallery