Life is Beautiful (La vita è bella)
An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.
An inspired motion picture masterpiece, Life Is Beautiful was nominated for 7 Academy Awards - winning 3 Oscars including one for Best Actor Roberto Benigni. In this extraordinary tale, Guido (Benigni) - a charming but bumbling waiter who's gifted with a colorful imagination and an irresistible sense of humor - has won the heart of the woman he loves and created a beautiful life for his young family. But then, that life is threatened by World War II...and Guido must rely on those very same strengths to save his beloved wife and son from an unthinkable fate! Honored with an overwhelming level of critical acclaim, this truly exceptional, utterly unique achievement will lift your spirits and capture your heart!
Member Reviews
Tell me about the rabbits - CaptainRhodes
It was a good thing his kid was a little stunned. What, no?
USELESS FACTS:
Roberto Benigni says the title comes from a quote by Leon Trotsky. In exile in Mexico, knowing he was about to be killed by Joseph Stalin's assassins, he saw his wife in the garden and wrote that, in spite of everything, "life is beautiful".
Roberto Benigni's Oscar for best actor marked only the second time that an actor had directed himself in an Academy Award winning performance. The other was Laurence Olivier for Hamlet."This is a simple story... - cathyottawa
....but not an easy one to tell. Like a fable, there is sorrow and like a fable, it's full of wonder and happiness"
These are the opening lines of this wonderful film. Benigni is putting his cards on the table from the start for all those that are going to say he doesn't take the Holocost serioiusly enough in this film.
I hate that critisism, because Benigni doesn't shy away from the horrors of the Holocost - he shows us that when humanity is at it's worst, one man can still shine, and give his son the most beautiful gift - the protection of his innocence.
There is so much cleverness in this script. Benigni uses satire to expose the ridiculousness of the Nazi beliefs. Like Chaplin, or any great comedian, he makes dark subject matter paletable by finding humour in the most unlikely of places. That doesn't mean he's not making a real comment on the Holocost.
I loved the physical comedy Benigni makes look so effortless - he's like a young John Ritter. I loved the way the love story developed between he and his wife in the first half of the film. I loved the heartwrenchingly beautiful way he protected his son from the evils of man.
I just loved this film. You will be crying at the end, but you will have a smile on your face.
Do yourself a favour - watch it in Italian with English subtitles, instead of with English dubbing. To hear "Buon giorno, Principessa! " said any other way - just not the same.Life is Beautiful is beautifully full of life - TheEnd
The movie is set in pre-war Italy where the central character, Guido Orefice (Benigni) has a serendipitous encounter with Dora (whom he calls Princess) when he literally runs into her. It is love at first sight for Guido but Dora requires a few more chance meetings before she falls for the love struck waiter and rides off on a horse with him leaving her wealthy suitor behind. The movie then jumps several years to when Guido and Dora have a young son (about 4 years old) and war has broken out. Guido is Jewish so he and his son, Joshua, are rounded up and sent on a train to a work camp. Dora finds out about this and she asks to go on the train as well. The Nazis allow her although they know that she is not Jewish. Once at the concentration camp Guido and Joshua are separated from Dora. Guido invents an elaborate game to convince Joshua that it is all for fun and that he must follow the rules so that they can accumulate points and win the prize, a real army tank. This distraction allows Joshua to be saved from the gas chambers. The ending is bitter sweet.
Guido is slightly annoying at first but he grows on you just as he grows on “Princess” Dora (Nicoletta Braschi), the object of his affection. The humor is such that if you simply read the script I suspect you would think it vaudevillian shtick but it really does work in the movie. I found myself laughing out loud several times, especially during the scene where Guido impersonates the school inspector just so that he has an another opportunity to meet Dora. Benigni is a wonderful actor and really carries the movie by creating a character, Guido, who’s joy for life is infectious.
Member Reviews
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Tell me about the rabbits - CaptainRhodes
It was a good thing his kid was a little stunned. What, no?
USELESS FACTS:
Roberto Benigni says the title comes from a quote by Leon Trotsky. In exile in Mexico, knowing he was about to be killed by Joseph Stalin's assassins, he saw his wife ..."This is a simple story... - cathyottawa
....but not an easy one to tell. Like a fable, there is sorrow and like a fable, it's full of wonder and happiness"
These are the opening lines of this wonderful film. Benigni is putting his cards on the table from the start for all those that are ...Life is Beautiful is beautifully full of life - TheEnd
The movie is set in pre-war Italy where the central character, Guido Orefice (Benigni) has a serendipitous encounter with Dora (whom he calls Princess) when he literally runs into her. It is love at first sight for Guido but Dora requires a few more chance ...