Genre: Comedy / Romance / Drama / War
Length: 2h 2m 0s
Director: Roberto Benigni
Tagline: An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.
Plot outline: In 1930s Italy, a carefree Jewish book keeper named Guido starts a fairy tale life by courting and marrying a lovely woman from a nearby city. Guido and his wife have a son and live happily together until the occupation of Italy by German forces. In an attempt to hold his family together and help his son survive the horrors of a Jewish Concentration Camp, Guido imagines that the Holocaust is a game and that the grand prize for winning is a tank. Summary written by Anthony Hughes {husnock31@hotmail.com} Guido is an Italian Jew, and he and his family are taken to a Nazi concentration camp during World War 2. He has to protect his son by turning the whole situation into a game, telling him that the winner will win a tank. He tries vigorously to protect his son from the horrors around him. Summary written by Matt Dicker The film starts in the 1930s when Guido relocates from the country to a large Tuscan town where he falls in love with schoolteacher Dora. She is already engaged to another guy, but Guido stills fights for her. The story continues 5 years later, during wartime, Guido is married to Dora and they have a son called Giosue. Guido is of Jewish origin, and he is sent to a concentration camp with Giosue and Dora follows them, only to be sent to another camp. Summary written by Anonymous It's 1939. The ebullient, playful Guido comes to town. He works as a waiter under his uncle's eye, an elegant man who is also a Jew. Guido falls for Dora, a schoolteacher, whom he calls "princess" and courts by popping up at unexpected times. She dumps her fiancé to choose Guido. The film jumps ahead to the last months of the war. Nora and Guido have a child, Giosué, and when Guido and the lad are shipped to a concentration camp, Dora voluntarily follows. Although the men and women in the camp are separated and a child is in mortal peril, Guido finds ways to communicate with Dora, to hide Giosué, and to convince him this is an elaborate game, a special contest to win a tank. Summary written by {jhailey@hotmail.com}
Comment: Much has been written about "Life Is Beautiful" and there can be no doubt it has touched many viewers is a very positive way. However, everything about this film from sets to acting to costuming, etc. is good but certainly not worthy of most of the tribute paid it. What is unique about this film is the story and the tender way it touches the heart. Not satire, not drama, not comedy, "La Vita e Bella" is farce. Grand and extraordinary farce which could well make the Bard himself take notice. Just as the blind men feeling the elephant each had a different interpretation of the beast, so will viewers each have a different interpretation of this film. However, one cannot escape the fact that this is a elephant of a film.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
Country: Italy
Language:
Subtitels: No ()
CDs: 0
| Quality: | Video (?x? @ ?.?? [[unknown] ?kb/s]) | Audio (?Hz ?bit ? chan. [[unknown] ?kb/s]) |
| Actors: | ||
| Roberto Benigni | as | Guido Orefice |
| Nicoletta Braschi | as | Dora |
| Giustino Durano | as | Guido's uncle |
| Sergio Bini Bustric | as | Ferruccio Papini |