Director: Roberto Benigni
Writers: Vincenzo Cerami (story), Roberto Benigni (story)
Stars: Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Giorgio Cantarini
Storyline
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. Written by Anthony Hughes.User Reviews
A Movie About Hope
Life Is Beautiful
takes the premise that love and hope can survive the most trying of
conditions, in this case a Nazi concentration camp. Most everyone knows
this very popular and honored film, so I won't belabor the story.
Briefly, in my humble opinion, this film deserves all the accolades it's
been awarded. A near perfect film, my only gripe is that Mr. Benigni's
performance could have been more understated, especially the half of the
film that's set in the concentration camp. But this is only a slight
complaint. For a joyful, life-affirming movie, Life Is Beautiful is
tops. But be forewarned, as its principal backdrop of anti-Semitism and
Nazi murder, it is not a very happy movie.
