Life is Beautiful
It's foreign film time. This time around, we're taking a look at an Italian movie about a Jewish family during World War 2. Shall we let this family live or send them to the showers? Let's find out.
On a drive through the countryside, Guido (Roberto Benigni) and his brother begin to have car trouble. While working on it, Guido decides to visit a nearby house to use their restroom. He talks to the little girl there before meeting the woman of the house, Dora (Nicoletta Braschi). They talk and laugh until Guido has to go. Once he arrives back home, he visits a business bureau to attempt at opening his book store. They turn him down and he runs away causing him to run into Dora again. After some more chit chat, Guido returns home to find that his uncle has been robed. The next day, Guido applies for a job as a waiter and gets the job. He becomes friends with one of the customers, Doctor Lessing (Horst Buchholz). Some time later, Guido attends a play where he tries to win over Dora's heart. He'll do anything to be with her forever and protect her from whatever may happen.
Before I start getting into what was amazing about the movie, I'm just going to say that this is a very black and white film story-wise. The first half and second half are complete opposites of each other. So most of what's discussed here is going to be from the second half. With that said, the movie definitely does a good job of contrasting the second half with the first. Without giving too much away, the second half deals with Guido, Dora, and their son dealing with Jew problems during World War 2. The first half is so cheerful, corny, and just plain happy. Then the second half comes and makes the viewer depressed. Very few movies have made me feel such a variety of emotions at once. As for the characters, Guido is just hilarious and a fantastic father/husband. Throughout the movie, he's always trying to be goofy, keeping everyone's spirits up, and just doing the best he can to protect his family. Then there's the ending. The end is one of the saddest things I've seen in a movie in a long time. It combines so many different emotions so fast that it leaves the viewer wanting more.
My only real issue with the film resides with the first half. It can get just a bit too corny for enjoyment. However, it still stays funny when it's really corny, so it's not a big issue.
So should you watch Life is Beautiful? Yes. Everyone here deserves some kind of award for their fantastic job with the film. Not many films can connect with the audience on so many different levels like this.
On a drive through the countryside, Guido (Roberto Benigni) and his brother begin to have car trouble. While working on it, Guido decides to visit a nearby house to use their restroom. He talks to the little girl there before meeting the woman of the house, Dora (Nicoletta Braschi). They talk and laugh until Guido has to go. Once he arrives back home, he visits a business bureau to attempt at opening his book store. They turn him down and he runs away causing him to run into Dora again. After some more chit chat, Guido returns home to find that his uncle has been robed. The next day, Guido applies for a job as a waiter and gets the job. He becomes friends with one of the customers, Doctor Lessing (Horst Buchholz). Some time later, Guido attends a play where he tries to win over Dora's heart. He'll do anything to be with her forever and protect her from whatever may happen.
Before I start getting into what was amazing about the movie, I'm just going to say that this is a very black and white film story-wise. The first half and second half are complete opposites of each other. So most of what's discussed here is going to be from the second half. With that said, the movie definitely does a good job of contrasting the second half with the first. Without giving too much away, the second half deals with Guido, Dora, and their son dealing with Jew problems during World War 2. The first half is so cheerful, corny, and just plain happy. Then the second half comes and makes the viewer depressed. Very few movies have made me feel such a variety of emotions at once. As for the characters, Guido is just hilarious and a fantastic father/husband. Throughout the movie, he's always trying to be goofy, keeping everyone's spirits up, and just doing the best he can to protect his family. Then there's the ending. The end is one of the saddest things I've seen in a movie in a long time. It combines so many different emotions so fast that it leaves the viewer wanting more.
My only real issue with the film resides with the first half. It can get just a bit too corny for enjoyment. However, it still stays funny when it's really corny, so it's not a big issue.
So should you watch Life is Beautiful? Yes. Everyone here deserves some kind of award for their fantastic job with the film. Not many films can connect with the audience on so many different levels like this.