 |
|||
Life is Beautiful Roberto
Benigni |
|
||
|
Italian comedian Roberto Benigni's Life Is Beautiful (La Vita e Bella) is a breath of fresh air among today's contemporary films filled with excessive violence. Benigni's uses Chaplin style of humor as Guido in pre-war Italy where he literally runs into Dora (Nicoletta Braschi and his real-life wife) with whom he instantly falls in love with. Guido courts Dora who is already engaged to a stuffy burecrat, but Guido wins her over with his charm. The first half of the film is romantic and filled with many laughs. Into the second half the movie takes a turn into tragedy when Guido and his young son Joshua are taken to the concentration camps. Dora insists on getting on the train to the camps although she is not Jewish. Guido uses comedy to dispel the horror of their situation by explaining to Joshua that they are playing a game in the camps and the team with the most points wins a real army tank. Joshua plays along thinking he is accumilating points by keeping hidden from the guards. Guido never fails to laugh even at the grimest of circumstances they are faced with while in the camps. The bond between father and son is apparent and clearly Guido will do anything for both his son and wife. Life is Beautiful when humor prevails in the midst of death. |
|||
|
|||
