La vita è bella (1997)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Director:

Roberto Benigni

Writers:

Vincenzo Cerami (story) &
Roberto Benigni (story)

Release Date:

23 October 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.

Plot:

A Jewish man has a wonderful romance with the help of his humour, but must use that same quality to protect his son in a Nazi death camp.

Plot Keywords:

Jewish | Italy | Tank | 1930s | Schoolteacher

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 52 wins & 27 nominations

Cast

Roberto Benigni	...	Guido Orefice
Nicoletta Braschi	...	Dora
Giorgio Cantarini	...	Giosué Orefice
Giustino Durano	...	Eliseo Orefice
Sergio Bini Bustric	...	Ferruccio Papini (as Sergio Bustric)
Marisa Paredes	...	Madre di Dora
Horst Buchholz	...	Doctor Lessing (as Horst Bucholz)
Lidia Alfonsi	...	Guicciardini
Giuliana Lojodice	...	School Principal
Amerigo Fontani	...	Rodolfo
Pietro De Silva	...	Bartolomeo
Francesco Guzzo	...	Vittorino
Raffaella Lebboroni	...	Elena
Claudio Alfonsi	...	Amico Rodolfo
Gil Baroni	...	Prefect

Also Known As:

Life Is Beautiful (UK) (USA)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for holocaust-related thematic elements.

Runtime:

116 min | USA:118 min (English dubbed version)

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian | German | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:L | Ireland:PG | South Korea:All | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Chile:TE | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:6 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIA | Italy:T | Netherlands:AL | New Zealand:M | Norway:7 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy

Company:

Cecchi Gori Group Tiger Cinematografica

Trivia:

Before they go to sleep Guido and Ferruccio have a few jokes about the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer. Schopenhauer was a favorite writer of Hitler.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: When Guido's uncle leaves his house for the hotel, the microphone casts a shadow on the black statue on the right.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Giosué Orefice: [narrating as an adult] This is a simple story... but not an easy one to tell.

Movie Connections:

References Roma, città aperta (1945)

Soundtrack:

Belle nuit (Barcarolle)

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.