Review of Life Is Beautiful (1997) by Robin W — 23 Nov 2013

Life Is Beautiful takes a very different and original approach compared to other holocaust films, it's a comedy-drama film about a Jewish-Italian man named Guido Orefice. In the first part of the film Guido is trying to open a bookstore in Italy and at the same time he's trying to win the heart of a local schoolteacher named Dora, this all takes place during the expansion of fascism in Italy. The latter half of the film is about Guido using his young sons vivid imagination to shield him from the horrors of the holocaust, something he accomplishes by telling him some of the most absurd lies you could possibly imagine.

Roberto Benigni is the co-writer, director and lead actor of this film and the part of the charismatic Guido, with one of the biggest personalities I can remember seeing on a film, is so perfect for Benigni that I don't think any other actor could have played the role well. This is a very subtle offbeat comedy, but it still has its share of hysterically fun moments. It did get some criticism for trivializing the holocaust by not directly showing any of the atrocities committed by the Nazi's, but I think that those critics has quite obviously missed Benignis point and reason for not showing such events. Since most people watching this will already have a pretty clear picture of what went on in the concentration camps Benigni is able to give the audience two perspectives, the adult perspective that knows exactly what's going on and the child's perspective, which is Guido's sons point of view. This is by far the most unconventional, poetic and inspiring holocaust film and definitely two hours well-spent.