Life Is Beautiful

Rating:
Summary: Without hyperbole, best movie I have ever seen
Review: Let me start by saying that I usually don't like heavily-hyped movies. They are usually just that- all hype. Usually they have so much hype because they don't have a story. This movie was exactly the opposite- it had hype becaause it had a great story. I am an avid movie goer. I don't believe in hype. Usually the best movies are the ones no one has ever heard of. This movie everyone has heard of, and for a good reason too. This movie was about one thing and one thing alone- love. Whether it be love for his wife, love for his son, or love for life itself, that is the one theme this movie plays on. The first part of this movie was about Roberto Benigni's character, Guido, trying to win the heart of a "princess" whom he met in a chance encounter. It was actually only an introduction to the character of Guido, only to show why he would do what he did later in the movie. This part of the movie had a happy ending- he got the girl. The scene then immediately cuts to several years later during the time of the halocaust, the most painful and evil time of the twentieth century. Guido and his family are captured and sent to a concentration camp, only his son doesn't know what's going on. In order to prevent him from facing the harsh reality, Guido tells him that it's all a game, all of which he had planned out. I truly have to argue with the people who claim that this movie made light of the halocaust. It truly didn't. This was a concentration camp through the eyes of a child, one whose father was trying to hide the world from. This is truly where the movie gets touching. I will not reveal any more of the movie, you'll have to see it for yourself. But the storyline was only one thing that made this movie as credible as it is. If it didn't have Roberto Benigni as its director and main character, I highly doubt this movie would even be half as good. Benigni is a genius, that's all there has to be said. He knows how to make a person laugh, and he knows how to make a person cry. When I first heard that he was "the next Chaplin", I highly doubted it. After seeing the movie, though, I have to say that I somewhat agree. Benigni isn't a pantamimist, but he does have the same amount of energy and movement that Chaplin had. You have to laugh out loud at his gags. These gags are the ones no one else could sell half as well. But he was not only movement, but he acted very well in voice, too. He made himself a truly believable character, even though he did very unbelievable things. This movie was not about the horrors of the halocaust. See a different movie if you want to see that. This movie was about a man's love for life and love for his son.

Rating:
Summary: This Movie Will Change Your Life!
Review: Begini and Braschi are excellent in their roles! This movie carries a wonderful message to it and it is a delight to watch over and over again! It is a sad yet hopeful ending which helps the viewer see the hopeful side of the Holocaust. DEFINATELY see this movie!

Rating:
Summary: Touching and Inspirational.
Review: Life is Beautiful, an Italian materpiece, will hold a special place in the heart of anyone who watches it. Roberto Benigni, who wrote, directed, and stared in this movie, delivers a memorable and believable performance as Guido, a comedic Jew during the holocaust. Nicoletta Braschi, Roberto's real life wife, also delivers an incredible performance as Dora, Guido's love interest. The two are a powerful combination.

The plot Of LIB is complex, and fits together like a puzzle. Half comedy, half drama, this movie packs an incredible punch. LIB is completely different from any other movie relating to the holocaust I've seen. Never before have a laughed and cried at the same time during a movie. LIB in no way mocks the holocaust, or minimizes how horrible it was. Instead, Guido shows how love and family can survive the thoughest hardships.

LIB is one of the greatest movies ever made. It is no wonder that the academy nominated LIB for so many Oscars.

Rating:
Summary: wonderful
Review: When I first decided to watch this movie I was worried that the subtitles would take away from it, but boy was I suprised. By the time I was 15 minutes into the movie, i didn't even notice that I was having to read the subtitles. This is a great film, that I can't recommend enough. Watch it, you won't regret it.

Rating:
Summary: An excellent film, sure to be a classic!
Review: Each time I watch this movie, I am amazed at the captivating plot, talented acting, twists and humor, and wonderful story. All my friends who have seen this film fall in love with it immediately (they are at first wary of a movie entirely in Italian, but it doesn't really matter after you are sucked into the story). There are clearly two parts, the first half about the irresistable Jewish waitor Guido winning the love of a schoolteacher, and the second half about his desparate attempts to protect his new family from the horrors that soon surround them in WWII. All the while his wit and quick-thinking will have you laughing and feeling good. It truly convinces you that, indeed, life is beautiful. I have a quick story that pertains to this film. We were watching this movie with our friends while on vacation. Our friend's young son was watching it off-and-on, but joined us at the ending. After the last freezing frame, there was a moment of silence, and then the eight-year-old piped, "I thought they meant a fish tank." Those who have seen the movie will understand the joke. If you haven't yet, rent it, buy it, and watch it! La Vita e Bela!

Rating:
Summary: A father's sacrifice to ensure his son's life is beautiful!
Review: Roberto Benigni's masterpiece of love's triumph over evil. An unlikely hero wins the heart of his princess. Each day he paints a grim world with flowers and rainbows to shield his wife and young son from the evils of Nazi oppression. His family imprisoned in a work camp, the father tells his son it's all a game. -- In this game the viewer wins. After much laughter and many silent tears I wholeheartedly agreed: Life is Beautiful!

Rating:
Summary: Touching Story
Review: This was a touching story of a Jewish man, his Protestant wife, and their son in Italy during World War 2. The family is forced to go to a concentration camp run by the Nazi's. The man tells the son that it is all a big game and the winner wins a tank. It is a very touching love story that has a happy and tragic ending. If you want to find out the ending to this movie I advise that you see it if you hadn't already. You really should see this. I reccomend it to anybody but small children under the age of 12 or 13. It is a very touching and tragic movie, but it is great.

Rating:
Summary: Life Is Not So Beautiful
Review: I am not doubting Roberto Benigni's talent for he certainly has talent. What I do doubt is how good this film really is. This is one of those films where at the end I was so depressed and it pretty much ruined what was left of my day. The film is set up as a romantic comedy that is just so lavish and well done. By the time the first half was up I felt like it was the happiest film I had ever seen. Then came the dreadful second half which takes place in a Nazi death camp. Sure there is some extremely dark humor in this last half but it reaked of "Shindler's List" and the conclusion is not exactly uplifting either. I believe the film would have been much better if it stuck to either the first half or the last throughout the entire film and not setting up something wonderful and than ending it with tragedy. That's the worst joke anyone could pull and I for one did not appreciate the film at all.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Movie Ever!
Review: This is a truly brilliant, touching, heart-wrenching film. You don't really mind the subtitles after a while, and Benigni is a comic genius.

I have heard people say that this film makes light of the holocaust, but it really is just a father going to great lengths to try to protect the innocence of his son.

It is deserving of all the awards it has earned.

A must see for all!

Rating:
Summary: 5 Stars Aren't Enough
Review: The Holocaust has been a point of interest for me since my brief residency in Germany as a child in the late 50's, and I've read many books on the topic, basically trying to understand the meaning of life, and deal with the knowledge that people can be so cruel to each other.  

Still, for months, I'd avoided watching this movie. No doubt that reveals a bit too much about me - I've always  been one to cover my eyes at scary scenes in movies (there's a scene in Dancing with Wolves that I never have seen and don't intend to).  I've never made it through the movie version of Shindler's List, though I'd read the book - perhaps I don't need to watch that one. This movie is quite different than Shindler's List, although it teaches the same history.

Watching the trailers for this movie made me think it could not  possibly be for me. The idea of a child in a concentration camp seemed the ultimate horror. How could such a movie be as wonderful as reviewers were saying?   Eventually, through recommendations from friends, I rented it, comforted by the knowledge that I could always fast-forward it if it got too awful to watch.

I didn't fast-forward over this movie, but fell in love with the lead character and stuck with him to the end. Roberto Benigni makes you love Guido, and that love for him (and his own love for his young son) draws you into this story that is based on so many incredible stories of that time and place.

On the surface, Guido is a buffoon, a slapstick goofball, who falls in love with a beautiful woman. His goofiness his really an expression of his love of life, his humor, his willingness to take incredibly wild changes. These are the very traits that win him the love of this woman, in an incredible scene as she almost marries the wrong guy. These skills are what allows him to save his son's life, and his son's sanity, during their stay together in a concentration camp.

This is a treasure, not to be viewed just once, but to be owned and watched again and again. Give a gift to yourself and friends, too.(In my opinion, it needs to be sub-titled, because the photography and the facial expressions of Benigni should not be missed for a second.)

While writing a review of Elie Wiesel's book, "Night", I decided to cross-reference this move - evidently it is on the reading list for some high schools in their diversity programs. Book reviews posted on here by high school seniors made me realize that Wiesel's book needed to be accompanied by a movie that will make the connection that the written word can't do for those who are blissfully unaware, if only by their fortunate lack of experience yet with life.