Rating: 
Summary: spectacular movie!
Review: spectacular movie, do not miss!
Rating:
Summary: Roberto was almost too much.
Review: A beautiful movie that I almost walked out of after the first 15 minutes. I have to admit, Roberto Benigni is so annoying, so over the top at the beginning of this film, that I was tempted to leave the theater. Fortunately, I stayed. This film is an incredibly moving fable that should be seen by both those who enjoyed "Schindler's List" and by fans of "The Princess Bride". For first time viewers, enjoy the first 15-30 minutes for what they are in context of the remainder of this moving film.
Rating: 
Summary: Neither amusing nor touching.
Review: Life is Beautiful is one of the biggest shams to hit the art houses in recent memory. It poises itself to be a testament to the triumph of the human spirit and fails miserably.First of all - I realize this film is not a documentary and it's intent is not to portray the holocaust in an accurate way. However, there are certain things that should not be made light of. The movie might as well have made cancer or slavery out to be on par with a day at the amusement park. I don't care about accuracy here, but when Robert Benigni runs around pulling any hyjink he likes to make his son laugh, he denies the danger of the setting. And we're not just talking about any setting. This is something that is absolutely sacred and if people don't have a problem with that, I think they need to think a little harder about it. I think using the holocaust as a setting was a cheap trick, an easy way to move people. All these offenses aside, the movie plays like "Mr. Beene Goes to Auschwitz" with parent/child sentiment on par with a cough syrup commercial.
Rating:
Summary: Not to be questioned
Review: I noticed that some people were confused with events that occured during the film. After living in Naples, Italy for 2 years, all of these events were perfectly normal to me. Of course, most American's will not understand every part of this film. But on the other hand, this movie was not made for an American audience. So before you criticize this film, think about the differences between the Italian culture and our own.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing Movie!
Review: One of the best movies I have ever seen. The story has it all. Emotion, Passion, Love, and Comedy. Amazingly uplifting in the face of the worst that the world can through at it. You'll laugh you'll cry, you'll love it. Although the DVD comes with an english voice over I recommend watching it in Italian with English Subtitles. It is not distracting at all and adds to the beuty of the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Film as art
Review: Often you will go watch a movie and be entertained for 90 minutes, only to forget what you have seen within a week. Love it or hate it, you will remember "Life is Beautiful." This is a masterpiece. The writing is superb, and very element of the story is interconnected masterfully. Benigni introduced the movie as a fable, and a fable has at its core a moral or a lesson to teach us. What was Benigni trying to say? Was the movie about the Holocaust? Yes it was, but it was also about sacrifice and what one man can and will do in the face of cruel and inhuman conditions. Guido wanted to shield Joshua from the horrors around him, and he thought that by making everything a game Joshua had the best chance for survival. Guido's only goal was for his family to survive the death camp. I have a wife and two daughters, and if I am one-half the husband and father that Guido was to Dora and Joshua, I will think of myself a successful parent and husband. Guido to me was a hero. A man to model yourself after.
Rating:
Summary: Film as art
Review: Often you will go to the theater and watch a movie and be entertained for 90 minutes, only to forget most of what you have seen within a week. Love it or hate it you will remember "Life is Beautiful." This is a masterpiece. The writing is superb. Every element of the story is connected masterfully. Think of the key, the horse, the hat, the riddle and the fact that Joshua does not like to take baths; each of these is used by Benigni to move the plot along. As for those who say the movie sugarcoats the Holocaust, I think they may have some merit to their argument in that there is truly nothing funny about the Holocaust, but I do not think Benigi overlooks the horrors of Holocaust life entirely. Guido's main intent was to protect his wife and son. He was going to do anything to accomplish this goal, even the outrageous and the humorous. Yes, it is true that most children were killed immediately upon reaching the concentration camps, but if we remember that Benigni called the movie a fable we should try to overlook this one discrepancy. A fable has at its core a moral or a lesson to convey to us. What was Benigni trying to say? Was the movie about the Holocaust? Yes it was, but it was also about sacrifice and what one man can and will do in face of cruel and inhuman conditions. He wanted to shield Joshua from the horror around him. Guido thought that by making everything a game Joshua had the best chance for survival. Remember the look on Guido's face when he first walked in the barracks? It was the face of horror. I felt he [Benigni] knew and understood the Holocaust. For example, Benigni depicted scenes consistent with the Holocaust. There was a "selection" when the prisoners first got off the train. Also, he showed women, children and the elderly being sent to the gas chambers. The scene with the doctor was another example of a "selection." The doctor, who was a man he shared riddles with in the first half of the movie, is another casualty of the Holocaust. He appears so overwhelmed by what he has experienced in the camp that when Guido finally sees him he has gone mad, reduced to a shell of a man babbling about unsolvable riddles. Guido's only goal was to make sure his family survived. I have two dauthers, and if I am one-half the father that Guido was to Joshua, I will think of myself as a successful parent. Guido, to me, was a hero, not a buffoon as some reviewers are apt to state.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely brilliant filmmaking
Review: This movie takes you from laughter to crying and back again in a way that somehow makes you less cynical about life despite the horrific backdrop of the story.
Rating:
Summary: A Harrowing Monument to the Human Spirit
Review: If you're like me, and sometimes still reeling from the devastation of September 11th, you'd do well to resvist this poignant tale of true undying love and unconditional peace of mind. Begnini's masterpiece is surely one of the finest films in any language to have the Holocaust as a backdrop, and here, as real and intense as that era exists onscreen, it takes a back seat (if thats even possible) to the extrovert genius of Roberto Benigni, who is part Buster Keaton, part Willy WOnka and ALL John Wayne. His heroism in the most hostile of human tragedies makes this a film about war's human toll - for in his characterization, Benigni is our heart and soul, the conscience of the world, for he balances humor with terror and shows us that sometimes, laughter is the ONLY medicine. A deserved classic to be enjoyed for generations of families around the world, "Life is Beautiful" is a fable for our times, and a source of pure imagination and inspiration.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: This is one of the best movies I have ever seen! I do not recommend that you get the one dubbed in English. Hearing the Italian with the sub-titles only adds to the charm of the movie! This is the type of movie that you can watch over and over and still notice things that you haven't seen before. It is a very clever movie. After about 5 minutes you forget all about the sub-titles.
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