Several years ago I remember an Italian actor winning an Oscar and literally jumping for joy on the stage. I'd never seen him before and thought him a funny looking man. That night, the movie he starred in won two other Oscars too, and it was an incredibly popular choice with the audience. ... Read review
One of 1998's better soundtracks also follows the most simple of formulas. Nicola ... more
Piovani's score for Life Is Beautiful is an impressionistic soundtrack at its finest--a delicious mix that sounds inspired by both simple folk melodies and Morricone's Cinema Paradiso score. Throughout, Piovani's themes are like a kid in candy store: bright-eyed and innocent. Tension is gradually introduced on tracks like "Il Treno Nel Buio," but ultimately this score is light and pleasant. The lone vocal cut, Monserrat Caballe singing on "Barcarolle," just makes this disc seem all the more Italian. Piovani hasn't created an epic score, but he has accentuated the difficult themes of Life Is Beautiful exceptionally well. --James Hendrickson
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58mm Large Round Compact Mirror featuring the poster in the title and large image. Second ... more
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One of 1998's better soundtracks also follows the most simple of formulas. Nicola ... more
Piovani's score forLife Is Beautifulis an impressionistic soundtrack at its finest--a delicious mix that sounds inspired by both simple folk melodies and Morricone'sCinema Paradisoscore. Throughout, Piovani's themes are like a kid in candy store: bright-eyed and innocent. Tension is gradually introduced on tracks like "Il Treno Nel Buio," but ultimately this score is light and pleasant. The lone vocal cut, Monserrat Caballe singing on "Barcarolle," just makes this disc seem all the more Italian. Piovani hasn't created an epic score, but he has accentuated the difficult themes ofLife Is Beautifulexceptionally well.--James Hendrickson
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Movie, music and celebrity posters are perfect for fans looking for a memento of their ... more
favourite film, film star, music icon or celebrity. High quality photography that you can be proud to display in your home cinema/theatre, living room on your office desk or around the home.
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Movie, music and celebrity photographs are perfect for fans looking for a memento of their ... more
favourite film, film star, music icon or celebrity. High quality photography that you can be proud to display in your home cinema/theatre, living room on your office desk or around the home.
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Movie, music and celebrity photographs are perfect for fans looking for a memento of their ... more
favourite film, film star, music icon or celebrity. High quality photography that you can be proud to display in your home cinema/theatre, living room on your office desk or around the home.
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Production Year: 1995 - Drama - Director: Ang Lee - Original Language: English - Classification: Universal - Starring: Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant, Greg Wise, Hugh Laurie, Robert Hardy
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Production Year: 1981 - Drama - Director: Franco Zeffirelli - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Brooke Shields, Martin Hewitt, Shirley Knight, Don Murray, Richard Kiley, Penelope Milford, Beatrice Straight
Several years ago I remember an Italian actor winning an Oscar and literally jumping for joy on the stage. I'd never seen him before and thought him a funny looking man. That night, the movie he starred in won two other Oscars too, and it was an incredibly popular choice with the audience. The man was Roberto Benigni and the film, which he starred in, directed and co-wrote, was called Life is Beautiful. I made myself a mental note to watch it some ... ...To say that I was glad I did has to be my understatement of 2002.
Life is Beautiful (1998) is set in Italy during the Second World War. It stars Benigni as Guido, a likeable, excitable bumbler who moves from the countryside to Florence and becomes a waiter. Guido loves beauty, loves thinking, loves knowledge, and loves life. He sees the good in everything and everyone. His most endearing qualities are his fantastical and childlike ... more
Several years ago I remember an Italian actor winning an Oscar and literally jumping for joy on the stage. I'd never seen him before and thought him a funny looking man. That night, the movie he starred in won two other Oscars too, and it was an incredibly popular choice with the audience. The man was Roberto Benigni and the film, which he starred in, directed and co-wrote, was called Life is Beautiful. I made myself a mental note to watch it some day, and I finally got around to it last week. To say that I was glad I did has to be my understatement of 2002.
Life is Beautiful (1998) is set in Italy during the Second World War. It stars Benigni as Guido, a likeable, excitable bumbler who moves from the countryside to Florence and becomes a waiter. Guido loves beauty, loves thinking, loves knowledge, and loves life. He sees the good in everything and everyone. His most endearing qualities are his fantastical and childlike imagination, his kindness, and his quick and often cryptic intelligence.
In Florence Guido falls in love with a schoolteacher, Dora, and woos her through a series of genuine and set-up 'surprise' encounters. The two marry and have a son, Joshua. Guido opens up a bookshop - his dream - and together they live a happy, magical life.
But Guido is a Jew, and this is fascist Italy. One day, Joshua's fourth birthday, while Dora is out, Guido and Joshua are taken away and put on a train to the concentration camps. Dora chases after the train and demands to be put on it too. On their arrival at the camp, Dora is sent to the women's quarters while Guido and Joshua go to the men's.
Guido is determined that Joshua's innocence and happiness will be preserved, and pretends that the whole concentration camp experience is an elaborate game. His camp tattoo thus becomes his and Joshua's 'registration number' into the game. The winner will be the first person to get to 1000 points, and the prize is a real tank. In order to gain points, Joshua must keep himself hidden all day every day when Guido is working, and in order not to lose points, Joshua must not cry, or ask for his mummy or for a snack.
As life goes on in the camp and children disappear for a 'shower', Guido thinks of ever more fantastic reasons of where they have really gone and how it all fits into the game. Ditto when Joshua overhears people talking about how the Nazis are burning people in ovens and turning them into buttons and soap.
Guido also finds ingenious ways of letting Dora know that he and Joshua are still alive and thinking of her. She never knows whether these 'messages' are real, but her belief that they are is what keeps her going through her own terrible ordeal.
The performances in Life is Beautiful are absolutely perfect. Benigni is masterful as the bumbling, lovable, quick-witted Guido, and his concentration camp scenes, where he caries the burden of knowing the truth whilst trying to make life 'fun' for Joshua, are superb.
Giorgio Cantarini as Joshua is outstanding. He manages to show us innocence, a great sense of fun, a huge intelligence, an underlying fear and a longing for his mother all at once.
The beautiful Nicoletta Braschi as Dora is equally good, and her lonely, steadfast scenes in the camp are truly moving.
Life is Beautiful is an incredibly moving and very funny film. Yes, funny! The pre-camp scenes are full of slapstick, wit and romance, and these moments persist through the second half of the film despite its utterly bleak setting.
At the time of the film's release, some critics accused Benigni of making fun of genocide, but thankfully most saw that this was not the intention of the film at all. I have never seen a film that manages to portray so many emotions and so many sides of humanity simultaneously. The tragic camp setting is made all the more affecting by the contrasting humour, and in a way the humour is all the funnier by its dreadful backdrop.
In common with so many of the concentration camp films, Life is Beautiful strongly reaffirms the strength and dignity of the human spirit and the power and necessity of hope. It is a story about Nazism, a story about love, a story about relationships and in the end, a story about sacrifice.
Life is Beautiful was the highest grossing non-English language film ever in the US and it deserved to be. It is a movie that is eminently watchable, rich in character and storyline, and ultimately heartwarming. How it manages to walk such a tightrope between comedy and tragedy, genuine emotion and schmaltz, and come out triumphant on both counts, is quite remarkable.
I've hardly stopped thinking about this film since watching it. It has been hailed as 'a modern masterpiece' and in this case such praise is entirely justified.
If you only ever see one subtitled film in your life, make it this one and you will not be disappointed.
Running time 111 minutes Italian with English subtitles Available on DVD from play.com for £8.99 delivered
Advantages: Simplistic Disadvantages: not appealing to the masses on first glance.
Being A very poor student with far too little time on my hands due to my intense course, I, like many other of my comrades, spent every wakened minute, even the ones meant to be spent in lectures, between the student union (but shhh I was under aged) and the good ol’ Odeon Cinemas just down the road from my student accommodation. This life began to get taxing on us, the student body. Hangovers tested friendships and, more importantly, only ... ...worth seeing twice, what was there to do when the big blockbusters where memorised word for word? Enjoy the art of fine conversation? Turn to our books perhaps? Or, notice some unheard movie on the billboard and figure it’s worth the chance – what else would we do with those two hours anyway! ? This is how I stumbled across the glorious and truly beautiful ‘Vita ET Belle - Life is beautiful.’ Now don’t get me wrong, ...
Daysleeper 01.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Vita è bella, La (Life is beautiful)
Advantages: Superb acting, funny and moving script, just great! Disadvantages: Holocaust may disturb
I rented this film out from my local video store as I’d heard good things about it but little else (I never like to hear to much about film plots before I see them). It wasn’t until I saw the box that I became aware of the critical acclaim this film received. It was the winner of the three Acadamy awards including ‘Best Actor’ for the main star (and director!) of the show Roberto Benigni. Not a bad effort for an Italian language ... ...This was a compelling, funny, poignant story, brilliantly acted and directed and rightly deserves the success it received!
THE PLOT
Guido (Benigni) is a charismatic, energetic if slightly awkward waiter in the Fascist Italy of the late 1930’s. He meets and, in typically italian style, falls in love with a pretty teacher called Dora (played by Nicoletta Braschi). He goes through a variety of funny and slightly surreal pranks to win her over. ...
tallpaul1983 22.08.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Vita è bella, La (Life is beautiful)
Advantages: Everything - it's really thtat good Disadvantages: Slapstick comedy can be a bit silly
title: la vita è bella (life is beautiful) year: 1997 director: roberto benigni (subtitles) intro: i've been a member of dvdsontap.com (now known as lovefilm.com) for a while now, and this has been waiting in my queue for ages. my boyfriend was a bit sceptical when i told him that it was a comedy about the holocaust (what i'd heard from a friend) but we decided to watch it anyway. i'd just like to point out that i usually wait a while before posting ... ...one just made me want to tell as many people as possible about it, so i apologise if the review isn't up t my usual standard, having not had the time to digest the film properly. plot: guido, a jewish man, goes to the city to see his uncle, and discover the delights of city life. while there, he finds romance and excitement in the form of dora. later, tragedy strikes and guido and his son must find a way of escaping the horror that is a nazi death ...
esthersmile 07.02.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Vita è bella, La (Life is beautiful)
Advantages: a beautiful side of a harsh reality Disadvantages: using a box of kleenex at the end of it!
Turn off bright lights, get a box of kleenex + curl up with a blanket. Then press 'play'. I guarantee after the moment you have pressed play, you will be transfixed to the screen, transfixed to a captivating, beautiful story of love + sacrifice ultimately intertwined in the most beautiful of ways. I certainly was.
From the first moment this film was advertised on Front Row I had little fancy for it - an Italian movie in subtitles - I thought it ... ...I'd never heard of a good Italian movie before. Infact I'd never even heard of any Italian movie (uncultured you see). in actual fact, there is a version now with English voices, which some might prefer though I find the true essence of the story is presented in a more beautiful way in the character's native tongues. Anyway, each to their preference!
Thus the film begins with the hilariously cute, loveable yet ultimately charming Guido, played by ...
fabolous 06.04.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Vita è bella, La (Life is beautiful)
Advantages: Pleasing idea, nice performances... Disadvantages: Not as hilarious and heart-wrenching as it should be.
Remember how Roberto Benigni livened things up at an otherwise dull Oscar ceremony? Chances are you'll fall into one of two categories; those who applauded the little Italian's disruption of the Academy's glitzy pomposity, or those who wanted to wring his neck as his milked his loveable sub-Chaplin shtick for all it was worth. If you are one of the latter, you probably won't be reading this review; if you are one of the former, there are plenty of ... ...Life is Beautiful got a surprise nomination for Best Picture, but didn't win. Looking back, it is clear why. Benigni tackles a touchy area - a concentration camp comedy - but doesn't give any real idea of the threat his protagonists are under. Compared to Schindler's List, Benigni's camp looks as threatening as Butlins.
The weird-looking Italian plays Guido, an exuberant Jewish-Italian waiter who falls - literally - for the woman of his dreams, ...
Plissken 02.01.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Vita è bella, La (Life is beautiful)
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Advantages: Great story, excellent performances, total eye opener Disadvantages: none
It's the late 1930s and Guido, an easy going Jew, arrives in the Tuscan town of Arezzo, where he dreams of opening a book store. Too finance his dream he gains temporary work as a waiter at a local hotel. Whilst working towards his dream, he meets Dora, a local school teacher who is engaged to a local Fascist official. This doesn't stop him from wooing her with his romantic gestures and humour. Finally winning her affections, they get married and have a son called Giosué.
Several years on, and the family are sent to a German-run Concentration Camp where Dora is separated from Guido and their son. Too try and make the harsh surroundings more bearable, Guido convinces his son that they are part of a huge game, where you win points for behaving and doing as you are told, with the winner getting a tank.
LifeisBeautiful (LaVitaè ...
Advantages: amusing, clever storyline Disadvantages: drug taking scenes, but funny enough to get away with it
If I say Roberto Benigni directed and starred in this 1991 film, would that mean anything to you? It means something to me ? I KNOW that I am going to enjoy this film! Mr Benigni is the star of one of my all time favourite films Lavitaebella (LifeisBeautiful) in which he starred with Nicoletta Braschi. Guess who plays his love interest in Johnny Stecchino too?! This might have something to do with Nicoletta being Roberto?s real life wife. They met on the set of ?Tu mi turbi? (1983) and married in 1991.
Well onto the story. Benigni plays Dante, a school bus driver who is a simple soul. He ferries handicapped kids around in his yellow vehicle, making their journeys fun by singing to them. Early on in the film we realise Dante is a flop with women, he?s their ?friend? rather than their lover. At a party he?s the only guy ...
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