La vita è bella (1997)

Directed by: Roberto Benigni | 122 minutes | drama, comedy, war, romance | Actors: Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Giorgio Cantarini, Giustino Durano, Lidia Alfonsi, Sergio Bini Bustric, Giuliana Lojodice, Pietro De Silva, Horst Buchholz, Raffaella Lebboroni

Many remember how Italian megastar Sophia Loren ‘And the Oscar goes to….. Robertoooo!’ cried out when she presented comrade Benigni with the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 1999. It couldn’t have been more appropriate because until that ceremony she was the only person to ever win an Oscar for an acting performance in a non-English language foreign film, ‘Two Women’ (La Ciociara) in 1961. Shortly after that Oscar, Roberto Benigni also won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role, beating Tom Hanks, Ian McKellen, Nick Nolte and Edward Norton. Comedian Benigni climbed over the seats to the podium to receive the Oscar. Like Benigni in ‘La Vita è Bella’ (Life is Beautiful), Loren played a woman who tries to protect herself and her daughter in Italy during the Second World War. In addition to a third Oscar for the music, ‘La Vita è Bella’ was showered with countless prizes at various film festivals in Cannes, Chicago, LA and Toronto. Benigni has so far not been able to match or surpass his success. He even received an infamous Razzie Award for Worst Actor for his ‘Pinocchio’ (2002).

The film actually consists of two parts. First there is the story of bon vivant Guido, who makes many attempts to win the heart of school teacher Dora. The role of Dora is played by Nicoletta Braschi, also Benigni’s wife in real life. This romantic part is full of (bland) jokes and pranks from Guido. After that there is a subtle transition, we move forward a lot in time. Guido and Dora are married and they have an adorable five-year-old son named Giosue. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the family is taken to a German concentration camp. Guido and Giosue are separated from Dora. Father and son end up in a camp where people have to work all day in a weapons factory. Although the atmosphere of the film becomes a bit grimmer in the concentration camp, there is also a lot of humor present by Guido who remains in good spirits even without the help of others. To protect Giosue, he tells him it’s a complicated game with the main prize being a real tank. Whoever collects the first thousand points wins the tank. The rules change all the time and the guards are only so mean because that’s the only way they can win. Anyone who complains about undereating will be disqualified.

So it all seems like a big holiday for little Giosue. The best scene is of course the one in which Guido ‘freely translates’ the guards’ orders. In addition to humor, there is also emotion. The viewer deeply sympathizes with Guido, who continues to waver his son’s worries away when he has heard a rumor about what really happens to the prisoners.

Compared to other WWII dramas such as ‘Schindler’s List’ (1993), Benigni has adopted a unique perspective. Instead of making a heavy, dramatic film, he has used humor to make his point. While the viewer laughs at Guido’s antics, he or she is simultaneously aware of the misery in which the prisoners find themselves and the fate that may await father and son. It is therefore a smile with a tear, many tears actually. Whatever the critics say, Benigni’s approach is refreshing and effective. The first part of the film is indeed a bit on the long side, but by the end of the film everyone has long forgotten that. ‘La Vita è Bella’ is a moving film about a father’s sacrifice and love for his son. A film that makes a very deep impression and in which many viewers shed a tear.