Roberto Benigni, the Italian comedian and filmmaker has once again won our hearts with this simple yet charming and heart warming movie.
Guido (Roberto Benigni), an innovative and lively Italian Jew comes to a small town with the dream of opening a bookstore. Fate has other plans and he finds employment as a waiter in a grand hotel. Guido meets Dora (Nicoletta Braschi) a young schoolteacher from an affluent Non-Jewish family and already engaged to an important government man. But Cupid plays his game and what follows next is a wonderful and spirited wooing passionately performed by Guido.
The story shifts to a few years later, Guido, Dora and their little son Giosue (Giorgio Cantarini) are a happy family with all going well their way. Guido has his bookstore finally and Dora’s estranged mother wants to reconcile with them but their happiness is interrupted by the Holocaust. All the Jews of the town are transported to a concentration camp. Though Dora is not on the Nazi’s list, she forces her way to the camp only to stay close to her husband and child.
Young Giouse, too small too understand the grim ways of war, is confused and Guido devises a unique way to protect him and keep his spirits high at the time of the war. Guido convinces his son that the entire camp is a well-organized game and that all the inmates are its players. To earn a thousand points and win the prized tank, Giouse has to be very brave and constantly hide from the soldiers. The rest of the film revolves around how Giouse struggles to win his tank and Guido to save his son’s life.
The film reminds you of how unfair and unreasonable war is and how beautiful even the simplest life can be. All the performances are simply brilliant. The sets are realistic and the comedy extremely well timed. Roberto Benigni once again proves that he is a genius. To sum it up in a single sentence, Life Is Beautiful is a beautiful experience and a must see for all those who consider themselves connoisseurs of good cinema.