Life Is Beautiful (1997)
8.439 /10
13932 Reviews
Rate This Movie:
A touching story of an Italian book seller of Jewish ancestry who lives in his own little fairy tale. His creative and happy life would come to an abrupt halt when his entire family is deported to a concentration camp during World War II. While locked up he tries to convince his son that the whole thing is just a game.
Videos & Photos
cast
... Guido
... Dora
... Giosué
... Zio
... Ferruccio
User reviews
The first half of the screenplay is better than the second and in particular the weak ending which is very commercial Oscar material. However, there is Benigni, who is an old school visual comedian, and some of his antics are a delight. The period setting details are also well done.
Director:
Writer:
Vincenzo Cerami (Screenplay)
Roberto Benigni (Screenplay)
Vincenzo Cerami (Story)
Roberto Benigni (Story)
Release Date:
1997-12-20
Run Time:
116 min
MMPA Rating:
PG-13
Reviews of
Life Is Beautiful
The first half of the screenplay is better than the second and in particular the weak ending which is very commercial Oscar material. However, there is Benigni, who is an old school visual comedian, and some of his antics are a delight. The period setting details are also well done.
'Life Is Beautiful' is certainly beautiful (in a sense), but is acutely haunting too. You can see where the film is heading from pretty much the get-go, though that only strengthens the grip that the film had on my mind. Evidently, it's an outstanding piece of filmmaking.
I've, of course, seen plenty of flicks that feature this particular historical event, but I gotta say this one had a larger effect on me than is the norm. They are all saddening, obviously, but this one with the young family aspect hit a bit more, it felt more intimate. That's all despite the movie being infused with comedy, the mixing of which is supreme.
Roberto Benigni is tremendous in the role of Guido, not only does he convey the aforementioned humour brilliantly but when it comes to the more sombre moments his acting prowess shines through just as much. Giorgio Cantarini shows up with an impressive kid display, while Nicoletta Braschi is very good as well - her penultimate scene stands out most.
The stunning score is also a major plus, one part of it kept giving me Andrea Bocelli vibes; probably a lazy connection on my part, given it's an Italian film but hey-ho. My only 'negative' (it's not even a negative, tbh) is the final scene with Guido, which felt a little skipped across and rushed. As intended, just felt a tad odd whilst watching though.
A heart-wrenching, yet splendid, 116 minutes, that's for certain.
Cast & Crew of
Life Is Beautiful
Cast
... Guido
... Dora
... Giosué
... Zio
... Ferruccio
... Dora's Mother
... Doctor Lessing
... Mrs. Guicciardini
... School Principal
... Rodolfo
... Bartolomeo
... Vittorino
... Elena
... Rodolfo's Friend
... Prefect
... Man with Key
... German Party Attendant
... German Auxilliary
... German Executioner
... General Graziosi
... Waiter Ernesto
... US Tank Driver
... King
... German Auxiliary
... School Janitor
... Card Player
... German Sergeant
... Teacher
... German Corporal
... German Major at Party
... Female Soldier at Children's Dinner
... 1st Lady at the Grand Hotel
... 2nd Lady at the Grand Hotel
... Gigliola
... Regina
... Eleonora
... Public Education Inspector
... Lady at the Opera
... German Auxiliary
... Upholsterer
... German Soldier
... Spinster Teacher
... Bruno
... Dora's Maid
... German Auxilliary
... Policeman in Stationery Shop
... German Lieutenant at Station
... Solid German
... Grand Hotel Doorman
... German Soldier
... Common Secretary
... Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
... German Auxilliary (uncredited)
Crew
... Editor
... Screenplay
... Costume Design
... Screenplay
... Producer
... Production Design
... Special Effects
... Original Music Composer
... Director
... Director of Photography
... Producer
... Production Manager
... Assistant Production Design
... Makeup Department Head
... Camera Operator
... Assistant Production Design
... Property Master
... Hairstylist
... Assistant Camera
... First Assistant Director
... Second Assistant Director
... Assistant Editor
... Set Decoration
... Gaffer
... Hair Department Head
... Sound Mixer
... Sound Mixer
... Key Grip
... Choreographer
... Sound
... Executive Producer
... Unit Manager
... Boom Operator
... Sound Editor
... Second Assistant Director
... Second Assistant Director
... Script Supervisor
... Assistant Camera
... Assistant Editor
... Makeup Department Head
... Colorist
... Production Secretary
... Makeup Artist
... Makeup Artist
... Sound Editor
... Unit Manager
... Casting
... Production Manager
... Still Photographer
... Hairstylist
... Production Secretary
... Administration
... Story
... Story
... Production Manager
Videos & Photos of
Life Is Beautiful
Videos (1)
Photos 17
Similar Movies To
Life Is Beautiful
Barefoot Gen (1983)
7.611/10
A story about the effect of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on a boy's life and the lives of the Japanese people.
Release: 1983-07-21
My Sassy Girl (2008)
6.732/10
A guy has his life planned out until he is wooed, groomed and then dumped by an elusive woman.
Release: 2008-05-26
Mountains Clad in Green (1971)
9/10
Year 1943. A group of soldiers, carrying an injured comrade, are trying to reach the hospital.
Release: 1971-12-31
War Mornings (1971)
10/10
World War II. A group of kids try to sabotage the enemy whichever way they can.
Release: 1971-06-20
Stars of Long Nights (1972)
9/10
World War II. The fascists kill a boy and invite his mother to identify the body, but she refuses.
Release: 1972-05-05
Furtuna (1959)
4.25/10
Story depicting the national liberation struggle of the Albanian people against the Italian and German invaders during World War II.
Release: 1959-02-04
Jahrgang 21 (1958)
7/10
At the beginning of the Second World War, Czech music student Honsik comes to Germany from Prague to join a "foreign worker company". After rescuing a boy from the rubble of a bombed-out house, he himself is seriously injured and taken to a hospital in Stralsund. There he is regarded as a second-class citizen and the Germans are preferred to him. Nurse Käthe stands up for him, cares for him and defies all prohibitions. A love affair is kindled between the two, but it is not under a good star. Honsik tries to flee to his homeland with his comrades and Käthe supports him. At the last moment, however, Honsik realizes that his love for Käthe is stronger than his homesickness and makes his way back. Once back home, he can only watch as Käthe is arrested by the Gestapo. With the help of a resistance fighter, the young man from Prague manages to escape after all.
Release: 1958-02-28
Exile Express (1939)
7/10
When her scientist-employer is murdered, a female legal immigrant suddenly finds herself being deported via a train full of criminal aliens, g-men, reporters - and foreign agents trying to smuggle her off and into the hands of the murderous gang.
Release: 1939-05-27
The Discussion (1961)
9/10
Three years after the fascist occupation, a group of children create the anti-fascist organization called "Debatik". Coli, an orphan boy, manages to become a member.
Release: 1961-12-26
Victory Over Death (1967)
10/10
World War II. Albania is under the Nazi occupation. The Germans capture two young girls and torture them to learn more about the communist movement.
Release: 1967-12-13
When Trumpets Fade (1998)
6.656/10
In WWII Western Germany, Private David Manning reluctantly leaves behind a mortally wounded fellow soldier and searches for survivors from his platoon, only to learn from commanding officer Captain Pritchett that they have all been killed in action. Despite requesting a discharge on the grounds of mental disability, Manning is promoted to sergeant and assigned to lead a new platoon of young inductees.
Release: 1998-06-27
Miss Potter (2006)
6.641/10
Beatrix Potter, the author of the beloved children's book "The Tale of Peter Rabbit", struggles for love, happiness and success.
Release: 2006-12-03
Closing the Ring (2007)
6.2/10
During the 1940s, a group of young men go off to war, leaving behind Ethel Ann, who is in love with one of them, Teddy. In modern-day Belfast, a man named Jimmy endeavors to return a ring found in the wreckage of a crashed plane. He travels to Michigan, where the grown Ethel Ann, who married another man after Teddy was killed in battle, now lives. Ethel Ann must decide whether to go with Jimmy to meet the soldier who last saw Teddy alive.
Release: 2007-09-14
Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa (2005)
7.301/10
Munich, Germany, 1923. Two years have passed since Edward Elric was dragged from his own world to ours, leaving behind his country, his friends and his younger brother, Alphonse. Stripped of his alchemical powers, he has been all this time researching rocketry together with Alphonse Heiderich, a young man who resembles his own brother, hoping to one day find a way back home. His efforts so far had proven fruitless, but after lending a hand to a troubled gipsy girl, Edward is thrown in a series of events that can wreak havoc in both worlds. Meanwhile, at his own world, Alphonse Elric ventures deeper into the mysteries of alchemy in search for a way to reunite with his older brother.
Release: 2005-07-21
First Daughter (2004)
6.162/10
Samantha MacKenzie, the daughter of the president of the United States, arrives at college with a group of Secret Service agents. Samantha, however, resents their presence and decides she wants to attend school just like a normal student.
Release: 2004-09-24
The Pentagon Wars (1998)
6.861/10
From the director of “Made In America” and “The Money Pit” comes a hilarious look at one of the most expensive blunders in military history. Over 17 years and almost as many billion dollars have gone into devising the BFV (Bradley Fighting Vehicle). There's only one problem. . . it doesn't work. (Spoiler alert: 25 years later ... it does work.)
Release: 1998-02-28
Aetherrise (2025)
0/10
Aetherrise (lt. Aukštynpakylėjimas) is a feature film — a experimental psychological surrealistic drama. Mija exists between silent conversations and inner stillness. Things take an unexpected change as her distant friendship with Ieva shifts. Reality slowly starts to connect with dreams, memories and what could be projections of her own mind. This is a visually sensitive and atmospheric story about inner worlds, human connections and how easily one can become lost between reality and illusion.
Release: 2025-12-31
Upside Down Pineapple (2024)
0/10
The true story of her best friend's mysterious murder would make the perfect prime time miniseries, but can former queen bee Penelope Pierce convince her reluctant clique to sign over their life rights?
Release: 2024-08-31
Revival
0/10
In 2020, when a French robotics student investigates his mother's guarded secret about his true Armenian identity, he jeopardizes his university AI competition to travel to Artsakh and gets entangled in an unexpected full-scale war where he must rely on the evolving consciousness of his AI creation to save his life and learn the truth.
Release:
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008)
7.816/10
When his family moves from their home in Berlin to a strange new house in Poland, young Bruno befriends Shmuel, a boy who lives on the other side of the fence where everyone seems to be wearing striped pajamas. Unaware of Shmuel's fate as a Jewish prisoner or the role his own Nazi father plays in his imprisonment, Bruno embarks on a dangerous journey inside the camp's walls.
Release: 2008-05-07