Miramax Pictures, Rated PG-13
Directed by Roberto Benigni
Written by Vincenzo Cerami and Roberto Benigni
Both hilarious and heartbreaking, if any movie had upset Saving Private Ryan for the Best Picture Oscar this year, it should have been this one. Believe the hype about Roberto Benigni. He is the closest thing to Charlie Chaplin we will find in this day and age.
The movie starts out as a light yet well-executed romantic comedy, with a lovable lug named Guido (Benigni) joking his way through life in 1930s Italy. There are small mentions here and there of the effect of Fascism there but mostly this first half is carefree and fun, as Guido meets his future wife Dora (Nicoletta Braschi, Benigni's wife), who is mystified by this man who performs magic tricks and seems willing to give her the whole world. We flash-forward several years and they are now a family with an impossibly cute son. The dangers of Hitler and Mussolini are now nearly impossible to hide from but Guido tries his best by making up fanciful stories to tell his son in order to explain away the disturbing signs of the times. The movie soon becomes almost shockingly tragic as the family is taken to a concentration camp and Guido tries his best to hide the horror of it from his son.
This film is every bit as effective as Schindler's List and shows a lot more restraint. By this time, we all know what happened in the concentration camps and it is the unseen horror that makes the movie that effective and makes us care for what happens to Guido and his family. The ending can be interpreted many different ways and if one particular interpretation is correct, it's one of the boldest endings in film history. In fact, this is one of the boldest films in film history, period. Mixing comedy with the holocaust was a potential powder keg, and it's a tribute to Benigni's talents that he pulled it off almost flawlessly. Benigni was most certainly deserving of his Best Actor Oscar. His directing talents aren't exactly perfect, but this movie comes so close to Chaplin-like perfection that that can easily be forgiven. ****
Back to the main page
