Life is Beautiful
(la vita è bella)

Roberto Benigni, 1997 (120 mins, Cert. PG)

An amazing tragi-comedy that will have you wiping a tear away as you marvel at the power of human courgae and love. Beginning in 1930s Tuscany, a new Jewish arrival, Guido (Benigni), begins a romantic campaign to win the heart of the local school teacher but as time moves on the joy of the birth of their child is overturned as fascism gains ground in the community. When Guido and his son are shipped to a concentration camp during World War II, Guido shields Joshua from the Nazi attrocities by pretending they are part of a fabulous game.
(Playhouse publicity)

A wonderful film! Moving effortlessly through the delightfully endearing comic routines of Guido's courtship to the determined desperation of the concentration camp, this film doesn't put a foot wrong. Scene after scene is destined to remain engraved on the memory for years to come: comic set pieces and dramatic climaxes alike. Perfectly paced and structured as a sequence of vignettes, each visually perfectly judged, the effect is quite irresistible. As beautiful in execution as in conception.
(Steve Fagg)

Seen: Tuesday, 25th May, 1999 (Harlow Playhouse)