Life is Beautiful

[Johnny Swallow]

This movie made me feel more emotion than any movie I've seen in a long long time. It's now on the short list of movies that made me cry. Amazing film.

[zonelistener]

I had to see it twice in the theater. It is amazing. Top five favorite for me.

[Diamond The U2 Patriot]

great show.

DB9

[brettig]

Johnny grateful for something, what is the world coming to?

[sulawesigirl4]

amazing movie. Definitely worthy of every accolade it has received.

[The_Sweetest_Thing]

and more....

so good. Even better in Italian (not the 'dubbed' version). What an amazing way to tell a story.

[U2girl]

Definitely one of the most moving movies i've ever seen.
The parts that moved me the most were when they were in the camp and Guido played that song on the gramophone, and she heard him - and they both greeted her over the speakers...
And in the end, when the boy meets his mother.

[Spiral_Staircase]

I loved this film.
But I did hear someone criticizing it recently (I can never remember where I read/see anything), going so far as to call it a very dangerous film. The person's beef with it was that it's portrayal of life in a concentration camp was so far from reality. It portrayed the camps as a place where children played games and people were well-fed. He/she said this diminished the memory of what these people sufferered through and that this kind of movie will make us less diligent about making sure it never happens again.

Any thoughts on this?

[U2girl]

Originally posted by Spiral_Staircase:
I loved this film.
But I did hear someone criticizing it recently (I can never remember where I read/see anything), going so far as to call it a very dangerous film. The person's beef with it was that it's portrayal of life in a concentration camp was so far from reality. It portrayed the camps as a place where children played games and people were well-fed. He/she said this diminished the memory of what these people sufferered through and that this kind of movie will make us less diligent about making sure it never happens again.

Any thoughts on this?

Oh come on... i don't think anyone would think concentration camps were like that after seeing this movie. Remember, Germans ate well and German kids played in that movie.
Besides, i'm sure there's plenty of books out there for those who want to know. Past/history isn't meant to be taught by movies.

I also saw Schindler's list (talk about a depressive movie), and while i do appreciate the raw approach, i also liked the way Life is beautiful maintained a positive message: the right side (make that "the only side") won, and the boy's life was saved. That was the goal.

[joyfulgirl]

Originally posted by Spiral_Staircase:
I loved this film.
But I did hear someone criticizing it recently (I can never remember where I read/see anything), going so far as to call it a very dangerous film. The person's beef with it was that it's portrayal of life in a concentration camp was so far from reality. It portrayed the camps as a place where children played games and people were well-fed. He/she said this diminished the memory of what these people sufferered through and that this kind of movie will make us less diligent about making sure it never happens again.

Any thoughts on this?

Many of my friends felt this way. I remember when I saw it I was charmed by Roberto Benini (sp?) as always, but I didn't buy into the fantasy at all. Second viewing on TV, I was downright annoyed. But I wouldn't go so far as to call it dangerous because it was clearly a fantasy piece and surely we must hold a place for that in the creative arts even as we document history accurately.

[joyfulgirl]

Here is our friend Roger Ebert's take on it, which I think is accurate:

At Cannes, it offended some left-wing critics with its use of humor in connection with the Holocaust. What may be most offensive to both wings is its sidestepping of politics in favor of simple human ingenuity. The film finds the right notes to negotiate its delicate subject matter. And Benigni isn't really making comedy out of the Holocaust, anyway. He is showing how Guido uses the only gift at his command to protect his son. If he had a gun, he would shoot at the Fascists. If he had an army, he would destroy them. He is a clown, and comedy is his weapon. The movie actually softens the Holocaust slightly, to make the humor possible at all. In the real death camps there would be no role for Guido. But ``Life Is Beautiful'' is not about Nazis and Fascists, but about the human spirit. It is about rescuing whatever is good and hopeful from the wreckage of dreams. About hope for the future. About the necessary human conviction, or delusion, that things will be better for our children than they are right now.

So while the movie wasn't really my thing, I think being offended by it is carrying PCness to the extreme.



[This message has been edited by joyfulgirl (edited 03-28-2002).]

[sulawesigirl4]

I've never seen the dubbed version. Wouldn't dream of it. If I watch a foreign film, it's gotta be in the original language.

[Lilly]

It was SUCH a great movie! I loved everything about it. Storyline, characters, and especially the cinematography involved, it all combined into greatness.

------------------
I will not expose the ignorance of the faculty.

[KhanadaRhodes]

groovy movie. i really did like it a lot. we watched it in german class. i guess it was a big stretch, having to do with the ss and the second world war, but, that was my teacher for you.

[Diamond The U2 Patriot]

Originally posted by U2girl:
Oh come on... i don't think anyone would think concentration camps were like that after seeing this movie. Remember, Germans ate well and German kids played in that movie.
Besides, i'm sure there's plenty of books out there for those who want to know. Past/history isn't meant to be taught by movies.

I also saw Schindler's list (talk about a depressive movie), and while i do appreciate the raw approach, i also liked the way Life is beautiful maintained a positive message: the right side (make that "the only side") won, and the boy's life was saved. That was the goal.

I think the person miss the 'message/moral' of the movie, and that is-
Never heap more "drama" or "fear" on a child than is healthy.
The father was making a point to create a secure world for his child in the bleakest of conditions and ultimately paid w/his life.
At the appropriate time his child would end up learning the sacrifice of his father.

Diamond

ps-joyful girl got it right/w Roger Ebert.

[This message has been edited by Diamond The U2 Patriot (edited 03-31-2002).]