Fresh
Yes, there are heaps of charm and poignancy in this trifle, but it's a trifle nonetheless -- light-and-bright, for sure, but also slight-and-trite.
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail
Life Is Beautiful
An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.
1997 · 1h 56m · PG-13
Comedy, Drama
Directed by
Roberto Benigni
Overview
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.
Director and cast
- Roberto Benigni Director
- Roberto Benigni as Guido
- Nicoletta Braschi as Dora
- Giorgio Cantarini as Giosué Orefice
- Giustino Durano as Eliseo Orefice
- Sergio Bini Bustric as Ferruccio
- Marisa Paredes as Dora's Mother
- Lidia Alfonsi as Signora Guicciardini
- Horst Buchholz Cast
- Giuliana Lojodice Cast
- Amerigo Fontani Cast
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
80%
Tomatometer
Fresh
Its sentiment is inescapable, but genuine poignancy and pathos are also present, and an overarching sincerity is visible too.
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
Rotten
Benigni certainly knew the risk he was taking with his idea, but the circumstances overwhelm him.
Stanley Kauffmann, The New Republic
Fresh
It's a high-wire act without a net, and Benigni pulls it off with astounding grace and sensitivity.
Sean Means, Film.com
Rotten
Sentimentality is a kind of fascism too, robbing us of judgment and moral acuity, and it needs to be resisted. Life Is Beautiful is a good place to start.
Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine
More films
Hotel Rwanda (2004)
Drama · History · War · PG-13
Inspired by true events, this film takes place in Rwanda in the 1990s when more than a million Tutsis were killed in a genocide that went mostly unnoticed by the rest of the world. Hotel owner Paul Rusesabagina houses over a thousand refuges in his hotel in attempt to save their lives.
- Runtime
- 2h 2m
- Director
- Terry George
- Cast
- Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Nick Nolte
IMDb
8.1
Rotten Tomatoes
91%
Metacritic
79
The Pianist (2002)
Drama · War · R
The true story of pianist Władysław Szpilman's experiences in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. When the Jews of the city find themselves forced into a ghetto, Szpilman finds work playing in a café; and when his family is deported in 1942, he stays behind, works for a while as a laborer, and eventually goes into hiding in the ruins of...
- Runtime
- 2h 30m
- Director
- Roman Polanski
- Cast
- Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay
IMDb
8.5
Rotten Tomatoes
95%
Metacritic
85
Schindler's List (1993)
Drama · History · War · R
The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.
- Runtime
- 3h 15m
- Director
- Steven Spielberg
- Cast
- Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes
IMDb
9.0
Rotten Tomatoes
98%
Metacritic
95
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
Drama · Family · Fantasy · PG
A holiday favourite for generations... George Bailey has spent his entire life giving to the people of Bedford Falls. All that prevents rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town is George's modest building and loan company. But on Christmas Eve the business's $8,000 is lost and George's troubles begin.
- Runtime
- 2h 10m
- Director
- Frank Capra
- Cast
- James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore
IMDb
8.6
Rotten Tomatoes
94%
Metacritic
89
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008)
Drama · History · War · PG-13
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 da...
- Runtime
- 1h 34m
- Director
- Mark Herman
- Cast
- Asa Butterfield, Vera Farmiga, David Thewlis
IMDb
7.7
Rotten Tomatoes
65%
Metacritic
55
Comments
Talk about the film with other members