You know when you're about to watch a film with a title like that, you have to expect something optimistic. Optimism could be all right as a perspective to use for dealing with the Holocaust. The main struggle with LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL (or La vita è bella as it is known in its originating nation of Italy) is that it does
not seem to care for taking itself seriously. What's worse, this is the case throughout the film. It's mostly fun and games in the film's first act. This entails Guido meeting his wife, falling in love with her, and eventually marrying her. Rarely is there a remark of antisemitism when the story unfolds, so we can laugh when the script doesn't want to take itself seriously. Then comes the second act, when Guido and his son go to the concentration camp. Ironically, that's where all the humor seems horrible. This humor would fit great in another, less heavy scenario, but when it's placed here, you laugh and feel like an antisemitic bigot. The script expects us to laugh during a mad party riot, where one misplaced man is frozen still in the position of a Nazi salute. It expects us to guffaw when a man tells his son that the concentration camp they are traveling to is a game, in which you win if you are the first to get to 1,000 points. It even expects us to find it cute when a man prances off camera while held at gunpoint. I'll admit, there were some genuinely heartfelt moments this film had to offer. But as they built up on some of the grief the film needed to convey, there was usually a point at which lighthearted humor ruined the impact that could have been done.http://themoviefreakblog.com/review-life-is-beautiful
July 20, 2011
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