Bella!

Rating: 10/10 (18 October 1999)

La Vita e Bella is not a movie about the Holocaust. It is about a father and how far he goes to protect his son's innocence from the most horrible evil the world has ever seen. The movie can be split into two halves. The first showcases Benigni's extraordinary comic ability. Here we recognise that this man is a clown; a characteristic that is used to shield his son from the horrors of life in the concentration camp. His love of the human spirit enriches Brachi who falls for him. They have a son.
The second half of the movie is what seperates it from a fabulously entertaining film into a moving and life-affirming one. Benigni informs his son that he has brought him to the concentration camp so that he can win a tank; a real life tank. The boy is suitably impressed. The way that Benigni keeps the charade going is both sweet and funny. The child's collapsing innocence is kept alive by his father's ingenious tricks.
Roberto Benigni gives the most perfect performance ever in this film. As director he knows when to be funny and when to be serious. Though it is a recent performance I think that his performance will be hard to match. His little son is the most innocent looking child you will ever see and his happy face gives hope among all the tired and hungry in the camp. The music complements each scene perfectly. On listening to the soundtrack again, my mind conjures up images from the film. This shows the power of the score.

La Vita e Bella was the first foreign language film I saw. I don't think Hollywood could ever create such a masterpiece. No doubt a Hollywood version would allow sentimentality to creep in but Benigni doesn't. I have seen Il Postino since and Massimo Troisi's performance complemented another impressive film. That film was good but I don't think any film can match La Vita e Bella's majesty.