Review

Rating: 8/10 (6 December 2008)

It is obvious from the first scenes that Guido played by Roberto Benigni is an over the top far fetched character. He uses his wits and lack of any thought of repercussion to get kicks out of the mundane aspects of life. Guido finds comedy his tool to gain anything he needs. He is the exaggerated personification of optimism never failing to find the best out of any situation. The first half of the film shows Guido win the love of Dora, a beautiful and engaged Italian woman. There is nothing realistic about his methods of gaining her attention. There are just perfectly played out coincidences that Guido takes advantage of. It is almost like an embellished story passed down through the years. Guido pulls one over the top antic after another and eventually runs off with Dora. It is pure fantasy.
5 years later when the film picks up Guido and Dora have a little boy and are suddenly sent off to a Nazi death camp. This is where the film has received a large amount of praise and criticism. A Nazi death camp should not be taken lightly and I don't think it is in this movie. There are moments of over the top far-fetched humor by Benigni but they were not meant to gain laughs at the expense of the holocaust. It is simply Guido using the only thing he has at his disposal to protect his son. Sure he is cheerful and clownish to an unimaginable degree but that's what he needed to do to keep his son alive. Guido's uncle does die in the camp and so do many others. There is mention of children being taken to the showers to die and dead bodies are seen piled up. I don't think this film is a comedy at all. The "jokes" during the second half of the film are not funny to watch but painful to see a man desperately trying to stay strong in an unbearable circumstance. I'm not sure if the film lives up to all the hype to me but it is definitely effective. The performances are great all around and Benigni is convincing in both sections of the film. I don't believe it is disrespectful to the events of the holocaust although at most times obviously improbable. It is a film meant to celebrate the human spirit no matter what the situation is and it does that well.